Public Laundry

Well, today was the big day!  I finally decided to give the public laundry room in our building a try because I am tired of the slow laundry process in our flat, and the stiff clothing and towels that come out of our hanging dryer closet.  A friend of mine convinced me that using the public laundry room in her building is a much better option for her, so I decided to try ours.  First of all, you have to sign up ahead of time on a schedule that hangs on the locked laundry room door.  You are then blocking out a 3-4 hour time period where the entire room is yours and yours alone.  Some buildings apparently have locks and keys for this sign up board, but our building must be pretty trusting because ours is just a sheet of paper hanging on the door with a pencil on a string.  I booked my time from 7-10 a.m. so I could get my laundry done and get on with my day.  I stripped all of the beds and gathered all of the towels, because sheets and towels are the hardest thing to do in our little private machines.  All laundry facilities are free in Stockholm as this is one of those things that is considered to be a right for all people.  So, I didn't have to gather quarters or anything but it was a bit reminiscent of college days, as I carted everything that I needed down to the laundry room.  The room is bright and clean but I was devastated to realize that even though it has two big (European big, NOT American big) washers, it only had one tumble dryer and another hanging dryer closet!  Ughhh!  I just wanted to tumble dry my sheets and towels for once!  Anyway, I was able to get things washed more quickly but the dryer then took 2 hours to dry a load!  And, even though the drying closet is bigger and more efficient than my own, it is still just like hanging stuff on the line (but without the fresh scent).  So, after my 3 hours were up, I still had plenty of stiff laundry and even some things that were still damp from the inefficient dryer!  Bummer!  I think that I will just stick with doing my stuff at home...

After a long walk with Coco where we saw this giant pile of discarded Christmas trees on a street corner, I was ready to move on with my day.

I headed over to my friend, Monica's house, where I enjoyed some wonderful fika, her beautiful terrace views, and some good chatting time.

It was then time to come home and get busy making travel plans.  I had to buy a ticket for Tabitha to fly home for her graduation, help Tabitha's friend and Josh's mom get tickets to come and visit us in March, and buy our tickets so that the 5 of us can go to Portugal for our winter school break in February!  Love it!