Dishwasher Saga - First World Problem #1

Did I tell you about living without my dishwasher and garbage disposal for 5 weeks?

No?

I lived without my dishwasher and garbage disposal for 5 weeks, which included Thanksgiving.

Thank goodness we did not host this year.

The dishwasher started leaking in early November. The Husband called for service and it was scheduled for November 10th.

The service man could not fix it on-site. It needed to go to the shop. He couldn't remove the dishwasher the day he made that discovery.  He had to schedule another person for that job.  But wait, the service man forgot to schedule the removal/pick-up.  Days later someone finally came and took the dishwasher.

Waiting.

Waiting.

Waiting.

Dialing the phone:

"What's up with our dishwasher?"

"The part we ordered came in broken.  We have to order another one.  It will be another week."

We thought, "Thanks for not calling us and giving us an update."

Waiting.

My phone buzzes.  I read a text from The Husband that the dishwasher is being installed. Hip, Hip, Hurrah!

I arrive home from work and The Husband is standing in front of the dishwasher. The top drawer is full of water.  WHAT???!!!

The guy installed the machine, turned on cycles for both dish drawers and left!

The bottom drawer made a horrible noise and the top drawer wouldn't drain.

I grabbed the phone and called the service department. I was less than happy when they answered. There was run around about not being sure if they could schedule someone out the next day to fix the unit and I told them the service manager needed to phone us to discuss. I was very vocal regarding why the installer left without ensuring both drawers finished the wash cycle and performed correctly.

We received a phone call the next morning and The Husband told them they needed to send a technician out, not an installer.  A couple of hours later, a technician appeared.

Final result, a piece of plastic was caught in the works of the bottom dish drawer.  It was removed and it worked fine.  The problem with the top drawer was the plug from the drain line in the top drawer into the garbage disposal line had not been removed.

Basically, it was shoddy installation work.

I posted this comment on Facebook on December 12th

We finally have a working dishwasher again. We've been without (and without the garbage disposal) since Nov 10th. I am so glad it is fixed. I know those 2 things are not necessities because I grew up hand washing dishes and we didn't have a garbage disposal until I was a teenager. But I am THRILLED to have them again!

I realize this is a total First World Problem.

What was so frustrating was the lack of communication about the status of the repair and then the shoddy installation work. Customer service isn't what it used to be.

I'll have another customer service story for you in a few days.  That issue lasted months!

How do you handle poor customer service?

Christmas Eve Dinner & Christmas Morning Breakfast

We spent the night at The Sister's house on Christmas Eve, as is our long standing tradition.

The Sister, as always, had set a pretty dinner table for us.

The Brother-in-Law fixed us pretty Blue Christmas Martinis.

The Sister and The Brother-in-Law fixed a fabulous meal.

Pernil (Puerto Rican Roast Pork)

Arroz con Gandules (Rice and Pigeon Peas)

Steamed Broccoli (cheese optional)

I made Holiday Salad, which is a favorite of ours.

We all confessed it's a favorite in large part because 

of the prosciutto goat cheese packets on top!

Dessert was mini brownie bundt cakes.

Christmas morning started later than in years past. 

The girls slept until after 8:00am.  What?

Fun was had by all opening the gifts. 

There was the traditional "bow on the head" moment.

The Husband has been "under the weather" recently, but was feeling good this morning.

 

To quote the nieces, "This is the best Christmas ever!"

For breakfast we had a "new to us" casserole.

Crescent Rolls

Breakfast Sausage

Cream Cheese

Grated Colby Jack Cheese 

Cover the bottom of a 13 x 9 pan with a layer of Crescent Rolls 

Brown sausage; remove from hot skillet 

Place cream cheese in hot skillet to soften 

When the cream cheese is soft, stir in the sausage and mix well 

Pour mixture in the casserole pan 

Sprinkle grated cheese over the mixture 

Top with a layer of Crescent Rolls 

Bake according to Crescent Roll directions 

Thanks to my sister-in-law's sister, Margaret for the above recipe.

It was a BIG hit!

I'll end this post with my new favorite picture of myself with the older niece.

I hope your holidays were merry & bright!

Phase versus Faze #2

I just read a blog post that did not spell faze correctly, 

given the context in which the word was used.

I wrote about this issue here first. 

Come on, people!

Don't always rely on spell check. 

Think about the meaning and context of the words you are using.

P.S. If you EVER catch me using a word out of context, PLEASE correct me!