Friday Five: Maytag Edition

I'm back!

Purposely took the week off from blogging to rest and catch up on other things. Will resume semi-serious blogging soon, with thoughts on church hospice as a vocation, among other things. In the meantime, here's the Friday Five.

Sally over at RevGals is waiting for a new dishwasher, and pondering appliances today. Thus, the Maytag Friday Five.

1. What is the one appliance you simply couldn't be without?
When we bought the house, I insisted that we get a dishwasher ASAP. I'd been washing dishes by hand for ten years, with one break when I lived in CA for a month in 2002, and I HATE washing dishes by hand. So, while my conscience reminds me that having any appliances at all makes me richer than the vast majority of the world's population, the lazy bum side of me insists we couldn't do without the dishwasher.
Interestingly enough, in a few weeks we're going to be hosting a pastor from our congregation's sister community in Tanzania, and I can't wait to discuss the cultural differences with him. I'm sure it will be fascinating, and I'm interested to see if he notices the differences between our simple little house and some of the much nicer places where he'll be staying in his three weeks in the U.S.

2. What if anything would you happily give up?
Sally mentioned giving up her drier; that seems about right to me. I'm going to be installing a clothesline in the backyard this spring, and an indoor line this fall, and the thought of saving all that energy and money is definitely a plus for me. I do face some resistance from my Beloved, who prefers her clothes done quickly to waiting on the line, but if I do the work she's usually willing to put up with the inconvenience. Until, you know, it actually inconveniences her. :-)

3. What is the strangest household appliance you own?
Probably our George Foreman grill. These were huge in the U.S. a few years ago, and my folks got me one for Christmas. It has its advantages, but honestly we haven't used it more than once or twice in the past three or four years, and I'm thinking about giving it to the rummage sale at a local Presbyterian church the next time donation period rolls around. Frankly, it's just taking up space. Running a close second would be the turbo stick blender that also never gets used.

4. What is the most luxurious household appliance you own?
Probably the coffeemaker. I do insist on good coffee, and picked this one up on eBay for significantly less than its list price. It's one of those fancy vacuum seal carafe models, all stainless steel and stuff. Not as nice as the Lamborghini coffeemaker pictured at the top of this post, but pretty nice all the same.
My favorite? Definitely the coffee bean grinder. It was a present that FW and I got for our wedding in 1999, and it's still going strong. Next time I need more coffee appliances I'm definitely going with Braun.

5. Tell us about your dream kitchen- the sky is the limit here....
Not much to tell - I'd want some pretty normal stuff. Nice gas range & ovens, good size fridge with water & ice dispensers, etc. Lots of natural light, and some shelves where I could grow herbs for immediate trimming & cooking. Open to the rest of the house so I could cook and watch the girls play (I do most of the cooking around here). Bamboo floors, good cabinets with slide-out shelves. And, like as not, I'll never, ever have it. :-)