So, if you’ve read my blog before, you know that I have a
bit of a problem with Korean household items. All you have to do is look back
and you will see that I have not only had a showdown with the stove but, I was also beat down by the broom.
Well, this time around in Korea, I was deceived by the dryer. Yes, you read
that right. The dryer got the best of me.
Since we took a break from Korea, we moved into a new
apartment in a new building. This apartment, like our old one, has a
washer/dryer combo machine. Since it was the same brand as the old one, I
(foolishly) assumed that I knew how to use it. That was my mistake.
A few days after I got here, I decided to do some laundry.
There wasn’t much but, I didn’t want it to pile up. So, I loaded up the
machine. When the wash/dry cycle was finished, the clothes smelled a little
burned but, nothing serious. I put them away and went on with my business. This
happened for about two weeks.
Then, one day at work, I smelled something. It was not a
smell I could place. It was like burn, and, to be frank, a little BO. Where was
that coming from? To my absolute horror, it was coming from me! It caught me by
surprise. It was only 10am. I showered and put on clean clothes that morning,
how could I smell?
When I got home, I investigated the problem. I found that
several of my “clean” shirts had that same odor. I had to figure it out. I didn’t
want to be the smelly one at work. No one ever likes the smelly kid.
I decided there must be something wrong with my washing
machine. That had to be the only explanation. My shirts didn’t start out like
that. So, it must be a laundry related issue. First, I checked that I was
indeed using detergent and not, like, more fabric softener by accident. No, my
detergent was definitely detergent. It said so, in English, on the bottle.
To further my investigation, I decided to set up the
washer/dryer and start a cycle just to see what happens. The fact that my
clothes smelled burned made me wonder about the machine. So, I started up the
cycle and sat in front of the machine to see what happened.
Lo and behold – the mystery was solved! No water filled the
machine. It just started to spin and get really hot. Then, it dawned on me. I
was putting my clothes in the machine for a 3 hour dry cycle with no wash
cycle. The clothes weren’t being washed at all. I was just drying dirty clothes
for hours. Ew.
Now, in my defense, the washer/dryer is exceptionally
sneaky. Even though it was just drying the clothes, it still shot water into
the soap and softener trays. So, I was hearing the sound of running water but,
my clothes never actually got wet. I still wonder where all of that soap and
softener went.
There is no question who won this battle. Although I now
know how to actually wash and dry a load of launder, the washer/dryer managed
to fool me for weeks. It totally won.
The Deceptive Dryer in action.
Dave and I never could figure out the "dryer" function. You'll have to teach us when we get back :)
ReplyDeleteI will try but, after my experience, I don't have much confidence in my Korean appliance skills.
DeleteThis is such a great post! Warm, toasty dirty clothes, must love it =)
ReplyDeleteThanks Shahnaz! It was really fun re-doing all of the laundry I had "washed" in the past two weeks.
ReplyDeleteYou were the smelly kid... :-D
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