Winter and Laundry

After living in Mammoth for 6 winters, the term "winter" came to mean cold and snow and way too much time spent indoors. When January rolled around and we arrived here in Hawaii, I laughed at the fact that it was "winter" yet I got up each day and picked out a tank top and a pair of capris and was comfortable from sunrise to sunset. We even managed to spend several days at the beach and began to get some color on our winter-white flesh. This was my kind of winter.

Then came February. I have noticed a real change in the weather from when we first arrived. Now I get up and pick out a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of jeans or long pants. Slippers are still my daily choice for footwear (or flip-flops, as they are known by you mainlanders), but there are times in the evenings when I trade in my slippers for socks! I don't remember the last time we had a clear, sunny day. The wind howls, the rain pours, the sky is gray, my skin is once again pale. This is a Hawaiian winter.

One challenge winter has brought to me is in the laundry department! I was very content to buy a second-hand washing machine and no dryer, happy to line-dry my clothes in the breeze. I ordered a nice umbrella-style clothesline to put in the backyard in full view of the sun where the clothes would dry nicely in a few hours. It's been sitting in the garage for two weeks. I also purchased two indoor drying racks which sit in our bedroom and it takes both of them to hang one load of laundry to dry, not to mention about 24 hours of drying time! I have one small line outside under the carport where I can hang sheets and larger items when I need to. Needless to say, drying laundry in a Hawaiian winter is a challenge! Did I mention that I use cloth diapers??? Yeah, those take a LONG time to dry!

I must say, though, that I am not complaining and would still take a Hawaiian winter over a Sierra Nevada winter any day!