Push the start button or look under the lid
Suzie-Q and I had to buy a new clothes washer. We had the old one just over 10 years. When the repairman came to see if he could repair it or not, he talked about it like it was an antique. He said they do not make this kind anymore. Told him my mother had an antique. It sat on the back porch and had a wringer on top. These days everything is electronic and computerized he said. He finally called a seasoned repairman who worked back in parts shop. The old guy had to come back with him and show him the problem and conclude the cost of the repair was not worth it. So off we went to the appliance store.
They use words like all electronic, high efficiency, and energy saver to describe the new machines. Certainly somewhere along the line there is a government regulation or two involved. Whoever makes high efficiency washing machines must be in cahoots with whoever makes high efficiency toilets. Both insist they can get the job done with a cup of water. The toilet maker brags his can flush a bucket of golf balls, which would be just dandy if I needed to flush some golf balls.
So, they delivered the new machine and Suzie-Q took it for a test drive. On this new contraption, you cannot set the water level like small, medium or large. The computer does it for you. A concept neither of us fully comprehend. When you select the cycle of choice and press the start button water runs into the tub just like normal. A little light comes on that says “sensing.” The computer is “sensing” how much water it needs to wash the load. Adding insult to injury, when the water shuts off and it begins to wash the lid locks. Suzie-Q is not happy with that, because she is adamant that how much water is enough is up to her and not some unseen nerd who has never washed a load of laundry. And, if the lid locks she can’t raise it up and take the peek she is accustomed to taking. She finally surrendered to the tyranny of a computerized washing machine by pushing the start button and walking away – very un-Suzie-Q like. For the machine’s sake, she better like the smell of the laundry.
In Washington, we have the progressive party formerly known as the Democratic Party. On the other side we have the progressive party formerly known as the Republican Party. Both of them report to the donor class comprised of billionaires, corporations, big banks and their paid lobbyists who program them and then push their start buttons. Together, this makes up the Washington establishment. Looking under the lid stirs them up some, and these progressives not unlike communists will not easily relinquish their power and death grip on America.
Out here in working class America, the American class recently wished dead, people are waking up to the fact that this Washington establishment is a collection of people in it for themselves and their pay-masters. We have candidates who are despised by this cabal who have vowed to look under the lid exposing corruption and yanking out unnecessary parts. Whether or not that is just campaign rhetoric is always the gamble we take. But it seems to have raised the anxiety level of the establishment ruling class.
Sadly, the opposing candidates are being played by the establishment and do not seem able to get past their egos long enough to figure that out. The establishment plan is working just fine. It is keeping them at each other’s throats. It is pushing one to ensure that either does not arrive at the convention with a majority of delegates. If that happens, it will be Paul Ryan as the next progressive up. Another loser for America and he will probably run against Uncle Joe or Kerry the commie.
Unless the so-called outsiders (although establishment types are popping up on one team) can get over their case of cranial rectal inversion syndrome it is going to be just another push the start button election where Americans lose. The saddest part is that we will not be able to see if all the people who threatened to leave the country actually would.
© 2016 J. D. Pendry All Rights Reserved
Category: Politics
I have a couple of good ideas.
Vote for the one you despise the least.
Then vote his ass out of office next time around. Make sure it’s a temp job, and no dynasties allowed.
But DO NOT STAY HOME AND REFUSE TO VOTE.
Let’s see the biggest turnout EVER!!!!!
That wringer washer – is it still around?
Agreed. Vote for the least worst, and hold the threat of the next election over his head.
No wringer washers! Them suckers will squash your arm flat.
There used to be an expression,”don’t get your ti*s in a wringer”. It was not unusual for ladies doing the washing to get a breastical caught in the wringer. The companies making washers actually made the wringers to disconnect when this happened.
If it is Paul Ryan or some other establishment candidate other than Cruz or Trump, I will vote Libertarian.
aka a vote for Hillary or Bernie.
Sometimes you have to hold your nose and vote for the candidate who pisses you off the least to avoid electing the worst candidate. Getting your knickers twisted because your fan fave didn’t make the cut is how we wound up with Clinton I courtesy of Ross Perot’s campaign. Just MHO.
some of us are of the opinion its busted and there isn’t any fix….let it collapse hopefully we can start over
As to washing machines, I bought a used Hotpoint washer and dryer in 1985. It followed me around through numerous PCSes until I retired in 2000. Around 2003, the dryer started squealing because a bearing was dry. Around the same time, the washer wouldn’t do small loads because of an unbalanced condition so I replaced a working set with a new Maytag set. Those lasted about 8 years. I now own an LG set and wish I still had the Hotpoint set.
