[StBernard] THE BASIC RULES FOR CLOTHESLINES

[Westley Annis]

THE BASIC RULES FOR CLOTHESLINES (if you don't know what clotheslines are,
better skip this)

You have to be a certain age to appreciate this. I can hear my mother now...

1.  You had to wash the clothes line before hanging any clothes-walk the
whole length of each line with a damp cloth around the lines.

2.  You had to hang the clothes in a certain order, and always hang "whites"
with "whites," and hang them first.

3.  You never hung a shirt by the shoulders - always by the tail!  What
would the neighbors think?

4.  Wash day on a Monday!...Never hang clothes on the  weekend, or Sunday,
for Heaven's sake!

5.  Hang the sheets and towels on the outside lines so you could hide your
"unmentionables" in the middle - perverts and busy  bodies, y'know!

6.  It didn't matter if it was sub zero weather...clothes would
"freeze-dry."

7.  Always gather the clothes pins when taking down dry clothes!  

Pins left on the lines  were "tacky!"

8.  If you were efficient, you would line the clothes up so that each item
did not need two clothes pins, but shared one of the clothes pins with the
next washed item.

9.  Clothes off of  the line before dinner time, neatly folded in the
clothes basket, and ready to be ironed.

10. IRONED?!  Well, that's a whole other subject!


A  POEM

A  clothesline was a news forecast
To neighbors passing by. 
There were no secrets you could keep
When clothes were hung to dry.
It also was a friendly link 
For neighbors always knew
If company had stopped on by 
To spend a night or two.
For then you'd see the "fancy sheets"
And towels upon the line; 
You'd see the  "company table cloths"
With intricate designs.
The line announced a baby's birth

>From folks who lived inside -

As brand new infant clothes were hung,
So carefully with pride!
The ages of the children could 
So readily be known
By watching how the sizes changed, 
You'd know how much they'd grown!
It also told when illness struck,
As extra sheets were hung;
Then nightclothes, and a bathrobe, too,
Haphazardly were strung.
It also said, "Gone on vacation now" 
When lines hung limp and  bare.
It told, "We're back!" when full lines sagged 
With not an inch to spare! 
New folks in town were scorned upon 
If wash was dingy and gray,
As neighbors carefully raised their brows,
And looked the other way . . 
But clotheslines now are of the past,
For dryers make work much less.
Now what goes on inside a home 
Is anybody's guess!
I really miss that way of life. 
It was a friendly sign 
When neighbors knew each other best
By what hung on the line!

Rena