New toy

I've mentioned before that Spouse loves him some kitchen gadgets!

Over the years we have had a bread maker, an ice cream maker, an iced tea maker, an immersion blender, a food processor, a KitchenAid stand mixer, a Nesco roaster oven, a countertop convection oven, a belgian waffle maker, an electric skillet, an electric griddle, a George Foreman electric grill, an electric knife, a stand blender, a toaster oven, a Turbo Cooker, a pizelle maker, a hand-held electric mixer, and an electric pressure cooker. To his credit, he has used every one of these gadgets, at least once. When we moved I convinced him to pair down his collection since our new house does not have a pantry, and he acquiesced.

But for quite some time now I could tell he's been jonesin' for the GT Xpress 101. He's made me watch the infomercial with Kathy Mitchell (I didn't even have to look up her name) 101 times at least, and hinted that he'd really like to have one. I, of course, gave him my famous look that, without words, says to him "Really? You really want another one-use gadget?"

But after the purchase of Big Ella I have a much harder time giving him that 'look'. I mean, why should I deny him a $30. occasional use kitchen gadget after I spent thousands on an occasional use vehicle? Mmmyeah.

So, this past weekend when he brought up his desire for the GT Xpress 101 (which he calls the XP-90), I kept my 'look' to myself and simply said "If you want it, dear..."

That was all he needed to hear. Suddenly the housecleaning, dogwalking, and everything else could wait; we were going to the kitchen gadget store, presumably before I changed my mind!
As soon as we got it home, he excitedly tried out the 'XP-90' by making us lunch. It worked fine, but only makes enough for one person to eat at a time. So we both ate a 1/2 while the 2nd batch was cooking.

Spouse was so happy with the purchase, and I believe, even happier that I didn't give him my 'look'. In an uncharacteristic moment he said "Thank you for letting me buy this", to which I replied "Letting you? You sound like I'm the evil step parent". But I knew what he meant, which was 'Thank you for not making an issue out of this, even if I only use it 3 times'.

Later that night he made part of our dinner in the 'XP-90', as well as our breakfast on Sun, and part of our dinner last night. He's already broken his typical usage pattern, so that's good.

In a way I feel like I 'let go' of something I didn't need to hold onto. My nature is to purchase and use things that have more than one purpose and that I am certain I will use regularly. But that is not Spouse's nature. He enjoys the unique purpose of individual gadgets, and that's fine. So although it is me who will need to find a place to store all the rarely used gadgets, is that really so important that I have to give him the 'look'?

No, not anymore.

So I 'let go' and let Spouse get his 'XP-90'. He's happy, and so am I.

Crush du Jour: Victor Luca