Monday, March 27, 2017

Switching the Light


One of my many chores as a child was our family’s laundry. It was my duty to empty the hamper at the end of the upstairs hallway to the basement laundry area as well as get the clean laundry, all folded up awaiting in the baskets in the laundry area downstairs, back up to the second floor & put away.

To expedite the chore, in so that I’d wrap up the task & be on with my other interests, I’d often place a basket atop another basket, one which had an inch or two’s room to spare, then make my way quickly up both flights of stairs; I’d get it all done in one trip sometimes!

Making this possible was a particular light switch. I’d be in my bedroom & then need to complete the chore. Once finished with the chore, I’d want to remain on the second floor & be able to head straight back to my bedroom. This meant that I’d need to turn off the basement light as I passed by the switch – without dumping the baskets. I mean, I could put the baskets down on the ground, tap the switch, then pick the baskets back up…but I was a kid… ‘Nuff said? [wink, wink]

Having this light switch for the basement lights made all the difference. I was able to tap it easily when I leaned over, with just my nose. Mom had even exclaimed, corny as it was, “I knew I gave you that nose for a reason!” Other switches, generic & basic as they are, aren’t ones which can be tapped easily; rather they’re definite “flickers”, to be “flicked” on & off.

As for the rest of the sections of the house which I’d pass through enroute from the basement to the second floor? These areas were all light up [enough] by automatic lights in neighboring rooms, or lights that happened to be on because someone else was utilizing those rooms while I completed my chore.

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