I had no idea how much I depended on my microwave.

Ruth n Jersey

Ruth n Jersey

Well-known Member
Location
Northern New Jersey
Yesterday afternoon my microwave called it quits. I had it 7 years so I guess it was time.
My dependence on this thing was an eye opener.
First I thought,"how am I ever going to survive the holiday weekend without it?" My daughter and family are staying for three days.
My son stopped by and wanted a quick cup of coffee. Holding his mug of water he just stared at the spot where the microwave usually sat. I told him to get a pot and use the stove or our little hot water pot. He looked at me in disbelief.
I wanted a cup of tea and the hubby wanted to cook his oatmeal. We did it on the stove.microwave.JPG How could this happen?
Its not like I actually use it to cook. Mainly reheat and keep things warm.
It made me think of all the big family gatherings and holiday dinners I made years ago before I even knew what a microwave was. I managed quite well.
First thing this morning the hubby went out and bought one. I think it was the first time in his life he ever bought anything without checking prices in at least 15 stores.
He was desperate and knew his life was at stake if he ever came home without one.
He bought a stainless steel one which I wasn't happy about,but thats all they had.
So I now have my new microwave, and I've calmed down. I'm not sure if this is so sad because of my addiction to this modern convenience or just plain funny.
 
Ruth n Jersey said:
Yesterday afternoon my microwave called it quits. I had it 7 years so I guess it was time.
My dependence on this thing was an eye opener.
First I thought,"how am I ever going to survive the holiday weekend without it?" My daughter and family are staying for three days.
My son stopped by and wanted a quick cup of coffee. Holding his mug of water he just stared at the spot where the microwave usually sat. I told him to get a pot and use the stove or our little hot water pot. He looked at me in disbelief.
I wanted a cup of tea and the hubby wanted to cook his oatmeal. We did it on the stove.View attachment 120951 How could this happen?
Its not like I actually use it to cook. Mainly reheat and keep things warm.
It made me think of all the big family gatherings and holiday dinners I made years ago before I even knew what a microwave was. I managed quite well.
First thing this morning the hubby went out and bought one. I think it was the first time in his life he ever bought anything without checking prices in at least 15 stores.
He was desperate and knew his life was at stake if he ever came home without one.
He bought a stainless steel one which I wasn't happy about,but thats all they had.
So I now have my new microwave, and I've calmed down. I'm not sure if this is so sad because of my addiction to this modern convenience or just plain funny.
Click to expand...
How comfortable and reliant we've all become on today's modernity's.

I remember the sheer panic that would wash through me when my washing machine would give up.

Love your new microwave, Ruth! I think it fits in so well. :)
 
I use mine a lot I have to admit, it reheats my tea all throughout the day .. and steams the veggies every day as well as cooking eggs every other morning in under 30 seconds for breakfast ( the original fast food) . I use it for defrosting before cooking things on the stove .

Aside from the veggies and eggs..and the odd pre-cooked meal , I still use my stove to cook most things... but I am very reliant on the microwave ..
 
I probably would have long since starved to death without the microwave and frozen foods. Yet for all of my dependence on it, I can remember my mother buying an early microwave in the 1980's when they were quite expensive, popping a bag of microwave popcorn in it, and thereafter using it as a breadbox for food storage...
 
Most of the food we eat is real food from scratch. We certainly do use it to reheat food most everyday. I'll make 2 1/2 lbs of steel cut oats per batch, day 1 we eat them fresh from the pot the other 5-6 days we reheat. Today I'll use it to steam fresh broccoli, and later to cook potatoes. Quite a bit of the fresh produce we use actually comes out better than conventional methods , with less clean up, and the added bonus of hands free help allowing me to do something else.

Being a whole food plant eater it's become an essential tool, though it did take a little trial and error to refine my technique.
 
Pinky said:
We parted with our microwave about a year ago, and decided to replace it with a toaster oven. No regrets so far, though it served us well. It was our second Panasonic, like Ruth's.
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I have a toaster oven as well but the darned thing doesn't shut off automatically after baking something so I'm looking to get a new one with the convection feature. My stove oven gave up the ghost and I'm not going to replace the stove. The top elements still work but the toaster oven is all I need.
 
