The Appliance Plague

I do love an appliance as you know, the new dryer, the new fridge.... but I have also been known to utter the words 'I'm not really into appliances.'

Who am I kidding??

Years ago I worked on Black & Decker and managed to avoid an electric fry pan, a crepe maker and a hot dog centre. (I succumbed to a popcorn maker which the kids still use but I hold a grudge against it so insist it's stored in the laundry.) This was the era of the useless kitchen appliance - the pie maker (people raved), the bread maker (come on, own up if you still have one in the cupboard), the ice cream maker and the pièce de résistance, the Hamburger Cooker, advertised with that line that got every mother in the land nodding in agreement, "Do you love hamburgers but hate having to turn them over..." (Yes, it cooked both sides at the side time - AMAZING!! -  and so absolutely necessary in every kitchen.)


But just because I've resisted the fads and the utterly useless, does not mean I don't love something that plugs in.


I read an article that said in the 1930s, the average household had four appliances. That's right, four. I often wonder what they would typically be and quiz my older relatives. It may have been a heater, a fan, a lamp and a radio. According to my uncle, not many people even had a fridge.


How many do you think we all have today? I have no idea, I get dizzy even trying to count. I'm guessing 60 but it could be 100.


Let's take the fridge as an example. My fancy-pants one is actually two fridges side by side. Plus we have a drinks fridge in the shed, and a chest freezer and a wine fridge. Throw in our portable fridge for camping and I'm already 50% over the 1930's quota in fridges alone. It's insane. 


They didn't have computers back then, but our tally is three desk tops and three lap tops - and there's only 5 of us in the house. Add to that at least six iPods, an iTouch, an iPad, three iPhones of varying vintages and there's 11 of those. The list gets scary - just when you've counted all the lamps, the printers, the microwave, the washer and dryer, the dishwasher, you remember the four TVs, the DVD players (yes, plural when you count the one plugged into the telly and the portable ones), a tuner, an amplifier, a turntable, Apple TV, three hard drives to house movies and TV series (all requiring power), a Wii, a PS2 and god knows what else I've forgotten.


What about the filter and the light for the fish tank?? Or that stupid steam mop that came free with the vacuum? And I haven't even started thinking about what's in the kitchen drawers. 


We may not own a ThermoMix or a coffee machine but I'm pretty sure we're holding our own when it comes to appliance ownership. 


Hows' your household fairing?