To Agitate...or Impell?

By Jeannie Watt

We’re moving within the next few months and I have to buy new appliances. My husband is in charge of choosing the refrigerator because he had some strong ideas about cold storage. Choosing the range was a joint effort and, since I do all the laundry, I assumed I had carte blanc in the washer and dryer department. Assumed. Come to find out, I'm an agitator fan and my husband is all about the impeller. (I think it's because of the HE factor. Guys just love the concept of high efficiency.)

I'm one of those people who enjoy doing laundry. When my husband and I were first married, we drew up an agreement—he would chop all the wood and I would do all the laundry. It was a reasonable agreement when we lived in north Idaho where we…I don’t know…had wood that needed chopped? After moving to Nevada, I definitely got the short end of the stick agreement-wise, but I never renegotiated because (a) I like doing laundry and (b) I don’t trust other people to do my laundry. Things happen--bad things to favorite clothes. If anything is going to happen, it will be due to a dire mistake on my part and, so far, those mistakes have been few and far between. Actually, they’ve been nonexistent.

My husband asked why I didn’t want an impeller washer—after all, they use less water and they’re gentler on clothing.  Well, so far clothing damage has not been a big problem for me. I’ve learned how to not damage clothing using an agitator washer. What I want is the ability to do some damage. When I wash jeans that have been out with the cows, getting you-know-what ground into the denim, I want to really wash them. I want to make them eventually look like a $250 pair of boyfriend jeans that you might buy at Macy’s.  And then maybe I’ll sell them. I want to wash the heck out of the fabrics I’m about to sew so that I know the clothes I make can take a beating once I pour my blood, sweat and tears into their creation. And I really like to agitate towels. I don’t know why. I just do.

We’ve yet to make a final decision, but my husband continues to hold the impeller line. He even said at one point, “Well, maybe we could get you a wringer washer and put it on the porch if you like the old ways so much.” What he didn’t know was that for two summers I did wash clothes with an old gas-powered wringer washer in a remote mining camp my dad ran. My mom taught me how to fold the wet clothing and put shirts through the wringer so that the buttons didn’t break, and the best way to work the thick part of jeans through…lovely times. I told him I would consider it. I wouldn’t want to do all my laundry like that, but nothing beats an old wringer washer for horse blankets.

Are there any agitator washer fans out there? Or am I all alone? If you love your HE impeller washer, please tell me about it, so that I can make an informed decision.

Thank you! 

Their rivalry isn't new…but their attraction is! 

Wild spirit Jolie Brody never dreamed her new boss at the ranch supply store would be Dylan Culver. They haven't seen each other since high school, but he's just as straitlaced as ever. Good thing it's only temporary; Mr. Uptight is in town nursing an injury before he goes back to law enforcement. 

As they work together—surprisingly well—they can't deny their attraction. Letting a kiss lead to love is a commitment Jolie has never had to risk. So why is she now flirting with the possibility of a future with Dylan…a man with a dangerous job that makes everything complicated?

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