Pet Peeve of the Day

Doing laundry.

Beyond my usual complaints that my skills are better employed elsewhere, and that it's a sexist and domestic chore... there's just too much of it!

Now, a long time ago I heard people on Fashion Television say that you should be washing your clothes after each time you wear them.

What? ...Are you kidding me? I do not (save for a dip in a mud puddle) wash my jeans after each wear. Nor hoodies. Nor dresses or pants or tank tops.... I could go on.

The only thing I wash after each wear is underwear and socks. That is about it. I don't think I'm completely unique on this one either, I'm pretty sure most people don't put their t-shirts in the wash after one wear. Unless you have a swear disorder or play extremely hard, I can't see anyone getting their clothes that dirty!

But somehow, despite the fact that I don't have too much stuff to wash each laundry cycle, my father does.

Yes. I live at home with my parents. But I am Asian and unmarried, so this is allowed/encouraged/expected.

I do all the laundry. I put it in, take it out, hang it out to dry, fold it all up nice and tidy.

But my father, for some reason, washes everything after each and every time he wears something. Multiply an outfit for a day (I assume underwear, undershirt, pants, shirt, and socks) by 7? I'm drowning in laundry.

What bugs me is that my mother and I both do not produce half of what my father does. Are men that stinky? Are they sweaty gym towels just waiting for a wring? Seems like yes, they are. I have convinced myself that my father is subtly trying to dissuade me from living at home... but at the same time, he loves having his laundry done for him. So what gives?

See, I know my problem. I won't stand up for myself. I know if I don't do the laundry, that my mom will. I don't want my mom doing the laundry because she works hard enough as it is. But if I won't, and my mom won't, my father sure as hell won't. It'll sit there, wrinkling, stained... he doesn't know about stain treatment! Let alone about separating colours from whites or delicate cycles! He knows very little about delicate anything.

So to save the entire clan from dirty and unkempt wrinkles, I suck it up and suffer. AND THEN RAVE ABOUT IT.