For me, it happens to me rarely, but it does happen.
Usually, I can tell I've forgotten when I go to bring the clothes out of the machine. Instead of smelling fresh and clean, they smell...dirty and damp. Yuck.
A fix is simple, though: just start the machine again, this time adding detergent.
But if I'm too sleepy or too rushed during the critical point of removing the clothes from the washing machine, the dirty/damp smell might go unnoticed. Oh, horror!
And if that is the case, the clothes will get hung, dried, or ironed. And if I'm too sleepy or too rushed while in that critical process, then the smell will be cemented into the garment. Oh, horror times three!!
And if I still haven't realized the unfortunate state of my clothes when I select them in the morning (again for being too sleepy or too rushed) then I will inevitably notice their sad state when I am at school teaching.
And that's just what happened today. Oh, horrors.
I couldn't imagine why I smelled so funky. Did I forget to put on deodorant? No, I had remembered. Had I stepped on something weird? The bottom of my shoes were clean. Did I spill milk from my cereal on my shirt this morning? There was no evidence of stains.
And then it dawned one me.
While my little black cardigan smelled fresh and clean, the purple frilly shirt I had beneath it was...funkdafied.
The great difference in smell between the two garments pointed to one sorry thing: I must have forgotten to add detergent to my light purple load. Ugh!
And so I spent today feeling self-conscious, even as I rubbed Bounce fabric softener sheets all over my body (for yes, I keep them in my classroom for unfortunate days like this).
*sigh
