When Your Microwave Dies…

Microwaves. They are completely common place in our everyday world. They heat up a fast meal. They make leftovers warm. Even steeping and steaming a hot beverage or two.

You want it warm, thirty seconds to a minute and you are so good. Like I said, everyday common place item. For the most part we don’t give them a second thought. That is until they break.

And that’s what happened not so long ago in our house. One morning I put my leftover tomato basil soup in a cup, popped it in the microwave and hit the one minute instant heat button. (I know, tomato basil soup for breakfast probably not on your breakfast list, but don’t judge. I was in a hurry and it was there.)

I heard that oh so familiar ding, grabbed my soup, dug in and took a spoonful bite. Ugh. Cold. Stirred it up, popped it in for another minute. Ding. Still cold. Like flipping a light switch on and off in a room to make sure the light is really broken, I kept heating my soup for three or four more times. I think I was living in denial. I didn’t want it to be broken…even more so I really wanted my soup. I was hungry and in a hurry. But it was what it was…broken…kaput…done in…dead.

It was not the fanciest and prettiest microwave at the ball so for the cost of fixing it, you might as well buy a new one. One snag…the previous owners thought it was a good idea to buy an all in one microwave and oven combo. Replacement cost…wait for it…$2250 for a very basic model!!!  Well, we will be looking into repair costs…did I mention that the oven wasn’t working quite right either?

In the meantime, we work at living without a microwave. No problem right? People lived without microwaves for decades prior to the now mandatory staple of the modern kitchen. How hard could it be? I mean, really, it’s just a microwave.

That night…hubby and son come into the family room where I’m writing my latest blog post.

Hubby: “Uh, Danielle, how do you heat up leftover pasta and sauce without a microwave?”

Next morning, I grab half a breakfast sandwich that I had leftover from the day before. Pull out a plate, open the sandwich and prepare to heat it up. As habit dictated, I opened the microwave, put in the cold breakfast sandwich, and hit the instant 30 seconds.

Wait for it…half way to the coffee pot I remembered. The microwave…is…broken. Ugh.

Apparently, it’s a little harder than I thought to live without a microwave. Sigh…

Until next post,

Family surviving without a microwave…for now.