The squeak of a clothespin fastening a damp (or givey*) shirt to a line is something not much contemplated nowadays. But somehow it always makes me pause and think. Mind you, I'm not talking about the "modern" clamp type clothespin with the metal spring. There's little magic in that contraption. It's the one-piece pin with ready-made "legs" that children use (or used) to paint faces on and dress up with homemade doll clothes. When you push this type of clothespin down over a t-shirt it just gives off a satisfying little squeak that reminds you that you are outside in the sun repeating a quotidian ritual that, in a supremely unpretentious manner, helps keep you connected to the cycles of earth, sun, and, if I may be so bold, the universe itself.
* givey = a traditional Ocracoke word meaning damp.
Our current monthly Ocracoke Newsletter is the story of George & Jule, published October 29, 2005. You can read it here: http://www.villagecraftsmen.com/news102905.htm.