Things that don’t last long in these parts
May 5, 2008
I noticed my dad purchased a new iron this weekend and I got to thinking of things that we seem to go through faster than the average person or family. For us, those things are:
Irons
We seem to get a new one every six months to a year. My father is a fantastic ironer and so is the elder of my two younger brothers. The other brother also irons every now and then (the women in my family don’t iron) so I’m not sure if perhaps my brothers are doing something to damage them or maybe I am just not aware of the lifespan of an iron?
Blenders
We seem to get a new one every three years or so, but we use the blender pretty regularly: one of the staples of Nigerian food is a stew that goes on rice, or as a side dish to a number of different foods so the blender does get a regular workout. My mom is also obsessed with one Nigerian treat, akara, and that requires fairly heavy use of the blender too.
Toilet paper
I’m a recycling freak but I can’t seem to avoid using far more toilet paper than I ought to, and my siblings are the same. I feel like I’m always buying toilet paper and fear running low on the stuff and having to use, say, four squares for a bathroom visit instead of the usual 12.
Digital cameras
I have had three digital cameras in the past four years. The first one was a 2.1 mega pixel thing that broke while under warranty so I got a replacement. I left the replacement on a bench near a beach and never saw it again and then my baby, my “I can’t believe I’m spending this much on a camera” baby, decided to stop working all of a sudden last week. I’m going to take it in to be looked at when I calm down enough to stop asking how it could have broken when I took such good care of it; woe is me.
That’s it for us/me…how about you?
how do you recycle toliet paper?
i dont get it?
I think that IS fast for irons to wear out. How strange!
I'm sorry to hear about your digital camera! I'd be really sad, too.
lol, I love akara! If only I can learn how to make those darn things. Moi moi is my absolute fav.
It's just two of us in my house so we thankfully don't have to replace things too often.
Hope you had a great weekend.
I dropped my iron a couple of years ago and pieces of it broke off. For example, I have to use a pencil to turn it on because the on/off button broke off. One of these days I will get a shock from it. I have no idea why we don't replace it since I'm so quick to throw out everything else.
Sidenote: I was buying a wedding gift for someone and on their registry they had a $139.99 iron! I was horrified that they could cost that much. What could a $140 dollar iron possibly do that a $40 couldn't.
@matt - what I meant was I'm really into doing my part for the environment but when it comes to <del datetime="2008-05-05T13:26:38+00:00">wasting </del>using toilet paper I can't seem to help myself!
We've had the same iron since I was like 15…so 10 yrs lol but then again we don't iron very much so perhaps thats why. On the toilet paper..my mother is scared we are going to run out so every time we go to costco (once a week) she buys the pkgs with 30 rolls in it, I think we probably have about 100 rolls right now in our closet haha
Sorry to hear about the camera that sucks!
Oh no, I'm so sorry about your camera!
We go through toilet paper at what feels like a very fast rate. Also hand soap, dishwashing liquid, and toothbrush heads (we have an electric toothbrush).
Hey, at least we're clean, right?
carpets, like the area rugs or whatever
they get stained and nn throws em out
We go through coffee makers like nobody's business. Usually they die while still under warranty, so we can generally get two or three for the same price. Then we get one pesky one that lasts beyond the warranty and end up paying for more of them.
My family goes through toilet paper like nobody's business as well. I'm not skimping on the TP.
Would you laugh if I said beer? I seem to run out of that frequently as well….
Cups and bowls. We have heaps/plenty, then, soon enough, they've all disappeared! Don't know what happens to them, you just suddenly realise one day that the cupboards are not as full as they should be, even when you've just put away all the clean dishes. They must get broken and chucked out – only explanation I can think of. So, we start stocking up… and the cycle starts again!
That's just crazy about your irons… :D