On Lemons and Luxuries

Our washing machine would have cost over $400 to repair. The Sears repairman did not charge us a thing for his trip and diagnosis. I think he realized that we had purchased a lemon from Sears and felt sorry for us. The machine was not old.

I did research on the internet to figure out a replacement machine. James went shopping Thursday evening, but without success. Today he decided to take the day off to get the job done. Good thing. It took most of the day for him to purchase the washer, drive to a warehouse and pick it up, unload it at home and hook it up. If he had waited until tomorrow to do this, there would not have been time to get the laundry done this weekend.

Now I have Mt. Laundry to tackle, and it is pleasant to do with a new machine. This washer has a sanitary cycle which takes longer to run, but means death to germs!

I accidentally ran a load of darks last night without laundry detergent. Several of the jeans were caked with mud. I thought I'd have to run them again, but when I inspected the clothes, they smelled clean and were stain free. So far, very good...

Our dishwasher is dying a slow, lingering and loud death. It also is beyond repair. Funny how appliance failure often seems to happen all at once! Yesterday, as I blew dry my bangs, my hairdryer popped and died in a flash of sparks.

I could get by without a hairdryer or a dishwasher if necessary, but a washing machine? I've been reflecting on how necessary that appliance seems to modern life. I could wash dishes by hand easily, but clothes? My grandmothers have stories to tell about how they used to do dishes or laundry. My father's mother at one time, while living in Kentucky, had to get water from a creek and wash clothes in a washtub, including diapers.

I'm very thankful to the Lord for providing James with a reliable job and savings to go out and replace appliances right away.

After James took out the "old" washer, he contemplated how to get rid of it. He recalled that our town was scheduled to have a once-a-year, large item curb-side pick up sometime in May. He looked it up on the web and found the pick up scheduled for...this weekend! What a blessing that he could just wheel the lemon out to the curb this morning! The trash guys heaved the machine into the truck and I watched as it crunched the washer flat.

This whole episode causes me to realize how easy my life is, to thank the Lord for his good gifts, and to remind myself that my treasure needs to be in heaven even in times of plenty.