Some people may not believe this, but one of the few things that I really dislike about our new house is the dishwasher. Not just because it doesn’t do a good job (or as good a job as I would do), or because something is wrong with it and it has to be re-started several times during the wash cycle, but because IT’S THERE. It’s taken away one of my guilty pleasures: washing dishes. Oh, I admit it’s nice to have it the morning after a big dinner party, but otherwise, on a daily business, I miss my suds. There’s something purely therapeutic for me in handwashing dishes, and besides that, I’m good at it. I can remember my mom plunking my freshly washed attempts back into the dishpan, when I was a resentful 16-year-old, telling me to do them over and make the water hotter, this time!
When I was in high school, I was in 3 different choirs, and I used to practice, singing over the dishes while I washed them. I don’t do that nowadays on the rare occasions when I get to handwash dishes, but I think about it, and the melodies are flowing in my head. 🙂
Strange what household chores some people find soothing, and some find purely “pest,” as they say in Swedish. Besides washing dishes, I like folding laundry and picking up and vacuuming. I don’t mind dusting or even cleaning the bathrooms, but the dirtspots on the floor have to be threatening to mutate before I’ll mop. I HATE mopping.
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Speaking of pleasures, I’ve been on a Festis kick lately. After being introduced to their Dandelion Apple juice by Angie, I couldn’t resist trying every flavor, and now regularly spend a small fortune on bottles of the aforementioned DA, Dragonfruit (!) Pear, Strawberry Grapefruit and Cactus Lime. Orange is too common for me to bother with, and Cassis isn’t a favorite. They also have a toxic-looking neon blue variant (Blueberry Lemon) which I find disgusting, but which my children delight in. Probably the blue tongues. Note to Festis manufacturers: 2-liter bottles would make me VERY happy. 🙂
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All the photos, including those from yesterday’s beach outing, are now edited and the pages are finished. I just have to write the “What’s New” letter and then I can update our website. Dilemma: wait for the pictures due on Friday from the disposable camera we were forced to buy during vacation when the digital pooped out or go ahead if ready tomorrow?