Today was another beautiful autumn day - sunny, 70's, bright colors - and perfect for hanging laundry out to dry. Aaaah. One last chance to wear my summer sundresses and white ballet flats. Yes, I wear white after Labor Day. I never said I was a fashion queen.
I gathered everything up to bring in as the sun was setting, and noticed a golf-ball sized black stain on my tan fitted sheet: black walnut. Unfortunately, in someone's great wisdom, they not only managed to hang the laundry line under a tree (read: many bugs and spiders, possibility of bird poop), but they chose the only black walnut tree on the property. I am so glad we only rent this place. It's a fine place. It's a pretty location, and convenient to school. I'm just glad it's not mine.
Don't get me wrong. I love toasted walnuts and pretty furniture made of walnut wood. The squirrels outside constantly entertain my cats with their antics to get at the meat of the nuts, even carrying the whole, un-peeled and un-hulled nut in their mouths. The walnuts are bigger than their heads, mind you. This is pretty comic.
The problem is this: when walnuts are ripe, they have a bright green, spongy, wrinkly skin that cracks and bleeds a terribly black/brown dye, which is quite useful for things like
A. Staining the back patio and roof in a very random polka-dot pattern
B. Dyeing cloth the old fashioned way
C. Inadvertently staining one's clothing
D. All of the above.
I'm pretty upset, but this gives me a bit of hope: Cornell University has done a study on stain removal. Hallelujah! There's even a special section on page 11 of the PDF that explains how to remove black walnut stains. Cornell does a lot of great things, and I trust their research. Let's see how it turns out together, eh?
For black walnut, they say to use a solution of hand dishwashing detergent and warm water with a few drops of white vinegar to break up the stain. I've done that, and I'm waiting for the nasty blackness to seep into my beat-up cotton dishtowel. I might have to throw this one away when I'm done.
I'll keep you posted...
...update: the stain is almost completely gone! I treated the stain for 24 hours, blotting and re-wetting and blotting and re-wetting... and then I washed it again. The stain is now almost imperceptible. Hooray! Thanks, Cornell.
Showing posts with label laundry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label laundry. Show all posts
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Monday, April 27, 2009
a possibility
i applied for a K-5 Vocal Music and General Music position on Friday! i'm excited that there's the possibility of a music education job out there for me. i'm hoping and praying that i will be called to interview. i'm a little bit apprehensive, since i haven't taught at the K-3 level before, but i think i'll be able to do well with some help from my colleagues, a curriculum, and some extra study during the summer (for me, that is). it looks like a good opportunity for me to build some more confidence in my teaching, to have some more experience to put on my resume, and for a lot more money than i'm making right now!
it has been tough to stay with the job i'm in now - a lot of the work takes very little brain function to perform well. the flow of work is also tricky. some days there is absolutely nothing for me to do but answer the phone and greet people when, or if, they walk into the office. other days, there is so much to get done that i can't possibly finish it all in one day! dealing with realtors can be frustrating, too. some of them get so worked up about the smallest details, which reminds me of myself when i finally get home from work, i'm tired, and i can hardly deal with life. it has been good to be the one to encourage them, but hard to see adults acting like this. is it normal for someone to get screaming mad when the fax machine copies instead of faxes? or to completely abandon a project when the copy machine jams 3 times in a row? or to yell at me for naming their pictures the wrong thing when they didn't send me labels for them at all?
you see what i mean.
the environment has also been eye-opening for me. i come from a very conservative background, but here, i am surrounded by liberal thought. this is too much "real world" for me.
as you can read from the previous post, i'm a little shell-shocked, as I believe i should be.
happier note, though:
i have been reading C.S. Lewis's book, Surprised by Joy, which he wrote as an autobiography. the book chronicles the moments in his life as he lost his faith in childhood, took up atheism, discovered Joy in his adolescence, and found the truth of Christianity by his adult years. it's so enjoyable to read his writing and to think along with him (if you can call it that, since he's dead now, and since it's the written word) about the things that bring us joy, and what we truly desire in life. sigh.
