I remember an old picture I saw of a pioneer woman positioned next to a large cauldron, surrounded by fire — a nineteenth century hot water heater! It was laundry day. There was no wringer to squeeze water from clothes. There were no rinse tubs in sight.

Things got better with time: electricity was harnessed, inventions were made, and eventually, even a teenager could handle most of wash day (my daughter did).

As I remember from my youth, wash day was always Monday, that was in the ‘50s and early ‘60s, before most women had jobs outside the home. Now teachers couldn’t keep that sch...