The Tale of the Shrunken Woolrich Sweater

I'm not saying that I am bad at laundry. I'm definitely not saying that men shouldn't do the laundry. I'm just saying that after almost destroying my favorite Woolrich wool coat, I now realize why my wife is so much better at some things. It's all about attention to detail!

I always try to help around the house. I also always try to do things in the most efficient manner possible. This, unfortunately, usually means that I try to do as much as possible at the same time. When sorting laundry, my wife always pre-sorts the clothing. I decided to sort once I got all of the clothing to the washer. It is faster. You just grab everything that might be dirty in a giant pile, drag it to the washer, and throw the similar colored things in at once. I never thought that I had thrown non-washable items in my hamper. Why would I ever do that? I understand machine wash verses dry clean only. I own suits. I have a favorite dry-cleaner. Why didn't I notice the sweater that I love piled up with my wife's favorite sweater as well. I know why, because I am always trying to do things faster.

I probably don't need to tell you what happened. In transferring the clothes to the dryer, I wadded the whole pile up and wedged it into the dryer. I started the cycle as usual and walked away. When I returned I realized what I had done. My wife's sweater and my wool coat had shrunk.

As always, my wife was excellent about the whole situation. And, with a little advice from a web site, (Check out the link below) I was able to unshrink my wife's sweater. But the truth is this: I try to be the most efficient person possible. It is part of who I am. I make one trip, I carry more stuff that I should, I hate wasting time! My wife is more of the measure twice, cut once type of person. Thank God! I am also very grateful that she understands my shortcomings! We all want to save time. We all want to be able to focus our lives in the things that make us happy. We all want more time for family and friends. I just need to learn from my wife. I need to pause, and double check what I am doing!