Gloriously Grubby.

By alison February 27, 2006 17 Comments 3 Min Read

Slacker

Mark bought me  Confessions of  a Slacker Wife at the weekend. What?  You think  I should be insulted?  Don’t even go there. He bought me this on Valentines Day….

But anyway enough of my philandering fiancee (joke) and his bizarre sense of humour.

I haven’t had much chance to read Confessions but what I have read is funny and true and I am ashamed to say I recognised myself on page after page…

But something struck me as odd. Dear little Muffy Mead-Ferro is proud to announce that she hasn’t showered today. Or yesterday by the sounds of it:

"I would like to just go ahead and start this chapter with my first confession. A real bombshell, probably: I didn’t take a shower  today.

Whether  or not I  showered yesterday is probably  not even  worth mentioning, since I know I’ve already crossed a line  that might have excluded me from the neighbour hood dinner parties, or even my own book club."

Hmm. Now, I want you to understand that I don’t care if she never takes a shower again, because like she goes on to say, cleanliness is  a relative term, shaped entirely by your own standards of hygiene. No, what struck me most about this confession was that it wasn’t the first time I  have read such a statement recently.

Consider this from Darla Shine:

"I shower every other morning. I think showering every day is bad for your skin and hair. In winter I even go three days. My Italian grandmother and her sisters all have beautiful skin. The secret is not to overwash.

The same goes for my children. Unless it’s Summer and they’re sweaty or have chlorine or sunscreen on them and need a bath, I bathe them every three days…"

You see? This isn’t just one slacker housewife watching morning tv instead of jumping in the shower- it’s a mini  revolution!

You know what I love about this? The fact that these women are so utterly honest about what is really quite a major taboo. Strong independant women happy to affiliate themselves to the great unwashed because what they are saying is true: washing too often does dry your skin. We are lining the pockets of industry through over zealous hygiene standards and indeed we are wasting our earths natural resources taking baths and showers when a quick rub down with a flannel would probably do…

Personally I am not a clean fanatic. But I take showers and baths everyday because they afford me the time to concentrate on me. To spend blissful time alone focused on nothing other than my own well being.
Perhaps  it’s time to take up yoga.

17 Comments

  1. Kerry says:

    Nahhh … couldn't go to bed all dirty!!! But then we have a climate that makes us a little more sweaty and stinky … maybe if I lived somewhere where it was bitterly cold for a few months of the year ??? I still think I'd shower thought because I like the feeling of getting into fresh sheets all clean and smelling sweetly.

  2. Suzie says:

    There are days when I don't have a shower – more in winter than summer I admit. Like Kerry says, it get's awfully hot and sweaty here! But we are also on water restrictions, and so I sometimes get in really quickly – don't wash the hair, just a quick blast to wash away the day.

  3. Suzie says:

    There are days when I don't have a shower – more in winter than summer I admit. Like Kerry says, it get's awfully hot and sweaty here! But we are also on water restrictions, and so I sometimes get in really quickly – don't wash the hair, just a quick blast to wash away the day.

  4. Joy says:

    Hmmm, to be honest I am one of "the great unwashed" myself! I shower every other day and wash my hair every other day as well. I live in a very cold climate so I don't think I smell (hopefully one of my dearest would tell me!) I find my skin and hair do stay much softer this way. Though to be honest, in the summer I will shower up to 3 times a day (I feel awful admitting THAT waste of resources) but I can't stand being hot and sweaty and I feel that since we don't have a pool, it somehow balances out my indulgence…

  5. Joy says:

    Hmmm, to be honest I am one of "the great unwashed" myself! I shower every other day and wash my hair every other day as well. I live in a very cold climate so I don't think I smell (hopefully one of my dearest would tell me!) I find my skin and hair do stay much softer this way. Though to be honest, in the summer I will shower up to 3 times a day (I feel awful admitting THAT waste of resources) but I can't stand being hot and sweaty and I feel that since we don't have a pool, it somehow balances out my indulgence…

  6. Petah Hatcher says:

    Hi Alison, I read that in Darla Shine's book too and thought it rather interesting. I think I am probably over the top, but I have to wash my hair every day. Just do not feel the same if it is not washed and I just do not feel ready to face the day if I do not have a shower. Also pretty hot down here too, so might make a difference. Nothing wrong with not having a shower or bath. I think my Dad said they used to have a shower in the country once a week and the four kids would all use the same water and because he was the oldest, he was last! Yuck! Goes with being poor I suppose. Everybody has their little luxury I suppose and that is mine.

