There are worse things than AC quitting in 95 degree weather

From a blogging friend (now a Facebook friend)

"So……my dryer quit working and the repairman came today to fix it. Can’t be fixed. Wanna know why??? Well, a SNAKE crawled into the vent from outside and got caught in the fan!!! Chopped to pieces! The smell was horrible and so the dryer is now outside and a new dryer will be delivered tomorrow!!!!! This was a first!"

Note from a friend on the current situation

“I thought toilet paper hoarding was bad.  Well freezers are worse.  I went to a small Sears store this am as I needed some parts.  The store manager was on the phone and he sold a freezer over the phone.  I asked him if selling a freezer over the phone was normal?  He said yes.  He said he sells many every day over the phone.  He said he has no freezer inventory, all the incoming order product is sold, and his future orders he was placing today are all sold.  He said the factories are running like crazy but they can not keep up.  As I was leaving a couple talked to him or more appropriately begged him to sell a floor model.  Unfortunately I would bet no freezers are made in the USA any more.  The last time I looked at a new refrigerator we bought a FEW MONTHS AGO IT SAID MADE IN MEXICO.”

Note: there are still appliances made in the U.S.A. http://www.stillmadeinusa.com/appliances.html

Our Lakeside stove

About 5 years ago our 20" electric stove at our lake house, probably 50 years old, went ka-boom and died. We went shopping in Sandusky and bought the cheapest possible model (about $370, and in 2019 it's $450) at ABC Appliances we could find. An odd size appliance like 20”  always costs more than standard and this one was a little like our 1963 Plymouth that had no radio and no AC. We were cheap then too.

So I've been shopping for something like I should have bought then--glass window in the oven door, drawer for storage and oven light. In 2013, I could have had all that for an additional $25, and now I'll shell out close to $600 for a 24" with delivery, cord and installation. Or, if my math is right, about $1,000 to replace my little old stove that came with the cottage in 1988. We went to Lowe's, Home Depot, ABC Appliances, and Frank’s. I finally ordered on-line from Sears.

To forgive myself for my foolish mistakes in money, I always reflect on the time we bought a lot about 30 years ago next to my sister in law when they lived on a lake in Indiana for $10,000 and sold it the next year for $20,000.

I’ll check around here and see if anyone in Lakeside has a small apartment and need a 20” stove, or when our niece and nephew come to visit in July, I’ll see if they want to take it back to Indianapolis.

Finally, after the fourth try. . .

The appliances are all in, wired correctly and plumb. My, what a difference.  We’ve been dealing with this since October. I've just baked my snickerdoodles with cranberries for Joanne Foster’s reception tomorrow at UALC. She is retiring after 25 years and most currently has been shepherding older adults. She will be missed--always cheerful and encouraging. Now I have to resist tasting them to be sure they are OK. Sure do smell good.

My new kitchen appliances

I know this is a first world problem and petty, but I've spent ca. $3000 on new kitchen appliances and I'm not sure I like any of them. Styles have changed and they don't look that terrific with my 1990s cabinets. All appliances are much larger than 20 years ago when this kitchen got a make-over by the previous owner. Then everything was flush. Now they look like they've been on steroids and everything is muscular and loud. Yes, loud. The new wall oven has a fan that doesn't turn off when it is in use! It actually blows my hair when I walk by! I upgraded the dishwasher for silence and get a noisy oven! We need to have a contractor slice about 1/2" off the counter so we can push the oven in all the way, but it will still stick out further than the old one. Sunday night we had dinner at a friend's and I noticed they have the same problem.

Money not spent is money saved

Our "new" free washing machine works great!

Recently my washing machine died--it was just the right size for our tiny basement and it had a matching tiny dryer. To buy an energy and water efficient front load model for $800+ it would have taken 9 years to see the savings in utilities to make up the higher cost. And that’s assuming there were no repairs, that I used it exactly according to manufacturers recommendations, that the electric and water rates didn’t go up (due to people using less) and I were using it 12 months a year instead of 10 weeks. Obviously, even a math midget like me can see there had to be a better way to save money.

My neighbor gave me his old washer that may last another 3 years (and actually does a better job than my old one in spinning out water and accepting larger loads). He and his nephew even hauled it down our steep basement stairs that resemble a ship’s ladder. Even if water and electric rates go up, even if it is inefficient, this deal is better than any offered by the government or Sears.

