By Soumyabrata Gupta

Copyright timesnownews

Years back, when half-pants still seemed normal and that tin of condensed milk was just out of hand’s reach, I remember visiting an elderly aunt’s palatial-but-dilapidated house, standing on its last legs for an afternoon outing. And I do not remember much of the place, save a huge semi-circular room – a remnant of an era gone by with Venetian windows dotting every wall, a king-sized bed – glorious in its shambles and an aramkedara or armchair that was pushed into a dusty corner and become safe have for a pile of dirty laundry. Times have changed. Palatial homes have been replaced by compact BHKs that dot the urban cityscape, but the bedroom’s tryst with that chair remains. The chair remains a silent witness in nearly every home. It is not the pristine, formal dining chair but rather its rundown cousin, tucked in a corner of the bedroom, or near the closet – a gravity well for clothes in limbo. A ‘universal phenomenon’, the chair, a subtle emblem of modern life remains a silent witness to modern life’s pace and our complicated relationship with clothes. You know the story. You have lived it. After a tiring day at work, you take off your shirt – it is not dirty per se, but it is not fresh either. It does not smell of jasmine and roses after a run-in with the washing machine. It could use a little airing out – may be worn one more time. You hesitate: “Should I fold it and put it away? Or toss it in the laundry?” Your brain chimes in “not laundry,” but the cupboard – that sacred space is reserved for crisp, clean essentials only. The chair claims another garment – a temporary home for clothes too dirty for the cupboard, too clean for laundry. Is The Chair An Unsung Hero of Daily Dressing? To be honest, the chair feels like the middle ground, the no-man’s-land for clothing. It is where yesterday’s jeans hands out, where sweaters, having survived winter, wait for their journey to the laundromat. The limbo might seem trifle, but does it not sing a deeper story of convenience, habits and sustainability? In past decades, the clothes-to-laundry process was a rigid one. You wear your clothes once and wash them once. Years have seen a paradigm shift in our relationship with our attires. Garments like the jeans, knitwear, casual tees are all designed for multiple wears. And the chair serves as a staging post, the Wall of Winterfell, where they wait their turn for the wild, wild outdoors. From being a furniture for seating, it has evolved into a functional and flexible space, reflecting how people actually live. The Psychology Behind the Chair Have you ever wondered – why do we use the chair? Yes, it was crafted to combat fatigue, but over the years it has evolved as a safe space for decision fatigue and convenience. Following a long day, the last thing anyone wants to do is to take the time to commit a piece of clothing to a definitive category. Clothes on the chair is a story of indecision, a hesitation before making the final call. They hold on to the hope that maybe the shirt can be worn once more, that the jeans are not ready for a full wash or that the sweater does not smell bad enough to warrant an expensive cleaning. Tied in cycles of hesitation and guilt, the chair becomes a buffer, a permission slip for – just one more wear. Chair, Sustainability and Smart Laundry Habits But there are clothes whose extended wear life does require less water. Furthermore modern life also warrants a metered energy consumption and the knowledge of the environmental footprint of frequent washing. Wearing jeans twice or thrice before washing, airing out sweaters between wears, and spot-cleaning shirts are all ways to cut down on unnecessary laundry loads. The chair thus takes on a practical role. It hits the pause button between washes and in the process not only helps clothes live a fuller life, but helps households cut down on waste as well. The chair’s tall tale is thus a lifestyle narrative revolving around mindful consumption wrapped in practicality. In this context, the chair takes on a practical role. It’s the pause button between washes, helping clothes live a fuller life and helping households cut down on waste. The chair’s “tall tale” then becomes a lifestyle narrative: a commitment to mindful consumption wrapped in everyday practicality. The Chair’s Dark Side But not all chair stories are charming. The pile, if it was so at one time, can quickly morph into a mountain of stench, frustration and clutter. An overloaded chair becomes a visual stressor, a cry for organisation. The clutter can also affect our mental space. The chair, when mismanaged, can turn from helpful staging ground to chaotic clutter zone – both within, and without. If the chair has morphed into a clothes magnet, perhaps it is time to think of strategies to keep it functional and fresh. Chair: Symbol of Life’s Pace Ultimately, the chair tells us something about how we live. It is a balancing act between efficiency and comfort and routines with flexibility. In a fast-paced world where time is money, the chair’s tall tale is one of practical humanity. It is not about clothes, but perhaps about giving ourselves the permission to be imperfect. To allow hesitation. And to pause and take a moment before making decision. The chair thus becomes the ear that listens to our needs, while bearing silent witness to the vagaries of a messy modern living. Next time, don’t judge ‘that’ chair. Instead, appreciate the stories it holds. And celebrate how it teaches you that life does not fit into a neat little box, but rather is a collection of messy thoughts, just like our lives.