Mr. Big Food referred to it as “Prison-Striped Wallpaper.” It is quite possibly the most hideous wallpaper with which I’ve ever lived.

I won’t go so far as to say, “There ought to be a law”– because there are far too many laws as it is– but people who wallpaper sheet rock walls without first swiping some cheap paint or Kilz or something on the walls should be made to remove said wallpaper, and clean up after themselves.  

It’s been a while since we stripped wallpaper. On all previous occasions the wallpaper papered plaster walls, so I was forced to poke around the world-wide wed to learn how to strip paper from paper. Vinegar + hot water in a spray bottle. Sounded reasonable in principle. …  In practice, I thought Mr. Big Food was going to pull his hair out which would really have been something since I buzzed his head last weekend.  

Thanks to Brother Mike– not the preacher at the local Baptist Church, my actual blood brother– who turned me on to Downy Fabric Softener! Bro Mike is an expert in these things. A solution of Downy + hot water works very well, and is much more fragrant than vinegar + hot water. But here’s the curious thing. Bro Mike cautioned several times, “Don’t use too much Downy, it’s toxic.”

I don’t use fabric softener in our laundry but I have to wonder about this. If Downy + hot water in a spray bottle is toxic how is Downy + hot water in a washing machine not? 

Shoot. There I go again being skeptical.