A clothes line

After reading an Op Ed piece about how much electricity a clothes dryer uses, and the virtues of hang drying your clothes outside, I am seriously considering this lifestyle change.

In 1989, when we moved into our new -- but old as it was built in 1964 -- house, a clothes line was attached to the back of the house. In the summer, you would pull the line out and attach it to a pole at the opposite end. For a long time, my mom dried her clothes on that clothes line, sheets and underwear alike hanging in the breeze. I think the line broke a few years back, because on a recent visit her clothes were hanging over the railing of the deck. New location, but she still hang dries her clothes.

We bought our new washer/dryer only last year and the washer's spinning mechanism is so fast that the intent is to ring out so much of the water that you don't need to dry your clothes as long. So I doubt we'd be saving the $100 the Op-Ed's author is saving; however, there's something about it that makes sense nonetheless.

For instance, when it's 80 degrees outside, does it make sense to dry your clothes in the dryer?

Off our kitchen, we have a utilitarian patio with the hose and shed, as well as my pots full of tomatoes, onions, and peppers. That spot seem's ideal to sun dry our clothes. My only question is would any of our neighbors complain -- the clothes line isn't seen much these days and our backyards are pretty close together.

And I would feel a little bit embarrassed having my undies hanging in the breeze, not to mention that I highly doubt Matt would let me even get close to the doorway with any of his unmentionables. This may turn into a covert operation.

15 years later ...

Over the 4th, my best friend from High School got married.

At 15, we were as thick as thieves, as only pals in high school can be. Perched on the kitchen counter, I would be on the phone (no cordless then) talking for hours, even though we had just seen each other all day in school; our conversation peppered with gossip about boys, boys, and more boys -- mostly public school boys because they were cooler. After school would mean track practice (before the driver's license) or driving around town looking for boys (after the driver's license).

Prom 1993: Fancy dresses and big hair

15 year later... better hair and more wisdom

Somewhere in college we drew apart, then we grew back together after college, then I moved and our lives went their separate way again -- different jobs, different friends, different lives ...

In May for Matt's graduation party, she showed up and talking to her again was like talking to an old friend who just got back form a long vacation. We were too comfortable for chit chat, thank goodness, but I felt there was so much I didn't know.

So maybe we're not the best friends we once were and we don't see each other as often as we should, but I always know she's there. If we were to fall back into each other's lives, it would be like discovering a whole new friendship, but with someone who knows some (but not all ) of my dirty secrets.

Ravinia

Last week, Matt and I went to Ravinia to see the Chicago Symphony Orchestra play with guest violinist Joshua Bell.
If you've ever seen the movie The Red Violin (which I highly recommend), he was the principal violin soloist for all the music. We were sitting in the grass so I had to go up to the pavilion to see how he plays -- and of course I took a few pictures before the guard yelled at me. There was no sign about photos, I swear. And this was the best photo I could get so honestly, why make all the fuss.
Last month, I bought a new (well, old...very old) viola so I've been all "violin/viola this, and violin/viola that." So when I saw JB was coming to Ravinia, it was a no-brainer that I needed to be there and dragging Matt was easy when I said it meant eating 4 varieties of cheese and drinking wine in a park.

Of course, after hearing him play and then having to go back to my Suzuki Book 2 --I'm starting from scratch after my 12 year viola hiatus-- I felt like a kid... and like a loser. I've recorded some songs, but blogger won't let me upload songs directly like Typepad does -- for it to work I have to put it on another website that hosts music and then link it. So I might just take a video instead (except that my camera doesn't have sound because it's sacre bleu 4 years old!) I'll borrow my mom's...