Beautiful

He was a rather average looking Asian gentleman.  He was old enough to have gray hair, but didn't appear to be elderly.  He ran a laundromat.

The building itself was a simple, low brick structure, nothing out of the ordinary to look at.  Since it was a beautiful day, he had the doors wide open, although i've since found out he almost always has the doors wide open, unless it's sweltering or freezing.

As i came in, i told him that i had a lot of laundry, more than 20 loads.  He smiled, and i said, "My boss' washing machine broke, and they haven't done laundry for 3 weeks!"  At that he grinned a bit wider, and said, "I like!"  We both laughed, and he showed me where the larger machines were, in the back.

Bringing in load after load, he eyed me for a bit, then sat back down to his paper.  One of the nice ladies who was already there helped me when i ran into trouble from the start with a recalcitrant coin slot.  She got it unstuck for me.

As the day wore on, i washed, and dried, and washed, and dried, and, as the loads started to get done, i folded and folded.

When i said more than 20 loads, i wasn't exaggerating.  Sheets, towels, mattress pads, undergarments, day clothes, night clothes, sports uniforms, and even blankets, i had hauled all of it in.  Eventually i ran out of detergent, and had to make a run to a store to get that and clean garbage bags in which to haul back the cleaned and folded items.

He sat most of the time, getting up once in a while to tend a machine for the people who paid him to do their laundry for them, or to give change.  Then he noticed that i was struggling with a particularly troublesome sheet, he got up and helped me.  Then, silently, he began grabbing baskets of the clean stuff and folding alongside me.

Thanking him over and over, he said, "I can see you are tired!"  Indeed i was, and by the time i left, 8 hours after i had arrived, i was even more tired.  In fact, i know i wouldn't have finished before closing time if he hadn't assisted.

After the last load had been put back into the van, i thanked him again for his help.  He said, "You were tired, and I am lazy now!  I don't sew clothes now, I just sit.  So I help."

You are not lazy! i told him.  Lazy people don't help!

He just smiled.

"You come back tomorrow?" he asked.

No, i said.  This was all the laundry the boss had, but i will tell everyone i know that yours is the best laundromat, and if i ever need one, i will come here!

He was an average looking, older Asian gentleman, but after the much needed help he gave me, he was beautiful in my eyes.


Today is

Annapolis Valley Apple Blossom Festival -- Windsor to Digby, Nova Scotia, Canada (lots of fun in apple blossom time; through June 2)

Araw ng Watawat -- Philippines (Flag Day)

Armed Forces Day -- Croatia

Contemplate Your Vicissitudes Day -- no, i still don't know who thinks up this stuff, i can think of much better things to contemplate, thank you

Day of Pin-Hiding and Button-Losing -- Fairy Calendar

Downfall of the Dergue Day/National Day -- Ethiopia

National Brisket Day

National Hamburger Day

National Senior Health and Fitness Day -- US (don't let age get in the way of staying healthy!)

Republic Day -- Armenia; Azerbaijan

Republic Day -- Nepal

Slugs Return From Capistrano Day -- where they spent the winter, so don't go out on the patio barefoot until the first frost; sponsored by Wellcat Holidays

St. Bernard of Montjoux's Day (Founder of Alpine hospices; Patron of Alpinists, the Alps, mountain climbers, mountaineers, skiers, and travelers in the mountains)

Whooping Crane Day -- US (birth anniversary of the first crane born in captivity; because those born in captivity refused to breed after they grew up, the attempt to restore numbers this way was discontinued, but these are beautiful birds worth saving)

Women in Trousers Day -- US (on this day in 1923, the US Attorney General announced his determination that it was indeed legal for women to wear trousers anywhere)

World Hunger Day -- The Hunger Project

World MS Day -- information here

Yom Yerushalayim -- Israel (Jerusalem Day; began sunset yesterday, ends sunset today)


Anniversaries Today:

Amnesty International is founded, 1961
Sierra Club is founded, 1892


Birthdays Today:

Joseph Cross, 1986
Carey Mulligan, 1985
Jesse Bradford, 1979
Sicily Yoder, 1969
Kylie Minogue, 1968
Glen Rice, 1967
Christa Miller, 1964
Sondra Locke, 1947
John Fogerty, 1945
Rudolph Guiliani, 1944
Gladys Knight, 1944
Annette, Cecile, Emilie, Marie, and Yvonne Dionne , 1934
Carroll Baker, 1931
Barry Commoner, 1917
Ian Fleming, 1908
Jim Thorpe, 1888
Louis Agassiz, 1807
William Pitt, 1759


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"The Magic Show"(Musical), 1974
"Lock Up Your Daughters"(Musical), 1959
Melody(Disney cartoon film, first ever in 3-D), 1953
"Zoo Parade"(TV), 1950
"Louisiana Purchase"(Musical), 1940
"Mathis der Maler / Matthias the Painter"(Opera), 1938
"L'Arianna / Ariadne"(Opera), 1608


Today in History:

A solar eclipse occurs, as predicted by Greek philosopher and scientist Thales, while Alyattes is battling Cyaxares in the Battle of the Eclipse;this leads to a truce and becomes one of the cardinal dates from which other dates can be calculated, BC585
James IV of Scotland and Margaret Tudor are married according to a Papal Bull by Pope Alexander VI and a Treaty of Everlasting Peace (which lasted 10 years) between Scotland and England is signed, 1503
The Spanish Armada, with 130 ships and 30,000 men, sets sail from Lisbon heading for the English Channel (it will takes until May 30 for all of the ships to leave port), 1588
In the first engagement of the French and Indian War, Virginia militia under 22-year-old Lieutenant Colonel George Washington defeat a French reconnaissance party, 1754
Big Ben is drawn on a carriage pulled by 16 horses from Whitechapel Bell Foundry to the Palace of Westminster, 1859
In San Francisco, California, John Muir organizes the Sierra Club, 1892
In the Russo-Japanese War, the Battle of Tsushima ends with the destruction of the Russian Baltic Fleet by the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1905
John B Gruelle patents Raggedy Ann doll, 1915
The US Attorney General says it is legal for women to wear trousers, 1923
The first all color talking picture, "On With the Show", is shown in NYC, 1929
The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California, is officially opened, 1937
Neville Chamberlain becomes British Prime Minister, 1937
The women of Greece are given the right to vote, 1952
The Palestine Liberation Organization is formed, 1964
Fifteen West African countries sign the Treaty of Lagos, creating the Economic Community of West African States, 1975
Eritrea and Monaco join the United Nations, 1993
NATO declares Russia a limited partner in the Western alliance, 2002
The Mars Odyssey finds signs of large ice deposits on the planet Mars, 2002
The first meeting of the Constituent Assembly of Nepal formally declares Nepal a republic, ending the 240-year reign of the Shah dynasty, 2008
'Le Monde' reports the Assad regime in Syria continues to use chemical weapons, 2013