Being Lax with the Laundry Room

First of all, I apologize for the long delay in posting. Graduation was super busy, and then I got to unwind in Santa Barbara for a week. But I'm back, with many more things that drive me nuts.

Okay...so I live in an apartment building with one washing machine and one dryer. Though there are only seven units, there is a perpetual battle to get laundry done. In my busy schedule, I often find myself with a very small window of time to clean my clothes, and so when I bag it all up and carry it down to the basement, I'm hoping for the best. When the machine is going, then all's fair, someone got there first, I have to wait. But what is INTOLERABLE is when the machine is off and you're psyched, but when you open the washer or dryer, someone's clothes are just sitting there.

Now, I'm not saying anyone should have to sit down there and transfer their clothes the moment the machine stops. There is a grace period. But if you leave your crap down there for more than 20 minutes, you're a real pain in the butt. I'll leave and wait 15 minutes and come back. Stuff still there. Leave and come back, leave and come back...stuff still there. Where did the person go?? And are they EVER coming back? Do they think they are the only person who needs to clean their clothes? They're all, "I'll just throw my clothes in here and then go on vacation for a week." Jerks.

I think it's fair game to take someone's stuff out of the wash and stick it in the dryer if they don't show after 20 minutes. But then you know they'll show up at the last minute and start the dryer the second you're ready for it. So you have to wait AGAIN. If they don't show up, then you have to haul their crap back into the washer. It sucks.

And all the while, it's just awkward. I don't exactly like touching other people's clothes. And I'm sure they don't like me touching their clothes. I also live in fear of the moment that ensues when they show up in the middle of me moving their crap. AWKWARD. You're all, "hi...here's your underwear." Taking stuff out of the dryer is even trickier. It's okay to leave wet clothes in a pile in the dryer...but I don't want to leave someone's dry, clean clothes in a heap. So am I supposed to fold their stuff? It seems polite...but it takes forever and makes it even more likely that they will walk in while I'm handling their delicates. And why should they get nicely folded laundry? That's rewarding inconsiderate behavior. It's just a bad situation.

I long for the day when I have my own washer and dryer. When I don't have to wonder what kind of funky stuff someone is sticking in there, when I don't have to clean out a stranger's lint trap, and when I don't have to hoard quarters like they're gold. Alas, for now I must continue to rely on other people's laundry etiquette...and hold my breath while I handle my neighbors' unmentionables.