Z in Wiltshire

I said ‘tomorrow’ so here I am, but not too much to tell you – except that Wink may well come home tomorrow (that is, the day after today, not the day that was tomorrow yesterday) or possibly on Wednesday.

Today, I trotted down to the village shops, unpacked, phoned people who’d left kind messages on Wink’s phone and so on before visiting her this afternoon.  She looks very well and is cheerful and glad the worst is behind her – now it’s just a matter of recovery and it’s all better from now on, as I was glad to assure her.  When I arrived back here, I spent an hour or so washing cashmere jumpers.  Yes, I brought my laundry with me.  It’s been building up for a few weeks – I suppose the obvious thing is to wash each one as it becomes grubby, but I’ve been stacking them up and I’m running out of things to wear.  So now several – half a dozen or so – are wrapped in towels to squeeze out some of the wet before I leave them on the airer to dry overnight.  Can one machine-wash cashmere?  I’ve never dared, but it would save a lot of bother.  It’s not the washing that takes the time of course, but the rinsing, which takes forever. I remember my mother used to do handwashing in the bathroom basin and chuck everything in the bath to rinse it, which at least has the benefit of holding a lot of rinsing water.  She was very much against washing clothes in the kitchen, mind you, even in a washing machine, for no logical reason at all that I could ever see.  She was convinced it was thoroughly unhygienic.

I’m going to have a bath and another early night, so that I can lie in bed listening to the radio.  I listen to book adaptations on Radio 4 Extra mostly.  I used to read in bed for hours, but my eyes get tired nowadays – all the same, I seem to be able to cope with reading one book and listening to another.  I’ve never found it that interesting to do just one thing at a time.

 

11 comments on “Z in Wiltshire

  1. allotmentqueen

    Two things at once? Yes, I’m female so I can multitask, but two books at once? No, I don’t think so. When I lived half the week in Worcestershire in a house with just an outside toilet, and an inside kitchen sink, and that was it, I used to take my washing down to my lodgings in London where there was a washing machine. But I always felt guilty about it (not least because the landlady was a friend and lived on the premises). Still, if you’ve got time on your hands you might as well get on with the chores. Best wishes to Wink. Hope she recovers easily.

    Reply
    1. Mike Horner

      Hello Z. Ref washing cashmere, Ann says that she washes her cashmere in our washing machine, using the programme for ‘delicate 30’ or ‘wool 30’ only, and Waitrose ‘Delicate Wash’ liquid for wool, silk and delicate fabrics. Ann also suggests you wash one only in the machine as a test piece (and further suggests that you experiment on you oldest and least loved jumper first). Hope this works, and no guarantees, but Ann says she always washes her cashmeres in the washing machine these days.

      Reply
  2. Mike Horner

    P.s. Ref reading a book and listening to the wireless at the same time; I used to do this in my teens, and, for a while my grandfather, who refused to believe it could be done, tested me afterwards on both the book and the wireless programme. When he found that I had apparently taken both in (one through my eyes and one through my ears) satisfactorily, he withdrew his objection. Don’t think I could do it now, though.

    Reply
    1. Z Post author

      I’ve always read while watching television, and the point of radio was to have it on while getting on with daily life. Once in a while, one needs to concentrate on a task – or an intricate/exciting bit of plot – and one or the other takes over for a bit, but it’s normal to me.

      Reply
  3. Z Post author

    Nearly all the ones on 4Extra are books I’ve already read. At present, Brideshead Revisited, The Talented Mr Ripley and The Secret Garden. It almost makes insomnia worthwhile. I only read for ten minutes until my eyes are tired.

    You only have to look at me to know how successful the operation can be, Rog!

    Thank you, Mike, and please thank Ann. I used to hand wash lots of things, two or three every week, but I seem to run to stand still nowadays, can’t keep up with anything extra. Looking after Wink will be a rest cure, I’m sure.

    Wink phoned a while ago, physio happy for her to come home but waiting for the doc’s pronouncement. Laters…

    Reply
  4. nick

    I daren’t even wash lambswool jumpers in the washing machine any more, after a lovely green jumper shrank after one wash and shrank again after a second wash. And the temperature was only thirty degrees. I’ve never worn cashmere so I don’t have any advice for you.

    In the pre-washing machine days, I remember my mum washing everything on the stove and then wringing it out in the mangle. And in the pre-tissue days, there would sometimes be huge tubs of handkerchiefs stewing away. Then she graduated to the laundrette and it was only much later that we got a washing machine. How things have changed etc etc.

    Reply
  5. 63mago

    Best wishes to Wink for a fast recovery without problems !

    Today I struggle with one text at a time, forget reading AND listening to a spoken word ; but a little Bach in the background helps to concentrate.

    Reply
  6. Z Post author

    I have to concentrate on work, but background tv and music are ok. Once in a while, I can relax and watch/listen for a few minutes, then tune out again and focus on the papers.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Rog Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

 

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.