Time and Appliances

Moving into a new home has necessitated a period of learning about the differences between our new appliances and the ones we left behind across the street. You have heard me moan in this space before about my sexist dryer. I must now tout an excellent feature of my dryer while bemoaning a lack of desirable features on my oven. These pros and cons revolve around time management in these time-saving devices.

First, the cons. The prior owner of our home replaced the kitchen appliances shortly before selling. It appears that she chose the appliances based on how they would look in real estate sales photos. They're stainless steel, and they harmonize visually with each other (even if they don't harmonize with the 1991 off-white and oak of the cabinets or the Burger King tile floor). They're all hat and no cowboy, though. The fridge is small, and our normal food bows the shelves; the holidays - oi! The dishwasher is small and haunted and loud. It turns itself on spontaneously, and even when we turn it on intentionally, we have to close the kitchen door in order to have a conversation in the next room.

The oven, though, (no pun intended) takes the cake. Lacking insulation, it pours heat into the room, which is actually proving to be a boon as winter sets in. The main problems, though, derive from an overly-simple control panel. The oven has no timed bake. Although one may not need one's oven turn on automatically at a specified time and temperature for a specified amount of time that often, when one needs it, timed bake is indispensable. Also, on a more daily basis, we're annoyed by the fact that when you set the oven to a desired temperature, it displays that temperature on its little screen. Not the time. Not whether the oven has reached that temperature or not. If you're in the kitchen at the precise moment it gets to temperature, it beeps. But the display doesn't return to a clock while the oven is on. A little clock button will show you the time temporarily before reverting the display to the temperature. When my hands are covered with dough or poultry bacteria, I can't push a button to find out the time!

On a happier note, the dryer has a feature that I never knew I missed. It buzzes when the cycle's done. I know many dryers are equipped this way, but I've not had one as an adult. Now, I can start that dryer load and go back to other things and not have to remember it and check on it. Very helpful. Also, if I'm about to take a nap and don't want to hear the helpful buzz, I can turn it off. Also, there's a wrinkle guard period when it repeats the beep if unattended and starts up again to fluff the clothes without heat. I'm still opposed to the dryer's general principles, but I must applaud these time management features.