this past weekend was absolutely beautiful, and such a blessing! i woke up saturday morning feeling like it was a vacation (well, plus laundry and some housecleaning), with sunny, light-filled rooms, and warm breezes. so nice. my dear husband and i even took a picnic down to the lake and enjoyed being quiet with each other there. i took a few pictures, which i hope to post soon. we needed the break - i'm so glad we could be with each other.
sunday, i finally got to practice piano! it has been months, and i'm really sad about that. i've lost some of my skill, but i think i can get it back with some more practice. and time. and diligence. i really hope i can be more consistent about the whole thing.
and with that, i'm going to go back to work. meaning, i'm going to try to find something to do until 6.
maybe i'll make a salad. :o)
it has been tough to stay with the job i'm in now - a lot of the work takes very little brain function to perform well. the flow of work is also tricky. some days there is absolutely nothing for me to do but answer the phone and greet people when, or if, they walk into the office. other days, there is so much to get done that i can't possibly finish it all in one day! dealing with realtors can be frustrating, too. some of them get so worked up about the smallest details, which reminds me of myself when i finally get home from work, i'm tired, and i can hardly deal with life. it has been good to be the one to encourage them, but hard to see adults acting like this. is it normal for someone to get screaming mad when the fax machine copies instead of faxes? or to completely abandon a project when the copy machine jams 3 times in a row? or to yell at me for naming their pictures the wrong thing when they didn't send me labels for them at all?
you see what i mean.
the environment has also been eye-opening for me. i come from a very conservative background, but here, i am surrounded by liberal thought. this is too much "real world" for me.
as you can read from the previous post, i'm a little shell-shocked, as I believe i should be.
happier note, though:
i have been reading C.S. Lewis's book, Surprised by Joy, which he wrote as an autobiography. the book chronicles the moments in his life as he lost his faith in childhood, took up atheism, discovered Joy in his adolescence, and found the truth of Christianity by his adult years. it's so enjoyable to read his writing and to think along with him (if you can call it that, since he's dead now, and since it's the written word) about the things that bring us joy, and what we truly desire in life. sigh.
this past weekend was absolutely beautiful, and such a blessing! i woke up saturday morning feeling like it was a vacation (well, plus laundry and some housecleaning), with sunny, light-filled rooms, and warm breezes. so nice. my dear husband and i even took a picnic down to the lake and enjoyed being quiet with each other there. i took a few pictures, which i hope to post soon. we needed the break - i'm so glad we could be with each other.
sunday, i finally got to practice piano! it has been months, and i'm really sad about that. i've lost some of my skill, but i think i can get it back with some more practice. and time. and diligence. i really hope i can be more consistent about the whole thing.
and with that, i'm going to go back to work. meaning, i'm going to try to find something to do until 6.
maybe i'll make a salad. :o)
Friday, March 13, 2009
it has been a while.
so here goes.
it has been crazy.
this past week, my husband was off from school, so i had some extra help around the house. this is excellent. i'm enjoying not having to do everything at once!
found out this week that my insurance doesn't cover regular doctor's visits. i'm not sick - i just need an appointment. and we don't have vision coverage. and i need new contacts. a new prescription, actually. insurance here in NY is super expensive, and ridiculous. people talk about affordable healthcare for everyone - um, when? and how in the world is that possible?
taking a moment for an attitude check:
i really do have everything i need
i am grateful for my job
i am loved
and it's sunny outside.
pms is such an annoying thing. trying to cope without crying, yelling, or overreacting. or being insanely silly, like i was at worship rehearsal last night. or overeating on sweets. i have kept up the walking-during-lunch-every-day thing at work. so that's a plus, right? it almost negates one piece of candy.
the in-laws are coming this weekend, and i'm excited. i've baked a cake to celebrate their birthdays - dad's on last Sunday, and mom's on this Sunday. it's amazing yellow cake - fluffy, perfectly vanilla-y sweet. i made a round 2-layer, and stuck strawberry jam between the two. the best part? the icing is Hershey's special-dark chocolate. you actually melt a whole stick of butter, add the baking cocoa, and then gradually the 3 cups of powdered sugar, alternating with the 1/3 cup of milk. vanilla goes in last, and voila - amazing. so smooth, so very chocolaty. and great for me being so overemotional and such. it came out perfectly when i iced the cake, so i topped it with heart shaped sprinkles (maybe a little too valentine-esque, but whatever. i like it.), and displayed it on my crystal cake stand...in the fridge, of course. i'm proud of myself!
