Kitchen Gadgets & Clothes

OK, OK, I admit it. I'm addicted to kitchen gadgets. The real kick in the ass is that I absolutely HATE to cook! Odd, I know. But, there is just something, oh I don't know, soothing I guess, about browsing through a kitchen store. For the past two weekends I have done that. Originally, I was on the prowl for a new garbage can for the kitchen. I want a stainless steel can (can't believe how bloody expensive they are!) and found myself at several kitchen stores and home interior design type stores. Went to a Home Depot Expo Design Center in North Scottsdale as well as a Great Outdoors, Restoration Hardware, Crate & Barrel, Bed Bath & Beyond, and a store I've never heard of before called Sur La Table, which sells all kinds of cool stuff as well as offers a culinary program (yuck, no thanks). Didn't buy a trash can but got lots of cool things instead. A stainless steel potato peeler with the big black cushy grip; 2 mesh strainers; this thing called Rub Away which looks like a bar of soap, but it's stainless steel. It's really cool. Ever mess with onions and garlic and can't get the odor out even after washing your hands? Well after washing your hands, you rub this Rub Away gadget in your hands as if it is a bar of soap and it removes the odors! How cool is that? Picked up some HUGE coffee mugs from Bed Bath & Beyond. They are ceramic blue that match my kitchen beautifully and are 24 oz in size. Need to get about 4 more. Actually Bed Bath & Beyond was the best prospect for the stainless steel garbage cans, but starting at $80 plus tax, it will have to wait until I get some overtime in my check or holiday pay or I win the lottery....

Then tonight, we went to an outlet mall in Tempe to a Linens & Things store where I picked up some plastic bowl covers and another outlet mall in Mesa where I picked up some pyrex dessert dishes (perfect for pudding or jello or using it to combine spices...), a garlic press and this cool tomato slicer with a finger protector that pushes the tomato through the blades without your fingers getting cut. For $3.50, I just HAD to try it. I really like the stainless steel gadgets like measuring cups, measuring spoons, etc. How many sets of measuring cups and spoons does one person need, right? My favorite is a set of 4 measuring spoons for "dash, pinch, smidge, and tad."

At the Home Depot Expo Design Center, we were blown away by this jacuzzi whirlpool tub that has a huge built-in flat screen television mounted. Oh my God! I would never get out of the tub if I had one of those! We almost fell over when we saw the price of $26,100! I was dying to ask a salesperson just how many of these tubs do they sell. Do people just whip out the old Visa or Mastercard and have the tub delivered? Would I actually tell people if I owned one of these tubs? Unbelievable!

On a side note...I hate shopping for clothes. I want a new outfit for work. I have to teach at the Police Academy next month and with the weight I've lost, all of my clothing is very baggy. For almost 25 years, unbeknownst to me, I have been buying the wrong clothing. I should be buying petite sizes. Always wondered why trousers and jeans were so bloody long. Now, I know. The problem is that although I need a 14 petite on my ass, I can't wear petite on top. I need a regular misses 14. So, how the hell do I buy clothes when everything is usually the same size top to bottom? I found the cutest suit in turquoise and black. The skirt fit great in the 14 petite, but the jacket was a no-go. Too tight across the back if I button it up and it just didn't look right unbuttoned. It's a conspiracy....wish I was one of the filthy rich who could afford a personal shopper to take care of this shite for me...