Stainless and Granite

I should have learned when I said I didn’t want another black vehicle as we were shopping for cars years ago and ended up with a black Civic — if I say I don’t want something when it comes to a major purchase, that’s what I’ll end up getting. And so it went with shopping for kitchen appliances.

Yes, I said appliances. That was not the plan.

We planned to buy a new refrigerator. Ours was old and inefficient, a side-by-side (I learned I hate those), and the doors were starting to swell. It was an RCA. Who knew RCA made fridges?  I didn’t until I looked at it when it was time to haul it away. We bought it used when we moved to Pittsburgh in 1998. It was in great condition at the time and served us well. It was still running and likely still is if it didn’t end up scrapped. RCA should have kept making refrigerators.

I agonize over major purchases, and it was no different with this. I looked at fridges for weeks — going through the store amongst the ocean of stainless steel and opening each one, pulling out all the drawers, messing with all the features. I decided on a model and brand and kept an eye on the markdowns. It was unlikely the black model I wanted would be found amongst the scratch-and-dents, especially one that was not badly disfigured. If nothing else, we would get about a $100 discount for not wanting stainless steel.

Why don’t I want stainless steel? Because everyone wants stainless steel. We sometimes watch home improvement shows, and I want to vomit every time I hear prospective home buyers list stainless steel, granite counter tops, and open floor plans on their “must have” lists. Sheep.

Well, baa-baa.

We found the exact model we wanted in the scratch-and-dent section for over $300 off. You can see the minimal dent in the photo, but most of the time, it’s not really visible. It was still wrapped in plastic, had the styrofoam shipping supports in it, and didn’t even have the handles attached yet. All the other scratch-and-dent models we saw were truly scratched or dented severely, and none of them were still in their packaging. You know what rhymes with sheep? Cheap. Apparently, I’m both, because I now own a stainless steel fridge.

But wait… it gets better.

And to make sure I keep up with my resolution of writing a blog post every week, I leave you with that gripping cliffhanger.