A comment on this-which will date me, but no biggie....I have seen this bef and actually do have it over my 'today's washer'....but I well remember when I was a kid staying summers on my grandparents ranch in SW Texas.....this was exact picture of what my 'Moma' did on wash day! Lets say this was abt the yr 1950-1955. They had no running water in their ranch house....they did have a hand pump on the back porch to bring in daily water, and they got their water by the turning of the ole windmill...SW Tx had alot of wind. My bro and I use to get in the ole trough out there [if we could sneak out without being found too quick] and take a great cool dip in those hot SW Tx sun days. At nite we took our bath in an ole aluminum bath tub in the kitchen filled with heated water fr the ole wood stove [one in kitchen, one in living/bedroom]. For hair washing though, it was rain water all the way, from the ole rain barrel with a screen on top to catch the critters.....ohhh, for the good ole days! I enjoyed it and cherish those memories anyway. To have life so simple and sweet now as then. Thanks for sharing, just brings back memories I treasure and glad to have been a part of. Nena A friend sent this to me, Would you print it so others could see it? Thank you, Ann HEAD Daugherty ADaugh6398 aol.com Recipe for Washing Clothes Years ago a Kentucky grandmother gave the new bride the following recipe for washing clothes. It appears below just as it was written, and despite the spelling, has a bit of philosophy. This is an exact copy as written and found in an old scrap book (with spelling errors and all). 1. Bilt fire in backyard to heat kettle of rain water. 2. Set tubs so smoke wont blow in eyes if wind is pert. 3. Shave one hole cake of lie soap in bilin water. 4. Sort things, make 3 piles. 1 pile white, 1 pile colored, 1 pile work britches and rags. 5. To make starch, stir flour in cool water to smooth, then thin down with bilin water. 6. Take white things, rub dirty spots on board, scrub hard, and then bile. Rub colored don't bile, just rinch and starch. 7. Take things out of kettle with broomstick handle, then rinch, and starch. 8. Hang old rags on fence. 9. Spread tea towels on grass. 10. Pore rinch water in flower bed. 11. Scrub porch with hot soapy water. 12. Turn tubs upside down. 13. Go put on clean dress, smooth hair with hair combs. Brew cup of tea, sit and rock a spell and count your blessings. * * * Paste this over your washer and dryer and next time when you think things are bleak, read it again and give thanks for your blessings! _________________________________________________________________ STOP MORE SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail