Tonight I want to talk to you about something that non-New Yorkers often take for granted. Laundry. It’s an essential part of our lives that is often overlooked. If you live in an apartment, in New York or not, you’ll probably be able to relate a little better to this post.

Living in New York, there are many factors that make a building desirable. Followed by the obvious, location, these factors are usually other top factors in picking a building:

Doorman vs. non-doorman building
Walk-up vs. elevator
Laundry vs. no laundry

Why yes having laundry in your building (don’t expect to see laundry in an apt unless you’re paying the BIG bucks) is looked upon as a valued amenity. And lucky for us, we scored and got a laundry building. You might be wondering what all of the millions without laundry in their building do with their dirty clothes? Well, let me tell you. There are some laundromats that can be found throughout the city, but more often than not people send out their laundry to be washed. Personally, I thought this was one of the most ridiculous things I had heard when I moved here, but a ton of my friends do in fact do this. Another fun fact? Chris hasn’t done his own laundry in almost 8 years. I cannot tell a lie. And, I’ll tell you what, after 2 years I’ve even considered the option for these reasons:

A lot of the wash and fold places offer free pick-up and delivery options, which living on the 4th floor I’d love to even skip the multiple trips up and down to the basement
Let me emphasize the fold part of wash and fold! Who enjoys folding their laundry anyways?
and finally, because after two years sometimes our building’s facilities don’t always get the job done. If someone could explain to me how the washers went from being $1.25 to $2.50 and the dryers have gone from $1.50 for an hour down to $1.50 for half of the time during my residency in my building I’d appreciate it. Talk about inflation!

Anyways, I bet you didn’t realize what a big deal having your own washer and dryer was huh? Well, the next time you’re loading a load I want you to feel like a king or queen, and I’m going to do that with the following photos. So, going back to people being envious of laundry buildings, I’d like to take you to the downstairs of our building to the basement a.k.a. creepy dungeon.

Now, as you walk down the crocked, uneven stairs it’s important to take your sweet time and let the lights adjust, because if you walk down too fast you might catch roaches running in circles trying to get out of the light. True story. While you are doing this, it’s important to take a deep breath and think about all of the other New Yorkers that would love to be in your place at this very moment. Another tip from a basement laundry pro is to not look around too much. Whatever you do, don’t look at the ceiling, the space in between the washing machines, and definitely not behind the dryers. There are likely other creepy basement dwellers that are better left not seen.

Let’s pan to the side by the dryers where someone has hung a photo to help make the area more serene and pleasant. Cough, not working, cough. To the right of the exit sign there are two trash bins and a broom in case you need to ward off any creepy-crawlers or a murderer. Just kidding guys, I mean come on. Not even murderers would want to hang out there too long ;-).

All jokes aside, having laundry in our building can be a really nice asset when everything is working properly. Do I think we’re getting ripped off most of the time? Of course, but so are all things in the city someone can make a profit from. Plus, on the flip-side, going back to the wash and fold. While the services do sound great, they charge by the pound. Considering I usually wait until I have at least 20 lbs. we’re looking at a decent fare. Besides, other people washing my clothes kind of creeps me out.. so as long as the washers and dryers work, it’s down to the basement for me!

I hope I have made you all feel like royalty! So remember, the next time you walk into that roach-free beautiful laundry room, I want you to know about all of us little New Yorkers that dream of one day having laundry rooms like yours that we don’t have to share. Cheers guys!

Luxurious Laundry