Murderer of the Machine

For someone who hates the laundry as much as I do, I sure go through the machines. I'm sure it's because I've been quite stingy when it comes to appliance investments. I mean, I hate the laundry so much that you can imagine how much more I hate the thought of spending money on getting it done.

When we moved to this house a little over a year ago, we brought with us the washer that came with our Oklahoma house, and a dryer I purchased for $17 at a thrift store when we realized we needed an electric dryer as opposed to the gas one we had. Nearly immediately after moving here, the washer died, so I bought another one last summer at a garage sale for $50. That washer died around Christmastime, so I bought one from my mom's friend for $50. About two months ago, the $17 dryer died, so James bought one for $25 during our neighborhood garage sale. I killed it a couple weeks later.

Now, allow me to clarify the fact that I know how to do laundry. I empty pockets, I sort by color, and contrary to popular belief, I do not overfill my machines. Still, I seem to pick used appliances in the midst of their last spin. We decided, then, that it was time to plunk down some real change and invest in a reliable set because no matter how I hate it, laundry must be done with some degree of frequency, and a working machine makes that possible.

Every spare moment we've had this week has been spent in appliance showrooms. After work, before the kids got home from school, in between rehearsal and recital -- days and days of being totally overwhelmed. Today, by myself, with no impatient husband or children trying to lock one another in side-by-side refrigerators, I found a set I wanted at a price that wouldn't kill me -- this Samsung pair in your basic laundry room white. I was sold by the user reviews of 4.5-5 out of 5 stars, and by the Samsung website that says this [with my additions]:

"When time is money, you don't want to do several loads of laundry if you could do it all in one load [particularly if you hate the laundry as much as I do]. The WF337 washing machine lets you wash more clothes in fewer loads, saving you precious time and money [thereby making you less likely to end your life by ingesting the laundry soap]."

I browsed briefly this morning before spotting the set, after which I promptly had the sales lady draw up the sale. I had the option of delivery, which would take 4-5 days and would cost $65 for the first 25 miles and some undetermined surcharge for the 15 miles more to our house. Instead of that, I opted to rent a
Budget van for $15, into which the warehouse employees would load the set for me to take home immediately. The latter seemed like the timeliest and most frugal option.

I rented the van in the morning thinking I would get home, unload it, and return it, all before the end of the school day. Though I had two men loading the set, I didn't think of who would unload it for me when I got home. And with James spending the week in Iowa, he couldn't run home to my rescue. The whole way home I pondered my predicament, wondering what to do and not believing I'd overlooked that most important detail. I talked to my mom, who became quite stressed out. I talked to Amy, who laughed at me. In the midst of the driving, the stress, and the laughing, I decided I would try to wrangle a neighbor, and if that wouldn't work, I'd try to bribe some construction workers who were nearby, finishing out our neighborhood.

I got home, made space in the garage (where the set will sit until James comes home to hook it up), and found that the neighbor I was hoping to have help me wasn't home. Also, though it's crunch time for neighborhood completion, there were no construction workers anywhere. I stood in my driveway wondering if I had the upper body strength necessary to singlehandedly heave appliances when another neighbor way down the street came out for his mail. At the promise of a free lunch, he came down to help me out. With minimal complaining on his part, we got the set unloaded and I returned the van in a timely manner.

I am so glad to have this process out of the way, though I am still unsure about my degree of upper body strength.

Plus, now I have no excuses with regards to the laundry.

And that is just not good.

The New Washer -- Long May It "Lave"