The Man Who Didn't Wash His Dishes and how he's still in my life

One of my favorite books as I was growing up was "The Man Who Didn't Wash His Dishes" (Krasilovsky, Phyllis). This poor man apparently didn't like washing dishes, so he just didn't. Eventually he ran out of dishes to eat off and cook out of, so he got creative-- eating out of flower pots and ash trays, even the soap dish. Then he ran out of those things, too, but also out of room to put any more dirty dishes and the cleanup job was just too big. So he had the ingeneous idea to put all the dirty dishes & non-dishes in the back of his truck while it was raining and that got them all clean. He of course vowed to always wash his dishes from there on out.


Now, I of course realize how ridiculous the whole story is, because when I run out of clean plates I just use paper plates. And when I don't have a pot to cook out of I just drive down to Little Ceasar's. And of course the rain would be no match for stuck-on food-- especially food that was stuck on the first plate he used, before he ran out of ALL his dishes and everything else that could pose as a dish. Just imagine.


But that's not the point (I always have a point, as you well know). The point is how I still think of that poor man on at least a weekly basis. There's a day every week when I look around my kitchen and think, boy, there's not even a place to put any more dirty dishes (as I was thinking today and which brought me to writing this inspiring post). If I don't watch out I'll be like that poor man who had to eat out of a flower pot. And that's when I finally get around to washing the dishes. Because I, too, hate washing dishes. It's one of my least favorite household chores. But I'm pretty well convinced I would hate eating out of a flower pot even more than I hate washing dishes.


You should read the book, by the way. But not because it will have the same effect on you (you're adults, for heaven's sake) but because it's a good book. Your kids (if you have some) would love it, too, and maybe someday they'll look around their kitchens and say, boy, I don't have a place to put any more dirty dishes. If I don't watch out I'll end up like that poor man who had to eat out of a flower pot. And they'll wash their dishes and your grandchildren won't have to eat out of soap dishes. Just think.