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The Dishwasher.

Vichychoisse's picture

WARNING: What follows is an irrational response to a trivial problem. Plus lots of swearing.

WHY can't this family load a fucking dishwasher??

The first struggle was getting the skids to put their dirty dishes INTO the dishwasher instead of the sink. SO did not have one at his place before we moved in together (although I am sure he's had one at SOME POINT in their lives), so I can at least give him credit for training them to put the dishes in the sink. But it took SO LONG to get them to move 1 foot to the left and place them inside the dishwasher. Okay, well that was accomplished, mostly.

Now, they all, SO included, load it like assholes! Despite my constant advice to the contrary: cups and glasses aimlessly thrown anywhere, bowls facing UP, plates smushed together so no water could possibly get to them, silverware piled together and NOTHING rinsed. What. The. Fuck. Then they run it when they think it's full. But they load it so stupidly that it's NOT actually full, just totally random, and a lot of stuff doesn't get clean, so we end up running it far more than necessary. Since I pay the water/electric bill, this chaps my ass.

Seems ridiculous that I have to hold a goddamn Dishwasher 101 seminar for the lot of them. Is most of this not common sense? BOWLS FUCKING UP???

I have mostly taken charge of re-organizing and running myself but last night SO ran it when I KNEW it wasn't full or properly loaded. RARRRRR!!

Comments

Vichychoisse's picture

Crap, that is brilliant. A worse chore to make the current chore seem almost enjoyable? I love you!

I will def try this strategy... with the kid who can't sweep the kitchen floor to save her life, I'll take the broom away so she'll have to start getting down on her hands and knees with a brush. I'd bet she'd master the broom immediately. THANKS!

forestfairy's picture

Yep, I agree. Gather them all in the kitchen for a tutorial about how to rinse dishes and load them properly. Then tell them that they will be washing dishes by hand (rotating days) for the next two weeks. While they are washing, they can meditate on the correct way to load dishwashers. After the two weeks, tell them every time you find something not rinsed or upside down, there will be a mandatory hand washing week or two. Stick with it and do not give in to them.

They will learn REAL quick how to load a dishwasher.

Auteur's picture

hell i can't get GG to NOT SHRED my vacuum seal bags that are reusable when opening them.
Rendering them UNusable of course.

I think he thinks if he does it his way it's "showing me who is boss."

Dishwasher loading? forgedaabowdit.

I told him the other day when he was picking on my flaws that he couldn't load a dishwasher to save his life. He then sulked for days as he's "practically perfect in every way"

ThatGirl's picture

In the nearly four years I've been dealing with skids, they've never put dishes in (or out) of the dishwasher. I'm just thankful that they've been (mostly) trained to rinse them and put them in the sink. Even that can't be done right (my way). They will smear food around plates with a sponge, then leave the sponge sopping and covered in food in the bottom of the sink. The concept of the garbage disposal is totally beyond them, and it never gets turned on. They leave the water running at full blast for an inordinate amount of time. They'll fill a greasy skillet to the top with cold water and no soap, and leave it precariously perched across the top of the sink.

Apparently I'm totally OCD about the dishwasher, so much so that it's actually become a joke at our house. This is probably why I don't even care that skids don't fill it. One day my adult sons were over and SO offered to fill the dishwasher after dinner. The boys and I were at the kitchen counter talking when apparently I made a face while watching him. Boys started laughing and SO looks up and says, "I'm doing it wrong, huh?" We all started rolling. They know me too well!

Vichychoisse's picture

Heh, that's happening here too. SO calls me "Inspector Boobie" wrt the dishwasher.

However, I don't consider it OCD to load dishes so the dishwasher works efficiently, and there is a proper way to do that. It's not MY way (or yours!) it's THE way, isn't it? There are personal variations but there is standard logic and common sense. Would anyone put a pizza in the oven upside down? No, because that won't work.

Actually... I should make them eat off the plates that come out still filthy due to poor loading. That might get home the pizza analogy.

ThatGirl's picture

Common sense doesn't seem to be all that common around our house. That's why I give up and blame these things on my OCD. It's easier than trying to convince them that the slovenly habits they learned from their mother are uncommon. Obviously, I'm the freak of nature Wink

Doubletakex3's picture

I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one with this problem. We still can't get them to put the dishes in the dishwasher instead of the sink. However, they are responsible for loading the dishes after dinner. Just the other day I chipped dried spaghetti off a plate I unloaded! Gggrrrrrr

And, while I'm bitching, ziploc is completely above their IQ level. WTH is it really THAT hard to close a darn ziploc bag? Work with me people. Geesh.

ctnmom's picture

My DH and dd12 CANNOT close a bag box of cereal, crackers, etc to save their lives. I don't care if they do it that way with their stupid potato chips, but when they leave MY favorites open it really gives me a red rump. I even have chip clips-they put them on the shelf in the pantry and leave the shit open! grrrrr