“It goes in threes.” We’ve all heard this. Do you think it’s true?
I’m inclined to think yes. Back in my nursing home days, it actually was a pattern that people passed in increments of three; usually around a week. (‘course, every year, the holidays would come and numbers would be higher) I think that was probably the first time I started paying attention.
Then I started noticing other things happening in threes, like bad news or car issues. One time (no, not at band camp 
) I noticed a pregnancies happening at work (not the nursing homes) in clusters of three. We always laughed and said there was something in the water. 
My pain issues usually seem to flare in threes: my iliopsoas tendinitis, extensor tendinitis, and of course, the plantar fasciitis. (Heh. I’ll admit that during a flare, those are pain points among many, but who’s counting? 
: )
My chickens came in three batches, all within a week. I had three chickens that figured out in the first three days how to get their peepers off.
And now I’m on appliance number two for the last 12 months. When it comes to appliances (and perhaps major auto issues), I give leeway of more than a year. Given my lack of being a shopaholic, I would even extend this a bit longer, since the wounds of having to do it are still fresh and raw in my mind.
So, appliance number two is the fridge. Appliance shopping is pretty major, imo. The range was a total fluke, since the other one was not but a few years old. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that this one lasts a lot longer.
But the fridge? We’ve had that for about 10 years, give or take. At the time, it was top of the line (Maytag) and we thought it would last forever. We thought it had better, for the amount of $$$ we dropped on it. *sigh*
Unlike the washer and dryer (which I know will be appliance number three because it’s been limping along for the last several months as it is and I’m just trying to eek out some more time), we figured we’d have more time with the fridge. And we probably would, if there weren’t things about it that we didn’t deeply dislike since, oh, a few months into having it.
Now, in our daily lives, the fridge is a pretty important thing. When you live in the desert, having ice (even during the winter when it’s 75 degrees some days- really- we’ve already almost hit 80) is a big deal. More importantly for us, though, is capacity and configuration.
Particularly, I’m talking about milk storage. Yes, our refrigerator needs literally revolve around how many gallons of milk I can put in there. In my current fridge, I regularly have 12 gallons of milk in there. Each week, I buy at least 9 gallons of milk. The one shelf can fit 9 gallons; the others can go in the door if there are any left over.
I don’t remember the last time I didn’t have to ration milk as the end of the week neared. (Because I despise shopping, I am only willing to go shopping once a week unless there is a really compelling reason to do otherwise.) I think some of the difference is that the kids are home all the time, so they are drinking milk for lunch, instead of having that carton of milk at school.
Remember when we were kids and our parents nagged us at dinner to drink our milk? Ya, I don’t have that problem. My problem is nagging the kids NOT to drink milk in between meals just because. Drink water or tea, for goodness sakes!
So the hunt was on for a replacement. You’ll be glad to know that I accomplished finding the one I wanted in record time! Yay me!
We basically have two choices here- Sears and Home Depot. I went online to the Sears website and actually USED the filter and compare selections. (yay me!)
For starters, I filtered by size- anything over 26 cu ft. That narrowed things down considerably. Then I went for finish (stainless). And then, the real hunt was on. After all, my primary criteria was milk storage, so that narrowed things down in a hurry. I came away with three models that I liked.
One day last week, I went to Home Depot for grins and giggles. Since I knew more or less what I was looking for, I was able to rule just about everything out- they simply weren’t big enough. And the ones that were bigger didn’t have enough room for milk without killing the rest of the interior space. My “comparison shopping” out of the way, I felt like we could proceed with a clean conscience.
The final test came on Saturday, with a trip to Sears. There is something to be said for being able to “kick the tires,” you know? While we didn’t find the actual model we were looking at, we were able to see one that had a similar ice maker, which was/is the failing point on the one we have now.
All in all, while it wasn’t a pleasurable experience, it wasn’t completely painful, either. We’re gaining space (the new one is 30 cu ft compared to the 27 cu ft we have now) and should have a good ice maker for a change. And, it was on sale.
Now the only thing I have to worry about during sleepless nights are the details of moving the food from one into the other……………… and waiting for the third appliance to fail so I can get these three out of the way…………….
Threes. I’m pretty well convinced things happen in threes. What about you?
I’m glad you found a fridge you liked. Grocery shopping about once a week is what I have been having to so since I can’t drive anymore. I never realized how often I had previously gone until I stopped going so much. We have definitely saved money by planning better too. My kids sure don’t drink that much milk though. How many kids do you have?
We’ve got 4 like you do.
I could not imagine living overseas or somewhere where you had to go grocery shopping every single day. That would totally kill me.
There was one fridge that advertised it could hold 47 gallons of milk, no kidding. It even had a picture with it loaded to the gills with all those gallons. And I’m like, really? What’s the point of that? Are there people who need that much storage capacity out of a non-commercial fridge?
It had milk and nothing else in it, including some in 1/2 gallon cartons.
