On happiness is...

Friday may have been the greatest day of my North Carolina life so far. I'm left to conclude that happiness is:

Your own washer and dryer
Digital cable installed
Free lunch at work
Absurd VP picks by the presidential candidate you don't want to win
Great pizza
Good beer
All on a Friday night... leading up to a long weekend.

I'm still feeling a bit shameful about my unshakable joy over our washer and dryer. It's really this factor alone that is responsible for my glee. Who am I trying to fool? I'm just trying to convince myself that it doesn't make me some overly eager newlywed neighbor from The Donna Reed Show.

Doing laundry is the jail sentence of apartment living. The dread of the whole thing always made me put it off, which in turn only made the experience worse. Lugging a 50 lb laundry basket down flights of stairs, pairs of underwear falling out of the basket as I'd attempt to balance the detergent on top of it, all the while praying there are machines left for the taking. Of course, if I was really motivated, I'd go down before lifting the laundry basket of death to see if machines were available. And then the hope that the machines work. Of course, there was the general concern that someone might be having sex in the stairwell again as I made my laundry pilgrimage. I'm hoping this obstacle was unique to my laundry experience and not one to which you can relate.

When I was living in Arlington, however, the laundry room was directly across from my apartment and still it couldn't get done in a timely manner. That's right, no stairs and I could push the basket instead of lift it, but it still didn't get done. Maybe it was my overall resentment of having to pay to do a chore. I don't know.

And then there was the tension of your wash cycle is done, but all of the dryers are full. You realize the dry cycle is done for those last two machines in the row, but the launderer has yet to pick them up. What ... do... you ... do?

I have done so much laundry in the past few days that I think I'm likely in contention for a world record. It's been fabulous. I'm giddy about it. And I haven't stopped thinking about it since we found this place in June and learned there were washer/dryer hookups.

Should I be taking medication?

I think I may just finally be embracing adulthood. I also paid off our new furniture yesterday. It's the biggest one time payment I've ever made for anything, and I couldn't have been happier to see so much money escape my bank account. It's as if I patted every single dollar on the back as it boarded the Routing Number Express.

Honestly? I think what it really is I'm finally starting to pull it together. I don't mean for material things to define that for me; if anything, I've finally gotten away from that philosophy. I'm learning to be patient, I've reigned myself in a bit, and I've never felt better.

Time to wash that one pair of socks in the laundry basket!