Every year I try to invest in at least one thing that will improve my quality of life.
In 2017 I invested in a refurbished desktop computer to make writing easier.
In 2018 I invested in some shelves, a number of books to educate myself, and a larger monitor so that I could see the screen on my computer better.
This year your friendly neighborhood cheapskate invested in a washing machine.
While I don’t mind going to the laundromat, my schedule has become so hectic with work that I dread taking time away from my day to load up, drag the stuff the few blocks to the laundromat, and listening to screaming kids as I spend my hard-earned cash washing up. I’ve debated the individual merits for at least a year or so even on this website, and I finally located a machine that will pay for itself quickly. It’s not as large or as fancy as the kid wanted but it will wash about 95% of my laundry so I am content.
I paid a bit under $80 for the washer, a warranty, and one of those little floaty lint catchers, and have been busy wearing it out ever since. With the chaos of these past few
For several days after it arrived I kept that little machine busy every single moment I was at home. I quickly discovered that the fill hose it comes with is virtually useless; even if you rig it up to your sink, it is so small that it takes ages to fill the wash tub. It’s a much quicker process to just fill up a couple of buckets and dump it in.
To use the washing machine, I simply place it in my bathtub and position the drain hose so that the water goes straight into my drain. I fill it up with buckets from the faucet, adjust the knobs, and putter around doing other things as it does its thing. To dry, I hang them up on my drying rack after I spin them out.
The laundry completely dries in just a few hours.
Now that my laundry is caught up I simply wait until I have a small load. I stick it in the washer either before or after my work shifts depending upon my schedule.
It is truly a game changer.
You don’t know how useful something is until you do without it for a time. I’d never much thought about how convenient having a washing machine could be until I lived for years without one.
Even better, now that I have a washing machine again I’m able to reduce how much money I spend, not only at the laundromat, but around this house, cause this girl is going back to using cloth for a number of items again. I’ve already went back to using my handkerchiefs to blow my nose instead of bathroom tissue. I’ve went back to using cloth even for cleaning up nasty messes since it’s no big deal to toss a couple of really dirty items into the washer and knock them out in an individual load.
I’m even seriously considering going back to using family cloths instead of purchasing bathroom tissue, but that’s still up for debate.
For the moment I’m simply going to savor the fact that I can wash laundry whenever I want while I debate the merits of investing in a small dryer.
What have you done to upgrade your life so far this year? Please share your stories in the comments below.
My husband and I were without a washer and dryer for most of last year. When we finally got a set, there was great joy and celebrating. You’re absolutely right….going without something really makes you appreciate it when you get it back. I never thought an appliance could make me so happy. 🙂
Oh yes! It is absolute heaven to be able to wash things whenever I want to instead of having to save them up and haul them to the laundromat. I didn’t realize just how much I missed that luxury until I bought this little machine!