I am going to have to work harder on that.

As a child, I was fascinated by this powerful machine and when I grew into an adult, the fascination remained. It may sound strange, but there’s something fine and dignified about using a wringer washer. No automatic, close-the-lid-and-ignore-it washing machine can come close to being cherished the way a wringer washer can. It was one of the most efficient appliances to come out of the industrial revolution, and believe it or not, it’s still the most efficient of all laundry methods. These machines came powered by electricity, powered by gas or powered by hand, with or without pumps to empty the water.

They’ve been made with square tubs, round tubs, wooden tubs, aluminum tubs, steel tubs, porcelain tubs and copper tubs. They’ve come with attached wringers or not. The one thing they all have in common is a dasher or agitator on a simple gear that moves back and forth, forcing water through clothing to release dirt and it works very well. A wringer washer gets clothes clean in a minimum of time, using a minimum of water and a minimum of detergent. You can do a whole family’s laundry in one morning per week, and not even think about it for another week. It gets grungy clothes clean without having to use spot cleaners or pre-washes or soaks or whatever. When one speaks of quality wringer washers, Maytag has always been the one to beat, although there were several other manufacturers.

Unfortunately, Maytag doesn’t make wringer washers any more (the last one rolled off the production line in 1983), but you can still find old machines that work because they were made to last. If you can’t find a working one, Lehman’s sells reconditioned Maytags, as well as parts for them. The best news is that new wringer washers are still being made. They’re not quite the same as the old Maytags and they’re not made in the US, but they’ll get your clothes cleaner, faster and cheaper than any automatic washing machine ever made.

Using a Wringer Washer The method of using a wringer washer is different from using an automatic. You use the same water for several loads of clothes, thereby saving on water and detergent. The clothes are taken out to be rinsed and wrung dry within a few minutes instead of the half to full hour that automatic washers take. Wringer washers are more of a “hands on” chore,  but not a disagreeable one. If you’ve never used one, or if you’ve used one and found it tedious or time consuming, you may benefit by using this method:

1. Separate clothing into whites (which includes light, colorfast materials), mediums, dark and really dirty (like rugs, barn clothes, grungy rags). Save the delicates for a separate wash, or hand wash them.
2. Set up your washing area by placing the washing machine within reach of water, but leaving an area for at least one, and preferably two, rinse tubs.
   
3. Fill the washer with water – hot for whites, and fill the rinse tub or tubs with cold water. Put liquid softener in the last rinse, if you use it. (If not, a half cup of vinegar in the rinse water will help remove all traces of detergent, brightening and softening them somewhat.)
4. Put in the laundry soap and start the washer.
5. Let it agitate while you add pieces of laundry, a few at a time, until they’re all swishing comfortably. Don’t overfill it, as the pieces need to move freely.
6. Let the load wash for 1-15 minutes, depending on how dirty the clothes are. Very dirty loads can go for 20 minutes and things that just need a little freshening can be taken out in 5 minutes.
7. At the end of the washing time, stop the washer, turn on the wringer and put the clothes through it one piece at a time.
8. Using a wringer is an art or a science, depending on your viewpoint, but there are things to keep in mind.
   

   a) Don’t get your fingers in it. Today’s wringers are sensitive and will release if you do, but it’s quite a scare, anyway.

    

   b) Zip all the zippers and button at least a few buttons on shirts and pants. Fold shirts so that the button band is on the inside before putting it through the wringer and make sure zippers are flat going through.

    

   c) Very large items, like blankets and heavy coats, won’t fit through the wringer. Squeeze, squish and drip dry them.

    

   d) When clothes come out the other side, they must have something to fall into – or else they’ll fall on the floor. When I was a child and wanted to help Mom, she let me catch the clothes and put them neatly in the laundry basket to be taken to the clothesline. Come to think of it, I’m not sure how neatly they were handled, but it gave me something to do.

9. As soon as you get all of the items from the washer, turn it back on and put in the next load of laundry. Check the time so you’ll know when to take them out.
10. Reposition the wringer over the rinse tub and rinse the finished load by swishing it up and down or side to side in the rinse water. Run the rinsed items through the wringer and into a waiting basket or second rinse tub where you will repeat the action.

Thunderstorms are nearly as abundant as ants at a picnic, and the hot, sultry time known as the Dog Days has begun—and lasts 40 days, from July 3 through August 11.

Named for the Dog Star, Sirius, which rises and sets with the Sun during this time, the Dog Days are associated with uncomfortable levels of heat and humidity.

I do not lie.

Or cheat.

Or steal.

I do not put others down simply because they are younger than me. However, I am constantly questioned because I am older. Like my brain has ceased to function simply because I am over 50. Or that I am physically incapable for the same reason.

NO THANKS!

I would rather raise Hell and change the world.

