I hate my toaster. It’s okay to hate things – just not people. I guess I don’t hate it, as I would have replaced it before now if I truly hated it. I dislike it a lot. It is a 2-slice stainless steel KitchenAid toaster that I ordered from Sears. I did not see the toasted in person before purchase, so I cannot be totally faulted for having bad taste. When the toaster arrived – I was certain they sent us the 4-slice one because it is so big. I am sure some people would love the hefty slots and the beefy, manly appearance. I do not. It also doesn’t always engage when I press down on the tab. I hate that.
On the other hand, I love my kettle. It’s a Breville stainless steel electric 1.8 liter kettle that is simple (No, I do not need to control the water temperature). It boils water quickly and has a lovely blue glow when it is on. Do you think in 10 years that stainless steel is going to be out? Will it be the “avocado” of the seventies? I think it may. Anyways, I also bought this kettle from Sears and I am pretty happy with it.
Our microwave is weird. It came with the house, so I cannot be blamed – we sold our built-in over-the-oven microwave with our house. It is quite attractive – stainless steel again – and has a quick start button and preprogrammed food buttons. But it is disturbing. For some reason when the microwave finishes, the fan keeps going. So, even if you have retrieved your reheated leftovers or warmed up tea, the microwave still sounds like it is running. Now, this seems quite reasonable to me – it’s like your interior car lights staying on for 10 seconds after you turn off the car. But it stays on for a while. A long while. Every now and then, you find yourself suddenly jerking up and running over to the microwave because you think you have left your food to heat to record temperatures. But it is not really running. It’s weird.
I almost bought a new toaster at Sears about 2 months ago. I had a gift card from my grandma and it was on sale and it was a Breville one that matches my kettle. Why didn’t I? Well, we were in the deep throes of Fit April and eating little to no bread. So, buying a replacement appliance for something that is working 95% of the time and we aren’t using it 95% of the time seemed a waste of resources. The KitchenAid one is just fine. Until now.
One of my favorite food is a toasted 1/2 Dream Bagel (high fibre and protein) with 1/2 ounce of extra old white cheddar cheese. It comes in at 125 calories and is a huge protein, fibre and energy source for me. I eat it at least once a day. (Please note, the toaster’s wide slots overwhelm my poor little bagel). I cut my bagel and slipped it into the toaster. But the toaster would not engage. Again. Again. Again. Stupid toaster. I want my bagel!
June 13th, 2012 Extra-Ordinary: Did you know you can toast a bagel half by placing it on a ceramic stove top element and turning the heat to medium high? It burns a bit and stays cool on the rounded side, but boy does it toast fast.
The Daily EO 