Yeah, I used to use the “running-hot-water-screw-the-environment” method. I always felt a)stupid and b)guilty for wasting so much water. But my eyes have been opened. It didn’t occur to me that in this great country, there were so many concientious dish washers out there, saving water so that I may waste it. God bless the United States of America and the laws of physics (for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction).
Ask her if she thinks that rinsing the soap and shampoo off herself in the shower is a waste of time and water… LOL
Naw, after the several page xeroxed Christmas letter about her yeast infection and its care, I already know more about her personal habits than I want to.
In my opinion, unless there is some compelling reason – like mineral streaks – towel-drying your dishes is an offense to God. Evaporation is his gift to us so that we may have a few extra minutes each day figuring out new ways of putting our souls in joepardy. Personally, I prefer trying to go blind, but that’s another thread.
My problem is that I have a teeny kitchen. Anywhere I put the dish drainer was inconvenient: it would take up valuable counter space, block a cabinet door, etc. Finally I gave the kitch a good looking-over to determine the spot where the drainer would do least harm.
Then it hit me! The oven! I never use the damn thing, so all it is to me is a big, warm empty box that’s taking up space. I bought a tall-sided basin that fits in the oven and nested the dish-drainer inside. The whole thing sits on the open oven door while I load it up, and gets shoved inside while it dries. And NO, I don’t turn on the gas… but the pilot light keeps things toasty in there, so the dishes dry extra quick.
Ugh, how can you stand to wash dishes in
a sinkful of dirty soapy water? I rinse
them, spray them with a little all purpose
cleaner (Sun & Earth), wipe them and rinse
them again. This keeps the sink cleaner,
uses less detergent, and keeps the sink
from stopping up.
Rinse in REALLY hot water (should kill some bugs) and then air-dry. That’s my vote. Tea-towels are unsanitary.
If the dishwashing liquid is doing its job, it’s keeping the grease and assorted gunk off of everything. It is a detergent, after all.
I keep the sink from clogging up by using one of those metal drain plugs with the holes in it and a stopper that can be moved from opened to closed. All of the food particles are caught in this stopper, and you simply empty it into the garbage when you’re finished doing the dishes.
I definitely don’t understand the ‘eat off of soapy dishes’ method that’s been mentioned previously. Ew.
After spending much time in the UK and living with Brits and New Zealanders in the US, I’ve found that very few (if any) of them rinse the soap from their dishes. When I asked why, everyone reacted as though rinsing and towel drying was completely unheard of. When I was in England a few years ago a big news story came out there about how bad the soap residue was supposed to be for your digestive system. But did anyone I know start rinsing after seeing the story? Nope, they all said something to the effect of, “Well, I’ve been leaving the suds on them all my life and nothing’s happened to me yet.”
Oookay, fine. Maybe so. But I always rinsed my dishes there just to be on the safe side anyway. Bleeech!
Compared to the 1.6 gallons she flushes every time she has the runs?
I just moved to a house that has a reeeeeally small kitchen. Unfortunately, I was not able to bring my dishwasher. But this kitchen does, thank Goddess, have a double sink. Wash, rinse, air dry. That’s the way I was taught as a kid, before my parents got a mechanical dishwasher to take the place of me and my brother. The thought of not rinsing the soap off makes me queasy. Bleah.
Maybe R-n-R is on to something. Maybe all their crappy food has given Englishmen stomachs of iron… I’ve got a good friend who was born in “Merry Ol’” who insists on not refrigerating his butter.
What the hell is with these nutty Brits? Geez, no wonder they no longer rule the world.