Camper6 said:
I have a toaster oven as well but the darned thing doesn't shut off automatically after baking something so I'm looking to get a new one with the convection feature. My stove oven gave up the ghost and I'm not going to replace the stove. The top elements still work but the toaster oven is all I need.
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Our oven portion of the stove went a number of years ago, and all it needed was a new baking element, which took dear husband all of about 10 minutes to replace/fix.
 
Aunt Marg said:
Our oven portion of the stove went a number of years ago, and all it needed was a new baking element, which took dear husband all of about 10 minutes to replace/fix.
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I'm pretty handy fixing things and I tested the element. But I believe the problem is with the electronic control board which I cannot fix and replacements are no longer available. It's a Kitchen Aid which is actually made by Whirlpool. The reason I am sure it's the control board is because it wasn't working and one day there was a power failure and the oven worked again and then it died again. I didn't want to pay $80.00 for a service call. See if it's only the element, the display still lights up but the oven doesn't heat. The display doesn't light up now. This is a common problem with those stoves. I can take the display out and mail it to a place that fixes or replaces these panels but it's about a $250.00 fix. I can put that toward a new stove.
 
Camper6 said:
I'm pretty handy fixing things and I tested the element. But I believe the problem is with the electronic control board which I cannot fix and replacements are no longer available. It's a Kitchen Aid which is actually made by Whirlpool. The reason I am sure it's the control board is because it wasn't working and one day there was a power failure and the oven worked again and then it died again. I didn't want to pay $80.00 for a service call. See if it's only the element, the display still lights up but the oven doesn't heat. The display doesn't light up now. This is a common problem with those stoves. I can take the display out and mail it to a place that fixes or replaces these panels but it's about a $250.00 fix. I can put that toward a new stove.
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I'm with you, I would totally do the same as well. Money well spent rolling ones cash into a new one.
 
I have a 30 year old gas stove. It has pilot lights. I haven't used it in a good ten years. I nuke everything. Plus, I'm not a "cook". When I'm hungry, I want food. I don't want to start to compile 158 ingredients, etc. At the most 7 and a half minutes later, I have complete meal. I shut the gas to my stove. Why have lit pilot lights, when I'm not going to use it.
 
When ours went, DH got the little one out of the camper for me. Once I bought a microwave that I hated. Was making sure I didnā€™t repeat that mistake. It took a couple of days to find the right size and features. I also have a toaster oven.
 
@Camper6 ,do you really use all those fancy features on the microwave? I kind of know how many minutes something will take to reheat or steam veggies or boil water. I just check it once in awhile. If I could have gotten one with a hi and low thats all I would have needed,as it was I wanted one with the higher watts and Panasonic was the only one I could find.
The last one served me well so we bought another.
Same thing with my blender. I use mine about twice a year and all I need is hi and low although the pulse feature is nice.
 
Aunt Marg said:
I'm with you on the cell!
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You don't know what you are missing. If you have just a land line all you can do is voice messages. Cell phones are a misnomer. It's more than just a phone. It's a computer basically and I can sit anywhere where I have to wait and I can look up this forum or any other forum I belong to. Or read a newspaper, or a book or do a crossword. I ride public transit a lot and when I'm on the bus the cell phone is my refuge away from home.

And it's a camera you always have with you. And you can exchange pictures with family and friends.

The difference between the cost of a land line and a cell phone now is minimal compared to what it used to be.
Ruth n Jersey said:
@Camper6 ,do you really use all those fancy features on the microwave? I kind of know how many minutes something will take to reheat or steam veggies or boil water. I just check it once in awhile. If I could have gotten one with a hi and low thats all I would have needed,as it was I wanted one with the higher watts and Panasonic was the only one I could find.
The last one served me well so we bought another.
Same thing with my blender. I use mine about twice a year and all I need is hi and low although the pulse feature is nice.
Click to expand...
Right inside the door is a chart. For vegetables or whatever. I used it today. Looked up potato. #7 .
Put the potato inside. Click on sensor cook and click until number 7 comes up. Press start and it senses when the potato is coked. I use that often Also auto reheat. Put the leftovers in and click on auto reheat. Perfect. No more guessing. For defrosting you need the weight. Plug that in and auto defrost. Boiling water? Be very aware because it becomes super heated. It can explode when you move it. Rubber gloves recommended. That auto stuff is great because you can just walk away and do something else. They give you the time on frozen dinners. That's easy enough.i
 
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