1.02.2008

I Just read for the pictures

I’m not a reader. At best, I’ll skim headlines or casually flip through pages of Vogue or Glamour. Sometimes, I’ll follow a friend’s recommendation and pick up a book at Barnes and Nobles. But as a general rule, I read only when I have to and never for pleasure.

However, now that I live in a foreign country, I find read all the time, or at least stare at the letters hoping to make sense of it all. Usually, it’s a pointless effort. You can imagine how grateful I am when literature is translated into English or at least offers symbols and illustrations to accompany text. This is especially true when it comes to electronics and appliances. I spend hours trying to get my new gadgets to work—looking before I leap, starring at words and pictures in the many manuals and owner instructions of my household appliances.

You wouldn’t think appliances would be so different from country to country, but they are. German washers, dryers, microwaves, and dishwashers offer many more buttons and dials than my old GE appliances back in the States. My Blomberg washer, for example, features 34 different settings, none of which I completely understand-- even after I studied the manual.

It’s amazing what my washing machine manual does cover, however. It offers instructions on the best water temperature for various types of fabric. It reminds me to put bras into a lingerie bag and empty all pockets before loading clothes into the machine. There is even an entire section on stain removal. Did you know you could remove a tomato stain by rubbing a slice of potato on it? You can also remove lipstick with eucalyptus oil. Fascinating stuff!

My German teacher back in North Carolina, Lorrie, warned me of another difference in German appliances. To complete a single load of clothes, just your standard wear and not even wool or fine wash, my machine takes 2 hours and 20 minutes. This is a little longer than my Bomann dishwasher, which on the “eco” cycle setting, washes for exactly one and a half hours. My clothes and dishes are sparkling, but I hate to see my water and electric bill at the end of the month.

9 comments:

brandy said...

Maybe I'm a bit nerdy, but I actually got really excited about your stain removal tips. Potato to remove tomato. I will remember that! And fingers crossed the water bill isn't too bad at the end of the month....

utenzi said...

Viva le difference?

ms chica said...

My husband was stationed in Germany during the eighties. One cultural difference he noticed was in trash receptacles. Trash pickup occurred weekly, and the provided pick-up container only held around fifteen gallons. You could tell where the Americans lived by the amount of overflow from the trash bins on collection day.

egan said...

Yeah, the appliances arrived. Now you've got a MINI and the new appliances. Life is definitely on the ups yo.

Rachel said...

34 settings?! What could possibly be the difference between all of them?!

kenju said...

I also wonder what the possible differences could be in all those settings??!! Maybe your power bill will not be as much as you think. If the appliances are fairly new, they might use less energy.

LZ Blogger said...

2 hrs and 20 mins for a load of wash? You better stop looking at the pictures and start reading... (the instructions that is)! ~ LOL! ~ jb///

TamWill said...

Whoa 2and half hours for a load of wash! Guess they have yet to enforce energy effecient appliances.

Happy Belated Birthday and New Years! Yours sounds enchanting!

Just a trumpet player said...

Complicated you say ? I ended up washing all of my clothes by hand while oversea because I couldn't even figure out how to open the darn door on that machine!! One of my proudest moment.

And 2 and a half hours for a load ? Think about all of those great martinis you'll be able to enjoy while patiently waiting...