Coveting the Clothesline

I seem to remember everyone having a clothesline when I was a kid. It was the standard yard fixture of the day, along with a windmill, flagpole and pink flamingo. But when clothes dryers came into the norm then I guess the clothesline was abandoned because it was viewed as something used by cheap backwards, not forwards thinking people. That and the fact that viewing the neighbors unmentionable drawers might have been giving everyone just a little too much unnecessary information. No wonder everyone had modest underwear back then.

Maybe I’m getting green but I’ve found myself oggling over clotheslines quite a bit lately. Maybe it’s because I can’t seem to find a decent (able to withstand a small wind storm or swinging kid sturdy) one anywhere to save the life of me. Isn’t it a known fact that if you can’t get something you want it even more?

I suppose I could bribe my merit-badge earning boys to build me a stout wood beamed one but I don’t think it would last long in our wet climate. It’s the metal T-shaped monstrosity that I really covet.

The kind that my kids can throw sheets over and make impromptu tents. I can picture them out there now swatting mosquitoes while reading or eating smores with all the neighborhood friends.

And by-dingy wouldn’t we be the envy of the neighborhood if I staged marvelous musical extravaganzas from our very own Clothesline Theater.

And all those pennies we would save by not running our energy efficient government mandated dryer.

Oh and it could also serve as a great redneck volleyball net provided I could come up with some old flowered and faded sheets. Now who wouldn’t want that?

My works cut out for me and I’ve got to do some searching and see if anyone knows a welder that can make me an envious contraption (not eyesore) for my backyard. I’ll content myself with making yet a longer list of multipurpose things I can do with my future investment. I’ve got to get me one of those.

In the meantime I posted a bunch of Boredom Buster Ideas on the Cheap over at my amazingly large family group blog. Go check out some of our wild and crazy ideas – aimed at taking you back a few decades to the time before there were such things as toys or television.