UNFAVORITE CHORE

I don't love doing the laundry, but hurray -- I just turn a dial on the washer, pour in a liquid detergent, and plop in what's in the laundry basket. Golly, I remember when we had to cart it to the launderette that was nine long blocks away. 

Hey, down through the ages, doing the laundry -- washing the clothes you wear -- getting them clean, fresh-smelling, nice to put on again, has evolved. No matter how old or young you are, you probably remember what your mother did, how often she did it, and what tools and what soap she used.

Was it one of these? It reveals her age, and yours more or less.

Did she use Rinso? Since 1908 when Hudson's Soap which was sold to Lever Brothers in the UK, then manufactured but unsuccessfully promoted by Unilever in the United States, Rinso was the laundry soap everyone used. 1936 to 1950, it was advertised on the radio, the sponsor of soap operas, and "The Amos 'n' Andy Show," with ads happily chanting the slogan "Rinso white, Rinso bright," until Proctor and Gamble started telling the world about Tide.

Well, open your mind guys, soon, hopefully very soon, we'll be using Beads. You're gonna grab a handful of Beads and throw them onto the clothes. They're are key component in a laundry system developed in the UK ten years ago. At the University of Leeds, School of Textile, researchers found that tiny nylon beads mixed with a tiny amount of water, acted like a sponge and soaked up dirt from fabrics they started washing in a new washing machine they were also developing, named "Xeros."   

It looks like current washers but it's different. In various hotel laundry rooms where they have been testing the new machine, they proved that Xeros, with Beads, removed dirt -- did it gently like hand-washing, even absorbed stray colors (like a rogue red sock that can turn all your laundry pink). ALSO Beads can be reused hundreds of  times.

Newsweek Magazine, said in its recent "Magic Beads" article -- "It could be the biggest leap forward in the laundry business since electric powered machines rendered wringers obsolete." Los Angeles Times said, "Xeros and Beads will ease California's drought and help save the environment," and published this picture.

You can't buy a Xeros or Beads yet. Fourteen locations have them, including several laundromats, an athletic club, and various hotels; it costs $1,500 per machine per month for upkeep and maintenance, including collection and replacement of the Beads. But the Xeros company is working, night and day, to create a domestic version.

Golly, I hope it's soon. Like I said, I don't love doing the laundry. Note, in the selfie, my fake smile and the size of the pile.