Sunday, December 29, 2013

Merry Christmas to Me

As we were debating what to get each other for Christmas this year, we realized we are no longer in the phase where you get "fun" gifts. Well, you can still get "fun" gifts, like a nice wallet to match my lovely handbag, but maybe not this year. It may have to wait until my birthday. This year, my husband really wanted to get me a washer/dryer combo. I at first refused by saying "this is not FUN!" He reminded me that buying a new suit and better briefcase was not much "fun" for him, but in his Japanese salary man phase of life this is what he needed. It was not what he wanted, but he needed it, and so that is what he bought himself for Christmas. He reminded me that I mentally curse my washer every week so maybe a new washer/dryer combo would help my stress level. You see, for the past nearly four years, I have been using a tiny washer our friends gave us when we moved to Tokyo. When you do a load of laundry in the said tiny washer, well, you just could not put a lot of clothes in a load because the washer was so small. If you did overload it, it would not be able to go through the spin cycle like it should and it would beep constantly so I would have to try to rearrange the clothes so they could spend correctly. After doing this 3 or 4 times, it would finally finish and I would have to hang the clothes. Sometimes the clothes would not be dry after hanging for the entire day due to the weather or moisture in the air so I would have to wait until the next day before folding the clothes and putting them away. Then I would start the cycle all over again because the said washer was so small I would have to do loads of laundry nearly every day to keep up with it all. If Miss M were to have an accident at night, this would really mess me up because I could only wash one sheet at a time and they take a long time to dry. You can see how I mentally and sometimes verbally cursed this machine at least once a week. You can also see why my husband wanted us to upgrade the machine, to help my stress level which in turn would help him. But a washer/dryer just does not sound like a "fun" Christmas gift. However, dear friends, it has been the best Christmas gift ever. When Miss M and I got home from the Nutcracker, the new and improved washer/dryer combo had arrived and been installed. On the front it reads "Kaze Iron Slim/ Big Drum." My husband showed me how to set it and we tried it that very night with a load of towels. Did you read the plural I used there? I was able to wash several towels in one load because it is a Big Drum washer. With our new machine, you set the timer and tell the machine when you want it to finish. So, I have been setting it to run at night when our electricity is cheaper and have it finish at 8AM. At 8AM, I pull out the clothes, they are warm and fluffy, and all I have to do is fold them and put them away. A dryer...how I have missed you oh dryer. It is amazing what this machine has done for my quality of life here in Tokyo. It just helps, a lot, and saves me quite a bit of time and frustration. I am thankful for a husband who knows what I need and is not afraid to tell me.:) And little did he know at the time, but I bought us a "fun" Christmas present for both of us - tickets to see Eric Clapton in February. :) My American MIL also got me a nabe pot through the husband's help as he bought it here in Tokyo. We tried it for the first time last night and I can tell we will get a lot of use out of this pot. It was delicious. Not a bad Christmas for me at all. :)

1 comment:

Hunca Munca said...

Congrats on the new washer/dryer and nabe pot. I know what you mean about wanting Christmas to be FUN like when we were kids - yet needing to be the adults and be responsible. Glad you can appreciate the "fun" of ez washing and drying! :-) Happy New Year, give hugs to K and the kids.