And it doesn’t cost you, the tax payer, a dime. The tax credit on energy efficient appliances are paid for by all of us from the time they are a gleam in a politician’s eye until they get to the paperwork at the store and to your accountant who has to fill out several forms. That credit has passed through many hands. A 25% credit on an $800 washer might be a $200 credit on your taxes, but it costs the American tax payer much, much more than that, and of course, a low income person probably doesn’t itemize, or doesn’t file an income with the IRS at all, nor could she come up with the balance.

Another plus. The old washer in the photo was made in the U.S.A.

Maytag apologies for my corroded dishwasher racks

"Dear Ms Bruce:

Thank you for visiting the Maytag web site. We appreciate hearing from you.

We understand that you are interested in replacing the dishwasher racks.

The part numbers for the dishwasher racks are upper (W10269678) retails for $100.49 and lower part number (W10280784) retails for $143.25.

You may order by contacting Consumer Sales at 1800 442 9991, M-F, 8:00AM to 8:00PM EST.

The warranty for the racks covered Dura Guard nylon racks and the racks for this unit are vinyl.

Thank you for allowing us to assist you today.

You are a valued Maytag customer and we apologize for any inconvenience this concern may have caused."
--------------------------

So 3 months past the "platinum warranty" that cost $89, which apparently covered a different rack and wouldn't have been covered anyway, and all I get is this apology for a product they've known for years was corroding. DO NOT BUY MAYTAG!

Forget Maytag

When we moved here in 2002 I bought a matching washer and dryer--I'd never had a matched set. My older models used to last 15-20 years, but they'd wear out on a different schedule. I'm about to go back to a mismatch. My Maytag dryer, which has been a constant frustration for seven years because it balls the clothes instead of fluff, needs a new motor, according to the repair man, to whom I gave $35 just to come and look at it. We thought it was the timer-switch, and even that was going to be about $150 with labor, but the motor is much more expensive, both in parts and labor. What a piece of crap. The repairman said he bought a rebuilt Maytag about 15 years ago, and now at 30, it's still going strong, but the new ones aren't worth piddle.

Anyone have a recent model (not Maytag) they'd recommend? The washer squeals when stopping after spin cycle, so maybe I should just start over with one of those efficient models. I have a CD coming due, and that's certainly not worth reinvesting, so maybe that's the route to go.


I'm not sure of the date of this photo, but I think it's about 1953, and my mother had her first automatic washer and dryer. Before that she used a wringer washer and we either hung the clothes in the basement (which I've been doing this week), or outside if the weather was good. These were in the downstairs 1/2 bath which in an earlier era, was a porch to the back yard, so this bathroom had four doors, one to the kitchen, one to Dad's office, one to the outside, and one to the basement. My mother was about 40-41 in the photo.

Thursday Thirteen--13 warnings

1) For the last four days a "low on ink" reminder from HP pops up on the screen in the morning. Actually, I think it's zip, nada, zero ink in the black cartridge. The questions for Monday night bookclub were printed in royal blue.

2) And the microwave beeps to tell me my coffee has finished reheating. If I don't press the off button, it will beep from here to eternity, waiting for me to do something.

3) The other morning about 5 a.m. the microwave started randomly beeping about every 5 minutes--no reason, I hadn't even used it, so perhaps it had started doing it during the night. "Hello--anyone home? Can I help?"

4) The dryer calls from the laundry room when the clothes are not quite dry--just about. I suppose that's for women who plan ahead and already have hangers ready to whisk a few things out at the last minute to hang out the wrinkles. I hear it, but usually don't stop what I'm doing.

5) There's a light on my van dash that warns me when I'm low on gas. My husband responds immediately because he only drives it occasionally, but I know that it is just teasing and it will be a few more miles until we're on fumes.

6) A mild twinge in my lower back warns me that I've been stepping over the baby gate instead of releasing it. It belongs with all the paraphernalia for puppy-sitting. When the children were toddlers, I had a similar gate and tore up my back for several months executing this same maneuver.

7) There's a little 4.5 lb. Chihuahua here in my office, just visiting for the week, but our cat in the hall is issuing warnings. "Hissssss, Hisssss, Arrrrh. Don't you even think of sitting on her lap, that's my lap, you worthless bag of doggie bones." The pup wags her tail and ignores the warnings.

