I love going to the laundry mat to do my laundry when I have time. It's where I get to know the neighborhood that I live in. People spend hours there with little else to do but to wait, load and fold. Not too exciting. I spend most of my time observing the interactions between people, between couples who take the opportunity to show each other affection, children who are helping their parents out, and singles who are checking out the good looking people there...hoping they are single, available and interested.

The laundry mat is one of sources of entertainment. I enjoy watch my dirty laundry spinning, swirling, swish-swashing inside the machine. Thank god for modernity and technology, for the invention of the washing machine. Now, instead of washing my laundry by hand, I have the luxury to sit back, think, and observe. As I sit on the bench or table where people fold, contemplating, I would sometimes think about all those people who have washed their dirty laundry in the machines before me.

In a way, the laundry mat is place for communal cleansing. I go there and often leave feeling more connected. Too bad I don't do my laundry that frequently. The laundry mat is one of the last places, besides the park, that people, families can hang out and get to each other and bond with members of their community. I find that I really get to know someone by seeing their bed sheets, towels, clothes, and undergarments. These articles reveal people's taste, style, way of life, and relationships. They offer me an intimate snapshot of the people who share the space with me. I find meaning in the most ordinary and mundane things in life.