Hanging Offense
I’d tell that town official to shove off.
Although there are no formal laws in this southeast Pennsylvania town against drying laundry outside, a town official called Froehlich to ask her to stop drying clothes in the sun. And she received two anonymous notes from neighbors saying they did not want to see her underwear flapping about.
“They said it made the place look like trailer trash,” she said, in her yard across the street from a row of neat, suburban houses. “They said they didn’t want to look at my ‘unmentionables.’”
Froehlich says she hangs her underwear inside. The effervescent 54-year-old is one of a growing number of Americans demanding the right to dry laundry on clotheslines despite local rules and a culture that frowns on it.
Among other benefits, line-dried laundry is “softened” and much fresher-smelling.
Not using gas/electric is just a bonus.
Posted by dad29 on November 19, 2009 at 0920 hrs
I love line dried clothes. Stand up for yourself, Carin and enjoy the freshness.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 0931 hrs
What are the odds the anonymous note-senders are also environmentalists who’d freak out at the use of energy to dry clothing.
If I were her, I’d find the biggest pair of underwear I could buy and hang them outside every single day. Too bad Goldman’s is out of business.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1059 hrs
Drying clothes on “the line” is a time honored tradition that NO “official”, self appointed, or otherwise should be able to tell someone they can not, or should not do, especially on their own property. Where do these freaking morons come from? Every day, bit by bit, the loss of our freedoms becomes more apparent. Sad what we are allowing America to become.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1208 hrs
Bah, the picture in the article appears to be showing laundry being hung in the front yard… which I find unattractive. With that said, I wouldn’t ask my neighbor to stop. Mine is hung in the back yard when it’s not cold.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1302 hrs
I would have to agree that hanging laundry in the front yard is a bit tacky. But rather than asking her to stop, why not offer to erect clotheslines in the backyard for her, and suggest she may prefer that so they don’t get soiled from passing trraffic on the street?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1350 hrs
What are the odds the anonymous note-senders are also environmentalists who’d freak out at the use of energy to dry clothing.
Yeah, cuz everything on this blog needs to be come an anti-liberal rant. Whatevs
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1406 hrs
George,
Perhaps it’s because liberals are freedom hating jerks? Pretty sure that’s why.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1408 hrs
< sarcasm >The law must be enforced. The town popularity contest winners must write down words on pieces of paper. Then the tax-feeding donut grazing heroes can tase this woman for her insolence. We must decide what kind of society we want to live in and the best way to do that is to vote for others to use intimidation and violence to achieve social and political goals.< / sarcasm>
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1456 hrs
I’m pretty sure you’re an asshole, GMan, but I don’t like to make a point of saying it on every single discussion.
I say you can hang your clothes to dry if you want to. And if a city passes an ordinance against doing it in your front yard, that’s probably ok, too. I’d hate to see any municipality try to stop people from doing it at all, though. That’s not only getting too into people’s business, but it’s also not very forward-thinking environmentally.
Posted by scott on November 19, 2009 at 1459 hrs
And here again we have another real Inconvenient Truth: demand everyone goes without electricity until someone does something (hang laundry outside) which offends me. Then aesthetics trumps the environment.
Keep hanging your laundry out—it’s environmental and economical!
Posted by hsgbdmama on November 19, 2009 at 1629 hrs
this is the crap you normally see in new subdivisions with a home owners association; for the pretentious weak minded folks that need to enforce the silliest of rules…you know, same color house, no cars out front over night, no gardens, no fences, no clothes lines, etc….funny though that those subdivisions are usually upper middle class and above, and also well populated with ‘conservatives’...
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1813 hrs
I say you can hang your clothes to dry if you want to. And if a city passes an ordinance against doing it in your front yard, that’s probably ok, too. I’d hate to see any municipality try to stop people from doing it at all, though. That’s not only getting too into people’s business, but it’s also not very forward-thinking environmentally.
Agreed. Except that I don’t think the government should be allowed to restrict anything that does not infringe on someone else’s civil liberties.
Oh, and I don’t care about the environmental ramifications of using a dryer, because they are minimal.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1844 hrs
“Perhaps it’s because liberals are freedom hating jerks? Pretty sure that’s why.”
True. But it’s liberals AND conservatives that are freedom hating jerks. Why draw the distinction between the “different” classes of partisans? They’re basically identical.
Yeah, line drying is cool. Doing it in the front yard is tacky. Amy has giant underpants. Whatever. I see no problem with writing letters and stopping before getting government involved. I’d probably put something tacky in my yard accross the street until she changed her behavior.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 19, 2009 at 1938 hrs
JJARWM: Tell me how conservatives are freedom hating jerks? I can give you dozens on Libs.
Posted by Steve on November 19, 2009 at 2211 hrs
“12.this is the crap you normally see in new subdivisions with a home owners association;”
Actually, a homeowners association is where you find out what lying backstabbing neighbors you have. You usually don’t find that out any other way.Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 20, 2009 at 0620 hrs
Steve,
Generally speaking, conservatives hate freedom in the forms of: freedom to put certain substances into ones body, freedom to cross borders, freedom to have abortions (I sort of agree with them here, since the freedom of another human conflicts with the freedom of the mother at some point), freedom to compete in a free marketplace, freedom to mary etc. etc.Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 20, 2009 at 1405 hrs
“X are freedom hating jerks” is usually a stupid statement no matter what value you ascribe to X. Unless, of course X= jerks who hate freedom.
Posted by Mike on November 21, 2009 at 1415 hrs
I wonder if this would be an issue if she were a Victoria Secret model?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 0934 hrs
What is she was a Hooters Girl and only hung out her work clothes? Property values could go up?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on November 23, 2009 at 1343 hrs
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