The time has come, it's a Sunday evening; you can no longer physically or ethically dig clothes out of your dirty hamper to wear and douse in perfume. Your closet is bare, your drawers are almost empty. The only clothing options you have left are your high school t-shirts and winter clothes, and let's be honest, if you're a college student in Florida those are the last things you want to wear on campus. You lug your overflowing hamper, hook detergent and softener into your arms, and set off on your trek to the laundry room. Here are 5 thoughts every college student has while doing laundry:
1. Do I really need to do two loads of laundry?
Yes. The answer in yes. However, if your budget is anything like mine, you immediately recognize that the $1.50 spent on the second load of laundry could otherwise be a bag of chips or a chocolate bar at the vending machine. So, naturally, everything goes into one abnormally large load of laundry, whites included.
2. What color will my whites be this week?
I cringe every time I open the washer, silently praying that my white clothes will actually remain white, but I know better. I've gotten to the point where rather than focusing on whether my white clothes will be colored or not, I've chosen to focus my energy on what color my whites inherit. For example, I value a a blue-tinted shirt more than a magenta-tinted shirt, for the simple reason that they better match my chacos. It's the simple things.
3. Well, that definitely doesn't fit anymore.
Now, this could very well just be the result of my pizza-induced case of freshman fifteen, but it seems to me as though after every Sunday afternoon spent in the laundry room, my clothes no longer fit. The rompers no longer cover my behind, my tank tops suddenly reveal my midriff, and my jeans? Forget about it.
4. Can I wash that?
Whether I'm digging through the washer to find the tags on my clothes with instructions, googling whether bras can actually be washed, or frantically dialing my mother before pressing "start" on the washer, I really have no clue. That being said, even if my beloved knit sweater does say to hand-wash, I just opt to wear it on days where I won't be doing any physical movements, or thrown it in the washer and hope for the best.
5. Where is my mom?
If I could go back to the days where I left my worn clothes on my bathroom sink only to wake up to them washed, dried, ironed, and hung in my closet, I would. My mother is a saint, and although I pray to inherit her magical laundry capabilities, every time I find myself digging out yet another green-tinged, shrunken white shirt, I realize I am far from where a self-sufficient human being should be.
However, I would be lying If I said that I don't feel a little bit proud every time my clothes are washed, dried and hung in my tiny dorm room closet- even if they are ruined- and I'm sure every college student feels the same. May the laundry odds be ever in your favor.
