I guess I’m still adjusting to having a dishwasher, even though it’s been over a year since I got one. I have trouble remembering to put stuff in it right away, so there are often dishes in the sink or on the countertop. My bigger problem is that when I do put stuff in it, I run out of bowls or spoons before the dishwasher is full. I’m not sure if there’s a rule about running your dishwasher when it’s not full. I guess I’m afraid Al Gore is going to bust down my door and throttle me or something. Don’t tell Al, but last night I ran my diswasher with a half-full silverware basket, a three-fourths full top rack, and a one-fourth full bottom rack. I need spoons.
If I should just be washing things in the sink instead, then what’s the point of having a dishwasher? I’m so confused…
I think you can also put some laundry in there if you don’t want to feel too guilty. Of you could try my method of cooking, where you seem to use twice as many dishes as you should.
Brad, our dishwasher came with this house. We’ve been here 23+ years now. I can count on one hand the number of times we’ve run the dishwasher…and certainly won’t try it now, as I wager the gaskets are dryrotted by now. The plus of having one is that mysterious thing called “resdale value”, but if you aren’t planning on moving/selling the house, one does have to wonder why all the hoopla over this space-hogging appliance that could have been more cabinet space instead. Good luck with all that….and now, go out and buy some spoons, will ya’?
Space-hogging? I’d say, at any given time, we’re storing one-half to two-thirds of our dishes in that thing. Honestly, I don’t think we could fit them all in the refrigerator anymore. Do you keep yours in the stove?
……wait…..that’s wrong then, storing dishes in the stove? It’s not like I COOK anything with the stove, so I figured we’d better do SOMEthing with it.
[My Mom used to put the wet dishrag in the 'frig (absent-mindedly) instead of draping it over the faucet when she was done with it, but dishes? Nah - we're pretty boring that way. We use cabinets. We just can always use MORE cabinets is all.]
We used to keep our bread in the stove. It was a house rule to check in stove before warming it up for any baking.
What is more useless is a roll-away dishwasher. We inherited one when we bought our house. It was such a pain to use, we finally put it in the PennySaver and got rid of it.
When we purchased new silverware, the best advice my mother-in-law gave was to keep the old stuff in our drawer. We rarely run out of spoons now. Where is your old stuff?
I think you need to bake more cookies…that creates some big dishes to take up that space…
But if you don’t want to do that, just run the dishwasher. What are you some crazy environmental tree-hugger? Fergoshsakes, you have a bonafide oil burning, pollution producing boiler in your house!
Don’t worry, Al will forgive you. He’ll be happy knowing that with your new dishes you are now eating “3 square meals a day”.
(Seriously, go to Walmart & pick up a bunch of spoons-6 for $1. & some cheap bowls too. It’s the only way to survive.)
I have extra spoons, but they don’t match! Are you people crazy? Using spoons that don’t match?
I’ll admit it’s a tough hurdle to jump, but once you get used to always having a spoon, you’ll wonder why you didn’t do it long ago. Besides, you can get some spoons & bowls that look good together with what you have … besides I think non-matching is in vogue.
always having a spoon to use or giving in to OCD…hmmmmm
Somebody remind me to tell you my wedding shower story about the woman who had already served the food to her guests and then RECALLED SOME because the plates, saucers, etc., were not matching at specific seatings…and no, it wasn’t I, but I was there. It was one of my showers 19-ish years ago. [Can you say "awkward"? I knew you could...]
I’m with you Brad! Matching spoons, matching glasses; it’s much nicer that way. We have a couple of strays in our drawer, and they BOTHER me. (although they are good as a backup!)
We always buy two sets of silverware. Even three wouldn’t be bad so that as some fall prey do the disposal or to being left at work, they can be replaced. Then they last longer too.
Our dishwasher guy said that he always runs the diswasher 1/2 to 2/3 full–better for cleaning. So now if we’re at a breaking point (the end of a meal, the completion of some baking, etc) and the dishwasher is about 2/3, I just run it. Otherwise, when the next meal comes, it’ll be too full and that’s just not right.
I’m in the process of teaching my children to put their stuff in the dishwasher… it’s a tough one…
I say you get a big crockpot with a removable serving bowl. Once a week you create some yummy dinner, then put the massive bowl in the dishwasher. Empty space is gone and Al is happy. AND your belly is happy from a nice crockpot dinner! Yummmm – pork and sauerkraut, eye roast and potatoes, … the possiblilities are endless AND your house smells good all day!
Eeeww… you eat EYES?!?
Uhhh, hello! You eat blood!
We have two complete sets of silverware (well three if you count the good stuff) You have to look at it as another MATCHING set. We also keep them in seperate drawers, so when you look at the silverware, it all matches. (we also have the drawers at opposite sides of the kitchen, but they all go in the dishwasher together!)
Wow! Then you can change your silverware depending on your mood!