• Roast hummingbird hearts, grind them into a powder, and sprinkle it on your beloved.
• Kiss as many people as possible. Dr. Bubba Nicholson of Tampa, Florida, says that kissing is a way for us to taste semiochemicals on another’s skin. Semiochemicals transmit biological signals of compatability and attraction.
• Pluck a stalk of yarrow and stick it up your nose. If a drop of blood appears, your love is true.
• Australian aborigines prepare a love potion from the testicles of kangaroos.
• Think of the one you love while you swallow a four-leaf clover, and your love will be returned.
• Upon hearing the first coo of a dove in the spring, take off your left stocking and look in the heel of it. You will find a hair the color of your true love’s hair.
• Swallow the heart of a wild duck.
• On New Year’s Eve, walk from one room to another while throwing a shoe over your shoulder, then look in a mirror and your mate’s face will be there.
• Place a snail in a pan of cornmeal, and the tracks it makes will spell your true love’s initials.
• Hide the dried tongue of a turtledove in a girl’s room; she will love you forever.
• In 18th-century France, a man told a woman three times that she was beautiful. The first time she was required to thank him, the second time to believe him, and the third time to reward him.
• If you touch your little finger and forefinger behind your two middle fingers, you can have any sweetheart you like.
• Swallow a white dove’s heart, point downward, while resting your hand on the shoulder of one you love.
• Hard boil an egg, cut it in half, discard the yolk, and fill the egg halves with salt. Sit on something you’ve never sat on before, eat the egg, and walk to bed backwards. You will dream of your future mate.
• Walk around the block with your mouth full of water; if you don’t swallow it, you will marry within the year.
• Pull a hair from the head of a girl you like, and she will love you.
• Pick an apple, prick it full of holes, carry it for a while under your left arm, then give it to your lover.
• If you stub your toe, kiss your thumb and you’ll see your beau.
• Cut your nails on nine Sundays in a row.

Stop looking. Many experts agree that searching for a perfect mate is doomed. Be flexible and commit to the unknown. But if you must look, then carry the heart of an owl with you at all times.

Since the beginning of time, it seems, people have gone above and beyond to try the latest love potion. Do any of these so-called aphrodisiacs have any real effect? Read on and you’ll be surprised. . .

The more exotic, the more erotic

History is full of stories of ordinary people using bizarre stimulants for their love live: powder from the horns of rhinos, bat blood mixed with whiskey, crocodile dung . . . you get the idea.

People have hoped for sexual euphoria since ancient times. In fact, the very word, aphrodisiac, comes from the Greek goddess of love Aphrodite, who has inspired cultures throughout the ages to achieve her legendary heights of delight. For example:

• Pliny the Elder recommended hippopotamus snout and hyena eyes.
• Horace touted dried marrow and liver.
• In Elizabethan times, prunes were so highly regarded as aphrodisiacs that they were served for free in brothels.

The Science of Infatuation

The possibility of death, presence of danger, secrecy, and even chocolate can spark erotic urgency. But so can the brain chemical called phenylethylamine (PEA). This is the stimulant the brain releases in the early stages of infatuation. It’s the revver-upper that allows us to stay awake all night and lose our appetites.

PEA races through the system of the thrill seeker, allowing the adventurer to feel alert, self-assured and ready for whatever challenge awaits. For those men who need more help, we offer some tips from the great romantics of the past:

• Casanova championed oysters.
• Napoleon treasured truffles.
• Popeye performed manly feats on a can or two of spinach.
• The Mharajah of Bikaner ingested crushed diamonds.
• If all else fails, go forth and make yourself rich, or powerful, or the caretaker of a baby, for there are women who say these traits are most alluring.

Do love potions work?

In 1989, The US Food and Drug Administration banned advertisers from promoting pills or potions because testing had shown that none worked no matter what the contents—whether fennel or dried beetle bodies.

Any that appeared to work did so only because the user believed they would—the stimulant lay only in the users’ mind. In other words, it’s the imagination that creates its own exciting possibilities and the body that leaps forward to fulfill the fantasies.

The Last Stimulant You’ll Ever Need

Love is the most magnificent of aphrodisiacs. Although it is certainly no more easier to get a hold of than some of these potions, it’s a heck of a lot cheaper and more environmentally friendly.

Do you know the language of flowers? As our list below shows, each flower has its own meaning. Orange blossom, for instance, symbolizes chastity, purity and loveliness, while red chrysanthemum means I love you.

Flowers have always been a big feature at weddings, too. The groom often wears a flower that appears in the bridal bouquet in his button-hole. This stems from the Medieval tradition of wearing his Lady’s colors, as a declaration of his love.

One fun idea is to have a garden gathering and have each person bring a flower that has meaning to them. Or, paint tiles on a kitchen island with a flower that represents each of your loved ones.

There is a language, little known,
Lovers claim it as their own.
Its symbols smile upon the land,
Wrought by nature’s wondrous hand;
And in their silent beauty speak,
Of life and joy, to those who seek
For Love Divine and sunny hours
In the language of the flowers.
–The Language of Flowers, London, 1875