Redunancy - The Good & The Bad of It

It started off some months ago when we thought we may upgrade to the 21st century and install a dishwasher. To begin with we were considering a dish-drawer type, but then realised that because our house is a 'family' size place, and when the time comes to sell and downgrade, a 'family' size dishwasher would be more advantageous. So tried to ring the guys who had put in the kitchen some 15 years ago, to no avail. A friend suggested her kitchen man, rang him, they came out that afternoon (unheard of in this area - same day service) and when we agreed on the installation price, it was to be installed the following week - ahh!! Mad dash to then buy the dishwasher we had decided on, and the installation  job was duly completed, and all was good. That was the easy part.

The beginning of the destruction of my kitchen

Almost ready for dishwasher

Done and dusted.


Having this done, it meant of course that Pete was being made redundant as my 'manual' dishwasher!

Now for the bad. We them decided it was time to buy some new dinner sets - this is where the saga begins. It was realised on putting the new dishes we had purchased into the dishwasher to wash them before we used them, that they were too big - the dinner plates were 27cm in diameter, and kept knocking the spray bar every time it went around. Not good - packed up the dinner sets to return to store of purchase, and set about finding ones that would fit. Problem was every dinner set I could find had dinner plates at 27cm dia. Getting frustrated by the minute on a stinking hot day, I rang the dishwasher customer service people only to be told that those dinner plates were too big (derr!) and I would need smaller ones, around 23-25cm in diameter. Nothing about sizes of plates is in the book that came with the dishwasher. Anyway, the only choices left were either Corelle dishes (at $164 for what I required) or a Stoneware set of loose dishes etc. at KMart for $36.  I love Corelle crockery, but just felt I could not justify the expense. Got my KMart stoneware crockery home - and the large plates miss the spray arm by 5mm! All good. Cutlery was also changed over as our knives (with bone handles) could not go in the dishwasher. Finally we appear to have it all sorted out, and we can sit back and enjoy having a dishwasher!

Whilst the installation of the dishwasher was going on around me, I sat with my feet up, a cuppa in hand, and did some stitching - well what else was I supposed to do? Another bear is on it's way to being completed, more next time. I shall go and try and finish it this afternoon.

In the meantime ......