Comments on: A Minimalist Approach to Washing the Dishes

By: Simple Living News Update

Simple Living News Update — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 15:13:45 +0000

[...] Why Being Minimalist Starts With The Kitchen Sink [...]

By: Everett Bogue

Everett Bogue — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 16:10:10 +0000

Thanks so much for the comments everyone. I’m so thankful for the support and I’m glad you enjoyed the post.

By: Robyn

Robyn — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 05:06:27 +0000

“Fueled by condescension”? really? I don’t think so. This was a well-thought out post. I like the psychological side you bring up. I really don’t like doing my dishes but I also like a clean kitchen. I love getting up early in the morning and having everything clean while I fix my coffee and sit for awhile in the dark. Once I’m into it, it’s not so bad, it’s just a matter of getting a little bit motivated and getting started. Also I don’t use my dishwasher. Since I live alone it’s easier and less consuming to just do the few dishes by hand. I do however let them air dry and put them away in the morning. In fact here’s a quote from webMD – “At home, it’s always better to air dry your dishes than to use a dish towel, because a dish towel can harbor all sorts of bacteria. You wipe your hands with it, you use it to dry the counter, and then you use it to dry the dishes!”
Mercer agrees. “Air-drying is best. Or, if you do want to hand-dry your dishes at home, use a clean cloth, fresh from the drawer.”

The whole articles is here – http://www.webmd.com/news/20010817/air-dry-your-dishes

By: BLOGitse

BLOGitse — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 22:07:28 +0000

oooooh no!,
my grammar sucks,
my English sucks,
“I find poor grammar and punctuation distracting.”
->
I feel stupid because English is NOT my mother tongue -
isn’t the content, message, more important than ‘poor grammar’? Interaction is more important than pure grammar. Or did I miss something?

By: Abhishek

Abhishek — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 20:56:57 +0000

I have not used a dishwasher in 2 years. Even after a dinner party, I sponge the dirty dishes within 2 hours of usage and wash them together.

You can always recycle the grey water if you use organic dish washing detergent.

By: Everett Bogue

Everett Bogue — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 20:23:42 +0000

Carol, I’m so glad you brought up the subject of water, because I didn’t mention it at all. I’m a big fan of using as little water as possible when washing the dishes.

My dish routine usually involves hand soaping dishes with a wet sponge. This involves no running continuously running water. Then you do a quick rinse of one dish after another with a half-on faucet. This can be done with any number of dishes and uses the least amount of water, because I’m not filling a sink with suds or anything like that.

I think this is the best way, but I’m open to ideas.

Does anyone else have good limited-water dish washing strategies?

By: Carol

Carol — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 20:09:57 +0000

I don’t disagree with your arguments, but you haven’t mentioned the amount of water used. Waiting until there are enough dishes to fill the sink uses less water than washing a few at a time. It’s a small thing, but if one is trying to conserve in all areas, the small things count.

By: Philipp

Philipp — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:54:20 +0000

Funny, I just thought about that a couple of days ago. I was thinking of my brothers roommate. And how we had to take care of the mess in the kitchen while moving.

Since then I try to put everything in the dishwasher right away.

I’m not alone, thanks Everett!

By: Abhishek

Abhishek — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 18:07:16 +0000

I inherited a lot of dishes, bowls and mugs when my roommate got hitched. I now live alone with about ten or more dishes, bowls, glasses and coffee mugs. Since they are free, I didnt dispose of them. I keep most of them hidden in the most unreachable corner of my pantry closet. I only keep two dinner plates, four bowls (I use some for mixing and food preparation), two coffee mugs and two glasses out. This way, after every meal, I am forced to wash the dishes.

I bring more dinnerware out when I have guests but they go right back to the pantry closet.

By: Miche - Serenity Hacker

Miche - Serenity Hacker — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:03:25 +0000

Wow, I’m fairly new here, and this is really insightful! I’ve had different “dish doing” issues in the past, and what you’ve said really makes sense. One thing that really stood out for me is the arguments people have over dish doing, when this is really about personal responsibility. If I have the discipline to do my own dishes then that discipline probably spills over to other areas of my life (like resisting that 3rd car, as you mention). If I’m looking to blame others for the dishes, and not take responsibility for them, that too, probably manifests in other areas of life, not related to dish doing.

Also, I’ve noticed that the cleaner my sink, the more likely my closet, finances, and other areas of my life are in order. Great post!

Cheers,
Miche