One of the things I said I'd "never do" when I bought the Chatette, was to hang clothes on the line to dry on the covered terrace. I'd never done it in New Orleans, and certainly didn't expect to do it here since I bought both a washer and a dryer for the Chatette. I quickly discovered that my dryer didn't have the power of my New Orleans variety and then there was the lavender. Once the scent of lavender snuck into the bedding and clothes I had put out to dry on the line, my never became an always!
The other discovery I made is the wonder of hanging my overalls out on the line to dry. In the states I'd usually hang them on a hanger on the rod in the bathroom or drape them over the bannister to upstairs to dry. But as you can see, here they hang perfectly nicely from the clothes line on their very own...no hangers, no clothespins, no draping...just button them over the clothes line like you were getting ready to wear them in the garden or for some excavation project. This is only one, of the very many things that are practical about overalls. I'm looking forward to sharing my practical experiences and tips on overalls with you from time to time.
Talking with my friend Joan on the phone the other day, she teased me about having an "overall fetish"! I don't think of it like that, but the next day I received an e-mail saying that she was joining in on my "overall fetish" and sent the shot in the corner of her two beautiful daughters in their overalls! It was fun to see Jessica and Jameson who I've only known as teenagers, in their overalls in their two's. I hope the rest of my friends will join me in my now "overall fetish" and forward any pictures you may have of yourself or friends and family that you might want me to include in the International Overalls Day Photo Album. Happy Overall-ing!
One of the many things I love about living here, is that it is simple and uncomplicated in ways that it would be difficult to pull off in the states. The electricity went off a couple of times this morning (twice while I was on the computer) but I just let go, lit a couple of candles, wrote in my journal, played some piano and decided that if I had to have that hot cup of coffee I could heat it on the gas stove...so la vie en France is a good one! Love the story Niels-I think it might be good for all of us to get closer to the source!
Posted by: Laury Bourgeois | July 23, 2009 at 04:57 PM
between my article work right now, I cannot refrain of telling another story about 20 years when we had 2 small kids, a large house and almost no money, we even did ALL our laundry without machines, when our clothes washing machine broke down, and my brave father in law made a special washing table for us, so we could wash linen etc. without getting our back broken ! it was hard, I must admit, but our 2 adult sons are able to keep their clothes clean no matter where they are ! in fact, my wife asked me last night: what can we do more in order to live simple and frugal: no car, 90 % of clothes are 2nd hand, 80 % vegetarian, well we have a washing machine and we have 2 houses, one in Norway and one in Denmark, so some day we will live in only one house and grow our own food, but still travel !
Posted by: Niels Windfeld Lund | July 23, 2009 at 03:06 PM
Never say never is a valuable lesson to learn! Last fall,I started hanging all my clothes to dry either on the clothesline or on a drying rack in the house...I've saved about $10/month on my electric bill since then. Not a lot, but it helps and saves energy. Of course, it works because it's only just me; if I had a house full of kids, husband, I'd never be able to do it.
Posted by: Evelyn Jackson | July 23, 2009 at 01:09 PM