To the author, why did you buy a high end washing machine?
I got the cheapest one at the PX, 5 years ago, and it have minimal electronics and working fine.
However when it comes to computers, tablets and smartphones, never buy the cheapest one.
Yep. The new and improved method of washing our clothes pretty much typifies what is wrong with this country. There was no need for these machines to be regulated except to hire a bunch of folks no one needs telling us what we ought to do. Rather like the overwhelming majority of every agency, bureaucrat, regulation and elected official, especially if they work or reside within 25 miles of the beltway.
More government regulations are being considered for dishwashers. Beginning about 2019-2020, manufacturers will be required to make machines that use only 3.1 gallons vs the current standard of 5.0 gallons. Manufacturers have repeatedly shown that using only 3.1 gallons will require a second washing, thereby negating any water and energy savings. Yet another example of bureaucrats justifying their existence by forcing unnecessary change on the public.
We just purchased a new Whirlpool based on the recommendation of the repairman’s wife. My wife read the instructions, well the part in English, and semi-figured out how to operate it. The darn thing chimes, dings, gongs and makes other disturbing sounds to provide undesired information. I’m not sure if it was the washing machine or the cat that farted. The soundest advice I can give you – and all, invest in metal washer hoses and throw the rubber ones away.
We just went through the same kind of thing here with a washer. We bought our Maytag washer and dryer in 1998. Had a leak in the bottom, and the leak caused the bearings to burn out. I have heard nothing but complaints about the new ones. I called my appliance guy and he echoed the complaints. He checked mine out and said it would be $500 to fix it, and it would be like new. I decided to risk the $500 then spend more for crap. It works like new, actually cleans the clothes, and when we forget a sock, or a towel, or whatever, we can actually open the lid and throw it in. As far as this hopeless political situation goes in this country, I just want to lift the lid and throw them all in.
I checked new washer models available. GE still makes the kind that lets you select the water level or load size, but offers a few other options that are attractive. They also make a stove with a griddle in the middle, and it will fit in my kitchen.
Lehman’s has an old-fashioned human-powered wringer washer available, made to order. You have to provide the agitator power with the lever available, but it does get your clothes clean and provides exercise.
I also found a couple of places that restore antique stoves and fridges.
It’s not nostalgia for the Good Ol’ Days. Some modern thing are not necessarily better, that’s all. If it was good enough for my grandmothers, it works for me. I would still prefer to hang laundry on the clothesline than put it through the dryer, unless it’s winter and the snow is flying through the air.
I’m thinking Suzie-Q and I would be fast friends. I like to look into the washer and see how things are going. I do all the laundry and dishes in the house. I love doing those things. My scenario for washing clothes is to wash, then rinse, then wash again, followed by a double rinse. It’s true. Doing a single load of clothes takes me about two hours. I love doing it. And please, don’t lecture me about wasting energy or water. I don’t care. Somewhere along the way I add some vinegar so the final product smells nice. Try it, it actually works. The final rinse is the best time to add vinegar. I only use Tide. I don’t use fabric softener or dryer sheets. I find they make us itch sometimes. (One of the reasons I have such an elaborate washing routine … so I remove even more stuff from the clothes.) Yep, I do dishes and laundry and love doing so. The wife is quite happy with this, BTW. But, like Suzie-Q, I like to take a peek.
JD good read as usual.
About the lid lock:
Take a pair of electricians pliers and twist the lid lock lever off carefully.
The computer won’t know that you did it.
If it is a plunger type of lock, locate the electric diagram for model and disable the plunger by pulling power to or ground. The fail safe position for this type of circut is open.
Hope this helps.
Refrigerator and stove shopping sucks too.
Out!
Oh, I fergot to say:
Always buy commercial grade washer and dryers.
I’m so disgusted by the candidates being offered, I’ll probably stay home this Election Day. I have better things to do than vote for the one that stinks the least. I mean, where are John Kennedy and Ronald Reagan when you really need them?
