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I liked the old Kenmore/Whirlpool clothes washers. One could keep them going usually with only an occasional wig/wag or water solenoid replacement. The timers were mechanical and I never had to replace one. A plus was if you wanted to set the timer back or move it to a different cycle you could do so w/o it dumping water and starting over.
 
Could it be that these companies still make reliable machines, but they tend to be the less glamorous ones with just a few knobs, and people are instead drawn mothlike to the light of the fancier front-loading models with the big color LED screens, that connect to your wi-fi and electronic health records, and they do your taxes for you, but which break all the time and require an advanced degree in electromechanical engineering to open up and fix?

We have a Whirlpool washer and an Amana dryer (also made by Whirlpool I think), I think there are four mechanical knobs and one single small light between the two machines, and that is the extent of the controls, and we've never had an issue with either.
 
I did a thorough online search a around five years ago and couldn't find a simple washer. Someone suggested Speed Queen since they are most used by laundromats. There was no local Speed Queen dealer where I could do for a look/see plus they were a bit pricey.

I just initiated a customer service contact to see if SQ cycle timers are mechanical/analog or electronic boards.
 
A friend of mine has the gas version. He also has an electric golf cart. If they would put a canopy and a bag/tool carrier on an electric ZT he could have more space in his garage.
 
searching for another halon extinguisher I find that they are banned. Sad because they work and leave no mess behind.

I use to work in the computer room of a bank and they had a halon system to flood the room in the event of a fire... wonder what they use now? Can't ask the bank, it's one of the thousands of banks now long gone. The computer room manager was the repair service writer for a Dodge dealership last I saw him.
 
A friend of mine has the gas version. He also has an electric golf cart. If they would put a canopy and a bag/tool carrier on an electric ZT he could have more space in his garage.

How about a 72" mower deck on the golf cart? Give more free time to play gold. Would also save the groundsman having to mow the Fairways...
 
That's because you bought the first electric one sold! LOL !

Yeah, I'm wondering that. I was focused on them being around for 8 years or so, but that's the gas version. Well, I have 3 years if it turns out to be junk.
 
@Flyover I hope everything is ok on the health side. My mom made a valid point about not getting another oven: Mice. We can't keep the damn mice out of the stoves. Mom said if we bought a really expensive one and mice got into it, it would be wasting $. Even with 16 cats and sometimes random chicken snakes, the mice get into everything. They chewed a hole in the ceiling and in the wire screen in the pantry & got in. I need to get pestblock grate stuff to spray in that hole and then patch it up so the buggers can't get in anymore. Bethesda will be disappointed bc she loves to rush in there & catch the mice.
Anyway, I started looking at cooktop prices & they are over $1k for the induction ones.
No used appliance stores in my area & mom would never buy used anyway.

She does the same thing with the credit card- buys stuff (and has me buy stuff) on credit cards with cashback rewards and pays off the balance monthly so there's never any interest.

I've been having some weird symptoms. Very early in the morning I felt fluttering in my chest (I get that when I have arrhythmia). Later on when I opened my eyes and tried to lift my head, it looked like everything was spinning. Several minutes later when I bent down in the bathroom I got very dizzy & nearly fell over. I felt off kilter & it was so bad that I had Mom drive (since she insisted we go to Samsclub). I was able to lift the water cases & stuff but started to feel pretty crappy. An employee loaded stuff up for me in the parking lot so that helped. Got food and got home, set my fanny pack on a chair. When I bent down to pick it up I got dizzy again. Happened again in the bathroom. If I tipped my head down while standing I got dizzy. If I tipped my head back I got dizzy. Got into bed & tipping my head to the side makes me dizzy. Now I'm getting waves if dizzyness every few minutes & have no idea why. I ate so it's not low blood sugar...

Gonna call my doctor's office in the morning if it's still happening.
 
@zannej: Thanks. Healthwise it's a mix of two things:

1. My son had a minor routine surgery last week, and recovery would be fine except he's 4 and very stubborn so it's been hell on him and us, plus even if he was a perfect angel who took his meds without throwing an hour-long screaming tantrum first every time, we'd still have to get up twice in the middle of the night for it. So, we're all underslept which just compounds the difficulty, plus he isn't allowed much physical activity until he's recovered so he's kinda wound up and has watched way too much TV, and that makes his behavior even worse.
2. I got the J&J one-off last Saturday. Sunday I had mild flu-like symptoms (I think I said that already?) and Monday I felt better but Tuesday-through-yesterday I felt worse again, and coupled with what was in the news about that vaccine that was slightly unsettling. Feeling better today though.

I don't know what to say about your mice problem. Sometimes it seems clear to me we live in a world of bugs and rodents and it's pointless to try and resist them much. Better to just learn to be comfortable with ants in your house, mice in your walls, etc.

But, if you don't replace the oven how will you bake anything? You could get a large toaster oven I guess. The ones that have convection are really nice. Some even have rotisseries you can slide in.
 
I found another interesting dog breed the DDR German Shepherd. Notice the level back, it doesn't look like a 51 Mercury with lowering blocks. Pretty but more dog than I want.

ddr-german-shepherd.jpg
 
@Flyover Young kids can be like pets when it comes to medicine & treatment. They will spit the medicine out, squirm, & refuse to cooperate because they don't understand how important it is. Glad his surgery went OK but sorry to hear the post-op is stressful. I hope the J&J will work for you & not cause more negative symptoms. From what I heard on the news, it mostly affects women over 60.
As for the oven. I don't bake. I have this weird phobia of ovens. Like, I don't feel comfortable leaning in to them. I lightly burned my arm on one trying to get something out & never wanted to reach into an oven again. My brother is the one who does the more advanced cooking/baking. I believe we do have a NuWave thing that can be baked in somewhere but we have to find it. We can also bake smaller stuff (like small round cakes) in the pressure cooker. Although, we are supposed to cut back on carbs. The microwave works for a lot of things as well. We haven't had a working oven in a very long time.

