One jump ahead of the spin cycle

So, laundry in Japan is a serious business – something that is part art, part science. One nice thing about this is that the washing machines are pretty sophisticated. For example, on our machine, you can actually fill it with soap and clothes and then set a timer to tell it when to start.

Why would you ever do this? While the crazy washing machines are standard in each house, clothes dryers aren’t. So people hang their laundry outside. But, if you live in an apartment, your balcony/side of the house might get sun only for a few hours a day, as is the case with us. If this “sunny time” falls in the morning for you, you’d have to get up extra early to start the wash or have wet clothes in your house overnight.

Well, we’ve set the timer a few times, but, well, the washing machine isn’t exactly quiet. After a few mornings being awakened by what sounded like a train running through our house, I came up with a new solution:

(TA-DA!)

I’ll just wash the clothes without the timer in the afternoon, hang them wet at twilight, let them start to dry all night long, and then let them bask in the early morning sunshine (while we stay asleep in bed).

I think this is a great plan. However, it meant that I was hanging out wet laundry just at the exact moment that every self-respecting Japanese housewife was taking her laundry in for evening, thus furthering the idea that we really are crazy Americans who can’t understand the way things work in Japan. I swear my neighbors were laughing at me. But I am actually quite proud of this system!

Also, I can’t believe I just made a whole post about laundry.