Airing my dirty laundry

So, I did it.
The mountain of laundry rising from my laundry room floor became so daunting this week I piled it in the car and went to the Laundromat.
Actually, I’ve thought of it here and there. In fact, one of my friends with lots of kids said it was quite an efficient way to get it all done. And now that I’ve got soccer uniforms and dirt stained clothes from outside play to add to the mix it made sense.
What sealed the deal was an article my husband gave me. It was really a piece about work-life and how to challenge yourself to meet goals by thinking of how one challenge can check off many boxes.
Those who know me might already have discovered I have the ability to take on many tasks at once without really accomplishing any of them on a given day. Thus my problem with laundry. I start a load in the morning. Head downstairs, notice the dishwasher needs unloading. Start that, then the dog needs outside. Coming back in I see the kids have a school form to fill out, go to look for a pen, nearly trip over the open dishwasher, finish unloading, kick it closed, hear dog barking, let her back in, feel the need to check email head to the computer… and so on and so on you get the idea. I totally forget about the laundry until I go upstairs later that night to put the kids to bed.
Taking stock is part of the program this aforementioned article addressed and after really looking at my inability to focus on the task at hand (incidentally, this is what made me a great journalist- the ability to jump from task to task and finish by a deadline) I realized I had to change my enviroment. And if I went to the Laundromat, I could sit and focus on something else – my writing. Thank goodness for laptops!
So after mustering the courage to try this plan (another point of the article is trying something with the understanding it might not work) I headed to the strip mall laundry in the next town.
As I drag the first load in the door I gracefully say “So, um, how does this all work now? Haven’t been to one since college,” to the attendant at the front of the place. Luckily there’s no one else in there to witness my panache, as I start loading up the 50 pounder followed by the 40 pounder of whites and the 30 pounder next to it. Seriously, more than 100 pounds of laundry? On a Tuesday? And I still have a load in the washer and dryer at home.
But here’s the really cool thing. It’s been less than an hour and I’ve watched all my hundred pounds of laundry whirl around in soapy water, then whir dry and now I’ve finished a blog post. Now all I have to do it fold it, load it back in and put it away. How’s that for efficient!
Well, it would be except that it's now five days later that I actually find the time again to post this blog and if you look upstairs.... a nicely folded basket of laundry is still sitting in the hall waiting patiently to be put away. C'est la vie!