8) Every morning since returning from Ireland in September my bathroom scales has been warning me that I need to get back to a healthier routine like I did last year at this time. Otherwise, all the new clothes are not going to fit by Thanksgiving.

9) I drove my husband's Explorer to the coffee shop today. It doesn't like me. On the dash a red warning light was flashing, "theft, "theft."

10) I have double ovens, but I've never been able to figure out how to set the digital timer, so I have no warning when something is done--like last night's roast, which could be called, "tender crisp." I just have to pay attention to the clock.

11) But the oven also will start beeping on its own--sometimes for a long time--warning about what, I don't know. Usually about 3 a.m. I push a lot of buttons--so many I have no idea why when it finally stops.

12) My PC is making crunching, grinding, moaning noises, and taking longer to boot up. This is a warning I need to heed. Time for service, or time for a new computer. And if you have lots of ads on your TT, or music, or winky-blinky things, it just sighs and won't load.

13) Our investment adviser has never said anything political in the 7 years we've known him, but as we discussed the required draw down of our investments yesterday, he warned us the Democrats will raise taxes (because that's just what they do). When the economy is getting soft (the spreading mortgage meltdown, the cost of oil, etc.), he said, that's the absolute worst thing for recovery. Retired people don't have the time span for recovery when we also have a required withdrawal from our accounts. There's more revenue for the government with lower taxes, so why would they do this? Because they can. A warning, indeed.

Check out Karen's site for TT banners.

I have visited Sandee; Denise; Vicki; Mark; Home with the kids;

Thursday Thirteen

1002 The Waffle Maker a.k.a. Waffle Iron

Where to start? I came home from Illinois with an extra Waffle Maker, a Toastmaster, which I'll eventually take to our lake house for leisurely summer brunches on the deck, with sides of fresh fruit and sausage. My husband loves waffles, and will order them at Abigail's (Lakeside, OH restaurant) if I don't fix them at home.

The reason I have an extra waffle maker is because its previous owner managed to cement the first waffle to the plates and finally had to pry it open with a screw driver. After numerous soakings, the waffle was dislodged by me, and I got the crevices clean and fixed waffles. But by this time, the original owner had already notified Toastmaster of the problem (instructions said to wait for green light, but this model had no green light), and the company sent him a new one.

Today I thought I'd surprise my husband, and I got out our Oster Belgium Waffle Maker. I purchased it in 2001 at an after-Christmas sale as a nice gift for me from me. For about two weeks we ate wonderful, fluffy waffles, and then I put it away. Then I think the last time I used it was for a luncheon with our son and his step-daughter on the deck of our condo in 2002. Well, that's another story too that makes me weep--she, our only chance at being grandparents, now lives in California, and probably doesn't remember eating waffles with us, or even us for that matter.

Meanwhile, I have hunted through all my recipe caches, shelves, books and folders, and little wooden and metal recipe boxes, but I can't find the manufacturer's recipe book and instructions. "Just use another recipe," my husband suggested, but it isn't that easy. It is the booklet that tells you the appliance's whims and secrets so you don't cement the plates together. Does it want the batter dumped in the middle, or evenly distributed into the 4 squares; do the plates remove for cleaning; what sort of signal will it give when ready to accept or disgorge its contents; and most importantly, it has the notes I wrote along side the printed recipes.

In my hunt for the illusive instruction booklet, I opened my "Household Slips 'n Clips" and found the warranties for my children's yellow 20" Schwinn bikes they had in the early 1970s; a user's manual for a GE portable record player purchased in Nov. 1973 (must have been for the children's birthdays); assembly instructions and safety manual for a gym set for the back yard; the payment ($6.82/mo) booklet for my Singer sewing machine purchased in August 1960; instructions for my portable electric typewriter which got me through graduate school; information on storing an electric blanket possibly from the 1970s; warranties for a trash can purchased in 1978 and a bathroom vent-light for a remodeling in 1974; washing instructions for bedroom curtains purchased in 1964; a plan for a linen closet we installed in our first house in 1962 in Champaign, IL; and operating instructions for a Telectro 2 speed tape recorder model 1970 from the late 1950s.

We no longer have those products, but now I have two waffle makers and no instruction book for either one.