About washing machines: I have a combo unit in my townhouse. Washer on the bottom; dryer on the top. It works quite well; it’s a Whirlpool after all. ;o) Good thing for me I can set the water level myself – Low, Medium, and High. I can also set the water temp – Hot, Warm, and Cold. I always go for Hot and High when I wash my clothes, and dry them on High for 90 minutes. Good to go.
“I always go for Hot and High when I wash my clothes, and dry them on High for 90 minutes. Good to go.”
GOOD. GOD.
Politics and washing machines. That’s a great combination. In one, the clean come out dirty and in the other the dirty come out clean.
I have one of those computer-fangled machines. My better half complains that the laundry smells like “stank-ass hippie”. Needless to say I love my better half.
All of you, do yourselves a favor. Get an industrial mop bucket with a heavy mop wringer attached. Why? Because when your power goes off, your washer will not function. With the mop bucket, you will have some way to wash your clothes.
I wish I had as easy a solution to the other problem, because you see, it’s NOT just in Washington anymore. Just about half the people in this country appear to want a dictatorship. It’s the only answer for how people are acting (and acting out), and how they are voting.
And just as an aside: water. Very soon, water will be the new gold. It is the most important resource on the planet, and we are going to see the day when it won’t be as readily available as it is now. I don’t know if in our lifetime we will see it controlled to the point the conspiracy theorists hypothesize, but just never forget how important that substance is. And while you stock up on ammo, make room for some water, as well.
Awhile back, when there was a drought underway and parts of the USofA were dying for water, that old idea of piping water from the Great Lakes to drought-stricken states raised its head, just as it always does when this happens.
The people who hollered the loudest about it are the same people who opposed the Alaskan oil pipeline and who now oppose the trans-USA pipeline. So it’s okay for water, but not for oil. But they don’t want desalination plants on the California coast because LITTLE FISHES.
I’m trying to remember which Greek it was that said people think with their stomachs and their reproductive organs. Might have been Aristotle, or maybe
the guy who owns the restaurant out on the highway.
For laundry when the power goes out, you can get a scrub board at Lehman’s, and if you want a wood-fired stove, they offer those, too. There’s someone who makes reproduction Hoosier iceboxes, and a company that makes high-efficiency wood or gas stoves for heating, and can add a removable plate for cooking.
Lehman’s is great. You can also buy all kinds of replacement wicks and lantern mantles from them, too. I have an original Dietz hurricane lantern, about 1880’s. It’s never been used, and is in pristine condition. I can get both the wicks and the replacement mantles for it from Lehman’s.
PSA: Consumers screamed about the washers and there are some options out there if you look in the right store – with a agitator and that will fill up with water like the old days. GE GTW460ASJWW has a deep fill setting. And the Speed Queen AWN432S Top Load Washer has a add water setting to fill the tub. And agitators to beat the dirt out of clothes.
Now if we could only fix Washington…
I keep saying build a wall around WDC and put armed guards outside it to drive back anyone who tries to escape. And instead of paying taxes to those jerks, use them locally. The roads need fixing around here but I don’t see any DOT trucks out on the byways fixing things.
Sometimes, I do think the Amish were right. They just got the end date wrong.
I didn’t go for anything high tech when I bought the Maytag Performa washer and dryer that I still have thirteen years ago and they’re still going. Since then I’ve had to reattach one hose inside the washer and I’ve had to replace the drive belt on the dryer ( A WHOPPING $15!), I think it sometimes pays to forgo high tech and look for KISS design and build, the folks at the Mom-and-Pop Appliance Parts Store told me about one lady that spent $600 for some new circuit board for her high tech stove.
There are at least two companies I’ve found that look for and restore antique electric and gas stoves. My grandma had a 1920s Roper gas stove. The gas range and the oven were on the same level on a set of cabriolet legs. The stove had a warming drawer and the oven was right next to the cooktop, up off the floor, which meant no back-breaking bends to put stuff into the oven. It was countertop height.
And what is the latest fad in kitchen stuff? Countertop convection ovens, and double ovens installed in a wall near the stove.
That stove didn’t have a striker or a pilot light. You had to actually light it with kitchen matches.
I suppose it was dangerous in that respect, but if it was so dangerous for kids, why would my mother let me make cookies, all By My Own!, in a full-sized gas kitchen range when I was six years old?
Maybe if all that electronic crap were gone, kids would have better parents. Any ideas on that?