Guess What?

I have a new cooktop!

Here's the deal.

When we moved into this already built house in 1994 - it had a Jenn-Air cooktop  built into the "island".  Only 2 eyes - a small and a large - with a grill to grill meat? Indoors?  I don't think so.  All that grease?  We prefer to do our grilling outside - on charcoal.  So we just told ourselves we would replace that with a 4 eye cooktop.

We never did.  Neither of us took the initiative and I adapted to only having the 2 eyes.

All these 16 years I've mostly used the grill as a kitchen drain.  Isn't that crazy?  When I have a very large crowd I have used the grill as a heat source to keep things simmering which I had already heated on the two eyes.

But all those years of cooking and with just the two eyes - here in America - where we must have all the luxuries - well, it's been a trial.  :-) Kidding.  I do have a crockpot - a nice one.  I have a Microwave and of course the oven.  Only one oven - not a double oven.  As long as I am going to live in the USA - and be intoxicated with comfort and ease - and demand only the most convenient appliances - well, shoot!  Might as well want for double ovens.  Please note my sarcasm directed toward myself - and read my last post about the awareness of poverty in places like Guatemala.

Nonetheless, several weeks ago, with only two eyes to cook on - my largest one went out.  It quit.  It said, "No more.  I'm not working anymore.  I'm done here.  You should have hired another large eye to help me with this workload. I quit".

and I said, "You've got to be kidding!  Are you sure????  I jiggled with the knob and tried this.  I tried that.  And I realized the truth.  I was now cooking with only one small eye."

So, I thought....yay!  I don't have to cook anymore.  That's my excuse.  I mean - who could prepare a large meal with one small eye?  Plus - I'd already excused myself from vacuuming.

Because see, I've been using a very very very old, what used to be a very nice one when it was new, Electrolux Vacuum.  But that was so long ago - and it had become a monster to use and maneuver and work with, having all of its glitches.  Charlie would have bought me a new vacuum, but I've wanted a really really good very costly vacuum.  Because do ya'll know that just because a vacuum is called a vacuum cleaner, that doesn't really mean it's getting all the stuff out of your carpet?  Do you know that?  That's true.  So who wants to drag a cheap vacuum around the house and feel deceptively good about cleaning, when you're not really cleaning at all.  I don't.  I'm a realist.  I don't want to vacuum if I'm not vacuuming.  So - Charlie has taken on vacuuming for me with our old, but still "sucking it up" vacuum cleaner.  He did that because he's a loving husband.  He has compassion on and for me and it's his way of being my hero and protector.  So he's vacuumed.  It had even, lately, gotten to the point at which duct tape was brought out.  He used the tape to hold together the tuby thing - the part of the vacuum that is flexible and attaches to the hard part.  That lasted a while until finally it completely broke.  We had no vacuum.   And... I have to say, the duct tape was hard on me.  Duct tape?  there is no visually, esthetically  appealing quality about it - none whatsoever.  I just looked away when the duct tape came out.

(I'll get back to the cooktop shortly)

So - it's one thing to be able to quit cooking - but gee, dust builds up.  What to do?  Well, about once a week or every 2 weeks - Charlie borrowed a vacuum - a good one from a very convenient source - just not going into that right now publicly.

Back to the cooktop -

I knew I couldn't cook - but here's the thing.  I forget stuff.  I would forget that I had only one small eye. It was like cooking in a dorm on a hotplate!!  Charlie joked that we could go out and buy 3 more hotplates and then it would be like having a new cooktop.  He thought that was pretty funny.  I just smiled in a cynical way.  I would forget and then I would commit to a meal - mostly with Ann and family, and those are pretty large meals - and I'd turn to cook and remember.  Oops.

I've actually adapted to one small cooktop.  Casseroles and meats in the oven are nice.  That works.  I've used the indoor grill as a heat source.

But now I have the new cooktop and a new vacuum.  From the kind folks at Sears who had a great 18 month no interest plan.  We'll have them both paid for in 18 months - no interest.  :-)  Cooktop was installed yesterday and I used the vacuum in my living room.  It has a clear canister and I can see what is being picked up.  WHOA!!!!  That's cool.  Here's what I think I might do.  Vacuum the carpet once, see what it's picked up.  I'll empty the canister and then vacuum the same area to see if it continues to pull up a lot.  That's a TEST!!  Isn't it?  That's reality.  I like real.  No faking it.  No deceiving myself.

Now - if I could just remodel my house - create more space - have all hardwood floors put in - new paint, inside and out.  Ahhhh.  I mean, I live in America - of course that's what I want.

Oh yeah, and I need a new car.

I write with "tongue-in-cheek".