Procrastination

You have to really hate ironing to come up with as many excuses as I have to avoid it these past few weeks. My ironing opportunities are limited to the weekend since no working woman should have to haul out an ironing board when she gets home at 8.00 pm in the evening and has to be up again at 6.00 am. But hardworking women must, of course, pace themselves at the weekend if they are to be optimum performers during the working week and there are many other household chores competing for the ironing time that it is not surprising it tends to get overlooked. I suppose what ironing has in its favour is that it is possible to do it while watching TV but, let’s face it, daytime TV at the weekend is hardly an inducement, is it? And then there are the competing tasks – floors to be washed, kitchens and bathrooms to be cleaned, driveways to be brushed, beds to be weeded, windows to be polished, shopping to be shopped … And so it is, that for almost 2 months now, by careful choice of clothing, judicious hanging and folding, I have entirely managed to avoid ironing. Yes, there is a growing mound on the bed in the spare room, but to be fair, some of that is bed linen which merely needs putting away if I can persuade myself it is possible to sleep on less than perfectly creased pillowcases. Where, I hear you asking, is the helpmeet? Surely there is someone in the shades who can offer assistance on the household chores front? I confess to sneaking admiration for a friend whose partner only irons square objects but who, now 30 years into their relationship, has had his definition of ‘square’ expanded to a really rather impressive degree. What, afterall, is a rectangle, such as the leg of a pair of jeans, but a series of connected squares? What is a Tshirt but a square with square sleeves attached? Yes, with just a little attention to detail, I can see that the square approach might have achieved great liberation. Alas, I fear it is too late for Izzy who scents truth in the adage that you cannot teach an old new dog new tricks. Perhaps the trick is to find a new dog. Yes, that’s the answer. Applications, to the above, if you please. And note, there will be an ironing practical.