last night, in addition to worship rehearsal after work (which was good), I managed to clean the entire shower (not fun) and the vinyl shower curtain liner. bleach is my friend. i don't like either of those tasks, but it's over. and stuff is clean.
want to hear about a laundry fiasco? i'm already frustrated that i have to pay for laundry, though i know that many other people do, but this was worse. our clothes went in the washer, with soap, for the right amount of time, on the cold cycle. i came back 23 minutes later to find that the machine didn't actually complete the final spin cycle. everything was absolutely soaked. and freezing. and it was raining outside.
so i squeezed most of the water out of most of the things and i hung them up to dry. here's the most annoying part: there was my lovely, thirsty cotton-loop bath mat in that load of wash. it was so heavily soaked that it was hard to carry, let alone hang. and there was no space. i put it in the dryer on high, alone. it came out still wet, but at least it was hang-able. i hung it up for three days to dry - and when i took it down, it had RUST SPOTS. three lovely lines of yellowish rust. this seems impossible, especially knowing that my metal drying rack is actually painted white. there are no chips in it. it's almost new. but, alas - there are the stains.
i know someone else has to have made a mistake like that.
at any rate, i've been very thankful for my husband's help this week - he has been really amazing.
love.
it has been crazy.
this past week, my husband was off from school, so i had some extra help around the house. this is excellent. i'm enjoying not having to do everything at once!
found out this week that my insurance doesn't cover regular doctor's visits. i'm not sick - i just need an appointment. and we don't have vision coverage. and i need new contacts. a new prescription, actually. insurance here in NY is super expensive, and ridiculous. people talk about affordable healthcare for everyone - um, when? and how in the world is that possible?
taking a moment for an attitude check:
i really do have everything i need
i am grateful for my job
i am loved
and it's sunny outside.
pms is such an annoying thing. trying to cope without crying, yelling, or overreacting. or being insanely silly, like i was at worship rehearsal last night. or overeating on sweets. i have kept up the walking-during-lunch-every-day thing at work. so that's a plus, right? it almost negates one piece of candy.
the in-laws are coming this weekend, and i'm excited. i've baked a cake to celebrate their birthdays - dad's on last Sunday, and mom's on this Sunday. it's amazing yellow cake - fluffy, perfectly vanilla-y sweet. i made a round 2-layer, and stuck strawberry jam between the two. the best part? the icing is Hershey's special-dark chocolate. you actually melt a whole stick of butter, add the baking cocoa, and then gradually the 3 cups of powdered sugar, alternating with the 1/3 cup of milk. vanilla goes in last, and voila - amazing. so smooth, so very chocolaty. and great for me being so overemotional and such. it came out perfectly when i iced the cake, so i topped it with heart shaped sprinkles (maybe a little too valentine-esque, but whatever. i like it.), and displayed it on my crystal cake stand...in the fridge, of course. i'm proud of myself!
last night, in addition to worship rehearsal after work (which was good), I managed to clean the entire shower (not fun) and the vinyl shower curtain liner. bleach is my friend. i don't like either of those tasks, but it's over. and stuff is clean.
want to hear about a laundry fiasco? i'm already frustrated that i have to pay for laundry, though i know that many other people do, but this was worse. our clothes went in the washer, with soap, for the right amount of time, on the cold cycle. i came back 23 minutes later to find that the machine didn't actually complete the final spin cycle. everything was absolutely soaked. and freezing. and it was raining outside.
so i squeezed most of the water out of most of the things and i hung them up to dry. here's the most annoying part: there was my lovely, thirsty cotton-loop bath mat in that load of wash. it was so heavily soaked that it was hard to carry, let alone hang. and there was no space. i put it in the dryer on high, alone. it came out still wet, but at least it was hang-able. i hung it up for three days to dry - and when i took it down, it had RUST SPOTS. three lovely lines of yellowish rust. this seems impossible, especially knowing that my metal drying rack is actually painted white. there are no chips in it. it's almost new. but, alas - there are the stains.
i know someone else has to have made a mistake like that.
at any rate, i've been very thankful for my husband's help this week - he has been really amazing.
love.
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