Our Sam’s Club is right next door to Walmart, and during the summer, I still have to make two trips so that my cold stuff stays cold. Drives me crazy. If I ever move, I’ll have to think about taking a cooler each week so that I don’t have to double back home. Blech. I hate shopping……….
Have you ever tried the “click and pull” thing at SAMS? You shop online, let them know when you will come pick it up, and they get it all together for you. They keep the cold stuff separate until you get there. It works really well for us because that way I can still get the stuff I need, but my husband (who hates shopping) can just pick it up.
I haven’t, no. But I have seen carts full of refrigerated foods sitting there where I came in and still sitting there when I left. With the new fridge (if it ever actually gets here) I think I’ll be able to do two weeks at a whack because we moved the other one into the garage. We’ll see how well that works out…. sounds like the click and pull could definitely save some time, though!
3 is my favorite number. It’s an odd number and I’ve found it to be VERY significant all the time as it pertains to things happening in 3′s.
You did a good job with the online thing.
That’s my favorite thing to do… shop and compare on line and order it there if at all possible. Course, some things, do require us to go to the store.
Yup. 3′s. Totally identify with that.
My favorite number is 8- two 3s stuck together- does that count?
I guess for us, our actual significant number is 13 since it’s our anniversary, but I digress. 
Here’s another one: Paul (as in the Apostle) went on three mission trips. 
The last time the dryer went, we replaced the set (so they would math, and the washer was being a little weird every now and then, like it is now). When the dryer goes this time, I will have to think about doing the same thing. Even though I got a really large washer, I think they are making them bigger now. I don’t know. I’ll have to compare and see. I know I do not want a front loaded because I’ve heard the seals are tricky and pricey and with kids who don’t pay attention to things like that, I’m not inclined to want to throw out $150 for a new seal every few months because they couldn’t bother to get everything IN there.
Heh. I surely hope they don’t miss on the delivery 3 times, although I did talk to an actual person 3 times out of all the calls I made yesterday. I should have known!
I don’t like front end loaders in the house, they’re at the laundramat but I like the top loading ones better myself. I don’t know anything about the seals. I know I loved the apartment stack jobs, those were cool. Although, I don’t have one here. It’s faster to have the machines at the laundramat to tell you the truth.
Damn I had Verizon out to my house on a Sunday because they screwed up. I was pleasantly surprised by the efficient service I got and the guy was here for 6 hours fixing everything and making sure it worked. Excellent service!
Here’s to sears making this better… that’s ridiculous waiting around all day with not even a phone call from them.
In my dream house, I’d have (at least) 3 of each……
The only time I don’t despise doing laundry is when we’re camping, because whenever we have to do laundry, there is usually more than one of each machine. The perfect number, I’ve learned, is 6 (of course, a multiple of 3s 
).
6 washing machines will let me do a week’s worth of laundry (more or less); and 6 dryers (or 3
commercial dryers) work well, allowing me to spend only about 2 or 3 hours doing laundry, compared to all day if I have to do it in two shifts. I usually have to set aside an entire day a week for doing laundry.
The next rig, though, we’ll get the washer/dryer combo and just have something going all the time.
I did just get an apology email from Sears, which said,
“Thank you for bringing this to our attention.
We owe you an apology, and are very sorry for any inconvenience you encountered with your order. We know that your time is valuable and we appreciate the fact you took the time to give us feedback on our performance.
The feedback that you have provided today regarding your order will be taken into consideration as we continue to enhance our services to meet the needs of our customers, going forward.
That’s it. {shrugs} No surprise there, I guess.
ROFL! that’s like a standard response to customer complaints. Nope, no surprise there at all. Not even a little bit.
yah, this is why I like the laundramatt, I’m done with all those machines in an hour and a half that’s all of it, well here there the two of us so it’s not as much, by far, as you have! You must have quite a lot of laundry.
And now, we are going dress shopping. My daughter has another sweet 16 party to go to… oye…
Oh I agree – and esepcially in regard to household appliances breaking down. I speak from (painful) experience!
I know! I’m sure there is some logic behind the appliances, like, when a house is built, all the kitchen appliances (cooktop, fridge, and dishwasher) are the same age and may age out together- although, do you have dishwashers over there?) You’d think I had enough sense to budget for these kinds of things. Actually, I probably would if they would let me know a few months out that there were going to randomly fail.
I went through all the comparison shopping a year ago for my range… what a mess but I am still pleased with the outcome! Sears did not want to sell us one… not for price and when I called they would not even pick up the phone, three… three tries!
???!!!! They didn’t want to sell you one? Boy, I’d be ticked! This is what I was saying- with customer service like I’ve been finding them to have, it’s no wonder the entire company conglomerate is floundering!! I think their “bare bones minimal effort” is going to bite them in the rear.
I have been very pleased with the range, too. I will say, though, that the fridge is harder to keep clean- sooo many smears, so little time….