I have to give a shout out to the "Right to Dry" movement, who are taking a rational and common sense stance on clotheslines. In many fucked up parts of the country they have planned/gated communities that forbid drying clothes outdoors. The argument against drying clothes on a clothesline is aesthetics, that clotheslines look po-dunk and low class, and that no one wants to see the neighbors skidmark tightey whitey's flip flapping in the wind.In Vermont they are introducing a bill to over-ride community bans on clotheslines, as they have done in several other states. Personally I think it would be wiser to work within the community to voluntarily strip the ban - even just symbolically, because really - vermont? Winter? Clothes don't get dry in the off season, they freeze up solid. Not only that, but its Vermont. I assumed they were all apple pie and clothes on the line anyway.
I have one of those wire racks, it costs too much to get clothes dried at a laundromat and my place is too small for an actual dryer. Air dried clothes remain colorfast and last longer. Dryers are one of those things that I wonder who the hell thought up that one, like dishwashers. I have had them and they can be handy, but really, do you need an appliance for that? $85 a year just for the electricity, when you can just run a rope.