  7. shell says:

    In summer a shower a day is essential here, but honestly I will often go a day (in extreme cases two!) without a shower in winter. Even my summer showers are rather quick and my hair can wait a day or two to be washed. I think there are lots of women who do this – sometimes having a shower takes effort and if we aren't really that dirty what's the point? Hehe. Although I'll never admit this to my friends. =)

  8. shell says:

    In summer a shower a day is essential here, but honestly I will often go a day (in extreme cases two!) without a shower in winter. Even my summer showers are rather quick and my hair can wait a day or two to be washed. I think there are lots of women who do this – sometimes having a shower takes effort and if we aren't really that dirty what's the point? Hehe. Although I'll never admit this to my friends. =)

  9. Paola says:

    How do all you mothers MANAGE to shower regularly? My greatest luxury at the moment is finding the time for a shower – normally I have to trap the Minx in her cot and shower quickly to the accompaniment of shouting – not very conducive to relaxation and peaceful thoughts.

  10. Paola says:

    How do all you mothers MANAGE to shower regularly? My greatest luxury at the moment is finding the time for a shower – normally I have to trap the Minx in her cot and shower quickly to the accompaniment of shouting – not very conducive to relaxation and peaceful thoughts.

  11. ms*robyn says:

    sorry, but I shower everyday. I,like most australians,like to go to bed clean after a stinking hot day. Nothing like getting out of the shower and straight into bed.

  12. Petah Hatcher says:

    Hi Paola, When I had my first child I read that having a shower would be the only time of luxury you would have to yourself. I thought how ridiculous, but soon realised that was so true!

  13. Petah Hatcher says:

    Hi Paola, When I had my first child I read that having a shower would be the only time of luxury you would have to yourself. I thought how ridiculous, but soon realised that was so true!

  14. Kerry says:

    Yes Paola … that's what my showers are like each and every day … and the reason I no longer even try to have a long luxuriating bath … It's bound to be interrupted! I can't even go to the toilet without prying eyes or a mini Spanish inquisition. I said I shower every day … I didn't say it is luxurious or relaxing *_* Just servicing a need to feel clean and somewhat refreshed.

  15. Kerry says:

    Yes Paola … that's what my showers are like each and every day … and the reason I no longer even try to have a long luxuriating bath … It's bound to be interrupted! I can't even go to the toilet without prying eyes or a mini Spanish inquisition. I said I shower every day … I didn't say it is luxurious or relaxing *_* Just servicing a need to feel clean and somewhat refreshed.

  16. Sara says:

    I too am one of the great unwashed masses. I shower typically every-other day though in the winter I've been known to skip two days. Maybe it is a climate thing, but I have incredibly dry skin, so if I were to shower everyday I would turn into sandpaper. And that's in a city that regularly hits 90% humidity.
    When I lived in Colorado, the arid environment was so hard on me I would have a bloody nose at least once a week.
    I can't imagine showering/bathing everyday just for that reason. Which reminds me to go lotion my hands again – they are starting to hurt from being too dry.

  17. Sara says:

    I too am one of the great unwashed masses. I shower typically every-other day though in the winter I've been known to skip two days. Maybe it is a climate thing, but I have incredibly dry skin, so if I were to shower everyday I would turn into sandpaper. And that's in a city that regularly hits 90% humidity.
    When I lived in Colorado, the arid environment was so hard on me I would have a bloody nose at least once a week.
    I can't imagine showering/bathing everyday just for that reason. Which reminds me to go lotion my hands again – they are starting to hurt from being too dry.

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