No Dishwasher!!

Some have said I have asbestos hands because I can handle fairly hot items and not flinch.  This ability allows me to carry bowls of steaming hot soup or vegetables to the table, wash pots and pans, and unload the dishwasher after its cycles are complete without much thought.  That is why it seemed so odd to me last week when I began unloading the dishwasher and found my dishes were EXTREMELY hot!  The dishes were so hot that I actually dropped a bowl right back into the top rack of the dishwasher immediately after picking it up!  The dishwasher had finished running about a half hour before I began unloading it, yet the intense heat still seared my through my hands!

Although I found it strange, I simply put the dishes away, preparing myself for the heat of each plate and glass as I cautiously picked it up.  With quickness and direction each dish went directly into its proper place in the cabinet. Once emptied, I closed the dishwasher door and joined the rest of my family in the den to watch “Midnight in Paris”, not a second thought was given to the dishwasher.

During the movie we snacked on some popcorn and cheese and crackers.  It was a truly excellent movie so not too much eating took place since we were engrossed in the picture.  Our recent visit to Paris made the location of the film even more relevant and meaningful, as the beauty of Paris cannot be overstated.  The fireplace was blazing giving off a warming glow and the time passed extremely quickly.

After the movie was over, I brought the dishes we had used to snack on back to the kitchen.  I needed to wash some and place others in the dishwasher before going to bed.  I am not immaculate by any stretch of the imagination, but I simply can’t go to sleep with dirty dishes in the sink.  That is when I noticed the counter and the side of the cabinet next to the dishwasher felt extremely warm.  I opened the dishwasher - a whoosh of steam hit me in the face.  Alarmed, I checked the control panel and found the dishwasher SHOULD not have been hot as everything was technically off!!  But, for some reason, the heating element was going full blast!  It is amazing the plates in the dishwasher hadn't smashed to smithereens from the intense heat!

My family had already gone to bed so I left the door to the dishwasher open and with great control (not), I shrieked frantically up to my husband to come downstairs immediately!!

Since he couldn’t turn the dishwasher off, as it technically was not on, he went into the basement and shut the breaker.  Luckily, we avoided a fire in the house, unluckily; we needed to buy a new dishwasher.  It certainly seems nothing is built to last anymore.

It is now over a week since I have been dishwasherless…(is that a word?).  I have used a ton of paper plates and cups, but there is still a lot to wash.  The downside to this is obvious, no one happily anticipates washing dishes.  The upside, however, is also there.  First of all, there is no unloading the dishwasher…a task that I find annoying at best.  But even more, there is the time spent washing the dishes.  Yes, I said the time spent washing dishes!!  The warm water cascades over my hands and I find my mind wanders in all sorts of directions, most of them calming for some reason.  The sound of the water, the realization that I am accomplishing something from start to finish, the act of completing the task takes my mind off pretty much anything else going on at the time.  It’s a break from thought and I find it to be almost meditative.  Maybe because I am a Pisces, I am a water person.  From cruising to floating in the pool, to the sound of the water flowing out from the faucet, water calms my thoughts

Now, don’t get me wrong, I have been lucky in that the dishwasher chose to break at a very convenient time.  There are no large dinners coming up and each meal I’ve cooked has purposely not consisted of an extreme amount of pots, pans and dishes.  Aside from the pots and pans used, which I always wash by hand, there are usually only a few pieces of silverware and perhaps a bowl or two to wash after any meal.  I would not want to be “dishwasherless” and host a huge party…that much cascading water and dish washing would be hand-chapping along with a bit tedious and frustrating.

So although I have found the time washing dishes definitely has an upside, I realize it is an upside simply because I know it is temporary. 

The new dishwasher should arrive on Wednesday.  I will welcome it with open arms - and dry hands!