@Spicoli, 16 cats was not a typo. Back in the 80s we had over 60 cats. We also have over 30 acres of land. Back then we had all sorts of animals- horses, goats, pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, guinea hens, pigeons, quail, rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, cats, dogs, & a cow. We have a cat door so all but 2 of the cats can come and go as they please. The youngest 2 are quarantined in the front room until we get males neutered & feel safe letting them start to mingle. One of the older ones used to go visit them, but when mating season started he decided to get aggressive with the male one. My cats names (in chronological order): Boo, Itsy, Predicate, Ginger, Rupert, Mewlatto, Yasuke, Sir Hammington, Biscuits, Senator Snugglebum, Gravy Jones, Aminatu, Lady Sylvanas, Bethesda, Temjin, & Namir.
As for the neurologist, I'm SOL on that front. They won't see people who don't have insurance & even if they did, I couldn't afford it. It's more likely a cardiology issue. Unfortunately, the only good cardiologist I ever had passed away. The one in town is an absolute quack.

My symptoms aren't worse but they aren't better. I ended up sleeping in & doctors office was closed when I woke up. I got immersed in Sketchup & lost track of time so I was up pretty late. My brother doesn't seem to be feeling so great the past few days either, but he's not having the dizziness. I was also having nausea with it. Almost threw up a few times after. Nausea seems to be gone now at least.

I had planned on doing cleaning & picking up and organizing this week but I can't do that with the dizziness. I nearly fell over when I leaned down to flush the toilet. Ended up losing my balance and catching myself but hurt my rotator cuff again. I've started on Magnesium vitamins to see if they help with the muscle soreness bc the naproxyn isn't doing much.

Since I couldn't do anything productive, I fell back to planning yet another project. I want to build a platform bed. I nixed the idea of having storage because I wouldn't be able to access it with the size & layout of my room. I still have boxes I haven't unpacked since 1992 so they are cluttering the room up. I know I should probably just toss them, but I'm a bit of a hoarder & I have to look at stuff first. Somewhere in there is an audio tape with a recording of my grandfather singing.

Anyway, I combined ideas from different blogs (Ana White and another person) on building the bed. I like how Ana built a 2x4 frame for her child's bed. I liked how the other lady upholstered her bedframe. Since I'm heavier & want my bed to be taller, I decided to plan for a 2x6 frame. The upholstered boards will be screwed on to the frame and will function to hold the mattress in place so it doesn't slide. Right now my mattress is probably hanging at least 10"- maybe even 14" off the side of the box spring & I can't get it to move back in place or stay still. I'll make a thread & post pictures from Sketchup later.

but, general idea is: 2x6 Frame w/ 2x6 center support attached w/ joist hangers, 1x8 upholstered sides & foot (sticks up 1/2" above slats), 1x6s (10') cut in half to make slats, scrap wood for spacers (if necessary), large simpson strong tie angle brackets for the corners of the frame, leftover 2x6 pieces for the 4 corners & center to raise it up more and to attach feet, smaller strong tie angle braces for the blocks, these feet/legs (since they match my existing furniture) for 4 corners, & anti-slip mat stretched on top of slats to span gaps. I'm still trying to decide what to use for the center support. Maybe some scrap wood or maybe an adjustable leg. The legs are supposed to be something like 8.2" high but they angle so the amount they lift things is lower (but I haven't gotten a definitive answer on the height as the seller doesn't even know what the word "diameter" means).
 
zannej, you have to change your living situation. Sorry, but you can't have that many animals and be a hoarder. You are used to them, your family is used to them, and people that are there all the time are used to them. You can't distinguish the smells that are present, which is probably causing your health issues.

We aren't meant to live with that many animals. I know you love them, but something has to give.
 
Our new GSD... Guy. GSD in my Avatar is Sam (side note: he has over a million youtube views :O), who we lost a couple years back.
 

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Hamberg, that's an adorable pup!
I'm feeling a little better today. No nausea & haven't been getting dizzy, but I feel off. I think it's the weather. The barometric pressure changes when it rains can affect my sinuses. I feel a pressure (no pain). We've been having thunderstorms the past few days. I think staying up all night playing on the computer wasn't good for me either. I feel tired. I'm still planning to call my doctor on Monday to at least report the symptoms.

I was able to feed the cats and I could bend far enough to pick up one of my cats when he "asked" to be picked up (he meows and stands on his hind legs & reaches his paws up). He likes to climb on my shoulder. He's currently lying over my arm purring for me. Last night and earlier this morning he had his face pressed against mine & was purring in my ear. I started to typo that as rear. LOL.
 
I think staying up all night playing on the computer wasn't good for me either. I feel tired. I'm still planning to call my doctor on Monday to at least report the symptoms.

Zannej: Doc, I feel really tired.
Doctor: Well, what have you been doing?
Zannej: Staying up all night playing on the computer.
Doctor: Hmm...*scratches head* I don't know what the problem could be.
 
Just thinking if I had 16 cats they would have to wear name tags. But I am a sucker for dogs. Though I will probably get a Carolina Dog I like the looks of a Rotterman (the head is just broad enough to look good w/Rottie type ears) and the DDRGSD (the level back looks great).
t5953_ThisMorningISawANeighbor_COTT-BWN__33450.1582650161.jpg
 

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