Oh, Is She Evil or...

Not having done laundry since before my NOLA trip I had lots of the dirties needing washing. The Laundromat opens at 6 am; I get there shortly thereafter and paced myself to get the other errands done each in their own time.

Aside from the cleaning lady and her sweet daughter I was the first customer in the place. So I stuffed the dirties into a washer and set them washing.

An SUV pulls into the parking area next to my car.

This tiny orange haired elderly woman slid down the side of the vehicle to the ground and waddled to the back, popped the hatch and pulled out a hand cart holding two colourful crates filled with laundry supplies and stain removers. On top of these sat two large plastic bags filled with clothes.

As she waddled up to the curb I asked if she needed any assistance. She offered a nonsensical smile and continued passed me.

Surveying the situation, she frowned, turned to me and asked, “are those your things in these washers?”

I replied in the affirmative and her frown deepened. “Well, these are the washers I like to use, so I’ll just have to wait until you are finished. Note: there are 20 other machines available and no one else is in the place.

She sat talking to herself, sorting out her things and eyeing me suspiciously. When my washers finished their job, I moved everything to a dryer near a folding table; set the timer and returned to my reading for about 40 minutes.

She began filling the washers with no regard for the instructions for proper washing. I thought about helping her, but instinctively knew she’d have none of it.

Later I look up to find her wet clothes sitting in those plastic bags as she eyed me carefully.

What was all this about?

Me: Is there a problem?

Orange lady: I’m waiting for your dryer.

Me: Well, there’s just the two of us here and the dryers on either side of mine are waiting. Why don’t you just put your things in one of them?

Orange lady: I like to use this one so I have easy access to the folding table. So, I’ll just wait until your things are dry. Note: there are 5 other folding tables in the place and each is directly across from a dryer.

OK!

The timer goes off and my things are dry so I begin removing and folding them carefully.

Orange lady: My, you are fussy about your clothes, I see.

Me: No, I just want to take up as little space as possible when I put them away.

She ain’t happy.

Orange lady: Well, you really are fastidious about polo shirts and shorts. I would just throw them back in the bag and leave it at that.

Me: No, you wouldn’t. And you know it. You can either wait or use any one of the other 11 dryers. Your choice.

Her sweet smile was betrayed by her eyes that told me that I should never accept anything edible from her hands.

As I finished folding and put everything away, I headed out to the car and prepared to leave. She was already waddling with arms full of laundry from her plastic bags to my dryer, but she looked up to catch my eye and said, “Well, I hope your day ends better than mine has begun.”

I smiled and replied, “ My wish for you is the same.

The smile quickly vanishes…the orange lady does not.

Damn!

And so it goes.

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