"About Toasters, Again!"

I found it... I just knew I didn't find it in the Bible!

Good Twofer Tuesday morning, y'all.

Staring out that ole matchbox hole I had a thought about toasters.

My first cup of coffee was with yogurt and fruit and maybe later, some toast. It is truly amazing that we don't have any roaches. We didn't have any in our home in California and that's not because we cleaned our toaster occasionally.

It was because of spiders.

Yep, those creepy crawlies with the eight legs and weirdo eyes. I don't know what kind of "spidos", as our young son used to call them, are here in Folsom, but in South Pasadena we had lots of black widows. You didn't have to look hard to find them, you just had to bring a flashlight, ha!

Growing up in New Orleans, with pine trees, we had lots of roaches. I guess, maybe, that's because no one in our family ever thought to clean out the toaster.

A friend of mine, Dave Schaff, and I would use bb guns and flashlights to pick off the ones that would come out from the back shed and the pine trees to nibble on the bread crumbs we provided for them.

It was great fun, and no harmful pesticides were used in their demise.

We have, ( you know I could blow the whole day on this subject ) a toaster that Therese and I received from an uncle as a wedding gift. That was a long time ago. Since then, my wife has, at times, while occasionally cleaning the toaster, and commenting on the fact that we have no roaches, attempted to discard the yellow trimmed pleasure machine for a new one.

But, I wouldn't have it. I've become attached. So what, if it sometimes burns the toast. It just means no one has cleaned out the crumbs, and, thanks to the spiders, we have no roaches to assist us. So what, if the cord to the socket is a bit worn, it hasn't created any problem, yet. So what, if the plastic knobs have cracked and split in two. I can always glue 'em back together, again.

And, I have. Many times!

Besides what would my uncle think? It has become a symbol of our marriage, in a way. It has been with us for over four decades serving us warm bread, all sorts of bread, through thick and thin... slices, that is. It's been there for our butter, jam, jelly and occasional triple decker peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. It's been with us since the day we said, "I do!"

You just don't discard loyalty like that! Besides, Sears doesn't make 'em like that anymore. How many appliances can one say actually has lasted that long?

Metaphorically speaking, how many marriages do we know that last that long?

No, for the sake of our marriage with plans to "take it to the limit", that machine is the "ties that bind!" We need to save a few bucks, keep our romance toasty,( you can figure out that analogy! ) thank our spiders, and every now and then, clean out that little icon of love.

Wait... I smell something burning.

Third cup...

Copyright 2023/Ben Bensen III