There are gizmos that I will buy. Here's one that I have been on the lookout for -- a plastic egg timer. I was given one maybe 15-18 years ago by a physicist friend and couldn't boil an egg without it! How does it function? Let Amazon tell you how: As the timer heats up, its face darkens from the outer edge inward. Because the timer heats in step with the eggs, it automatically adjusts for the amount of water and number of eggs in the pan--even the altitude at which the eggs are being cooked. Living in the mountain world where baking recipes have to be altered big time because of our high elevation, that last item is a real selling point! I'm getting a new one right away, now that I have discovered a source.
As a rule, though, I just like to look at the catalogs and those shelves in the middle aisle where gadgets and stuff reside at the Walgreen store. A solar lily??? Indeed!
The kitchen is the prime location for gizmos. Above, a hotpad to keep your tortillas warm and a folding colander to save space. In my current catalog, teabag tongs, olive tweezers, a peeler for soft-skinned fruit (peaches, tomatoes.)
Potatoes are a favorite for the small-time inventor. How about those scratchy mitts for peeling spuds with your hands? Or a special microwave dish with spikes to cut cooking time in half.
A duster that...get this, spins.
I'm sure any young guy would really appreciate a chick who would carry 20 cans of brew or soda. Hey -- that's a lot of weight! But often these considerations are overlooked in the world of gizmos.I've mentioned the kitchen as a prime target. Closets are a close second, and then there is that class of gadgets called organizers and/or caddies; each such item is one-purpose as a rule. I'm looking right now at a catalog page with belt and tie organizers, and a special storage bag for one's baseball cap collection. There's also a rolling pant trolley and a handbag holder. What won't some enterprising outfit think of next?
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12 comments:
That's a reverse duster - spreads the dust around instead of collecting it.
Any who has rolling pants? (Over here, pants are underwear, of course!)
OK, after my comment of yesterday, I'm not gonna' touch this entry on gizmos! Not with a 10' pole!
^_^
Mari-Nanci
stitch -- Here it is pants (trousers) and panties. But the dust? It is already well spread in our dry climate.
SnS -- coward! As for that device I showed yesterday, it is well out of the price range to class as a gizmo -- it is definitely electronic gear!
so many gizmos ..so little time..
Hello, Granny J,
just a short note, that I linked your blog to mine and the photos are on (buzzards and clouds).
Brain -- and so little storage area for heaps of gizmos!
Olivia -- thanks. BTW, your "buzzard" is a heck of a lot more hawk-like than our turkey vulture (aka, buzzard.) Wikipedia has both a discussion and a picture of our buzzard here.
The gizmos that amuse me most are the ones which are meant to store or organize the *other* gizmos, like the caddy for the half-dozen remote controls, or the purpose-built bin with sorting trays for Christmas lights.
Simplify, simplify...
Melanie -- the gizmo is maybe the polar opposite of the tool, which is a multi-purpose item that helps us extend our capabilities.
Now the tater mits remind me of some extra scratchy bath gloves that will take the skin right off me. I could just borrow them for the kitchen!
Love the egg timer. May have to snag one of those myself.
Lane -- long time, no comment. Welcome back! Sounds like your bath mitts would work just fine on the spuds. As for the egg timer, I really recommend highly. Try Amazon -- they have 2 versions.
What a fun blog! I actually suggested to my brother just the other day that for christmas we should buy eachother the weirdest gadget we could find!
Welcome, Mommy2 -- I am always fascinated by how absurd so many one-note gadgets are. Yet, if you need that single thing done a lot, they can be useful. Hence the plastic egg timer.
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