Exorcist Wanted

My kitchen is possessed.

As noted in the last post, the fridge freezes things. Not always, mind you. Only when repair people aren't around.

The first repair visit was a fiasco. The guy reshuffled the top shelf and left.

I called back. On the advice of the Sears phone rep, I bumped up the temperature in the freezer and waited for the return of the repair guy, promised for the next day.

He never came. Sears had several versions of why not, but it's clear that he just blew me off. Would next week be good for me?

Unpleasantness ensued, punctuated by decidedly unladylike language.

So they rescheduled for the next day, when Younger Son would have to supervise again. By then, the fridge temperature was fine (because the freezer was set too high) and there wasn't any frozen food (because it's in the trash) so the guy left without touching it again. He offered to order a new thermostat, probably just to shut me up.

I don't know what to do now. I'd love to return the thing, but there's a scratch already, probably from Gatsby jumping on top of it, plus a hefty restocking fee.

Whatever its issue is, it seems to have infected the new stove. That was working great until Thanksgiving day, when the oven started overheating. Between the too-cold fridge and the too-hot oven, I ended up with fifteen pounds of turkey jerky. If you soaked it in gravy long enough it was edible, but this was not the holiday experience I was hoping for.

In the process, the nonstick finish bubbled and chipped off my Kitchenaid turkey roaster pan. I loved that pan. It's never been used on the stovetop, and the oven wasn't that hot.

Meanwhile, the first time I tried baked potatoes in the new microwave, it overheated and burned out. Lowe's said they'd never seen that happen before. I'm afraid to use the replacement.

We've also had to exchange a dehumidifier that wasn't taking accurate readings ... and a carbon monoxide detector that wouldn't light up ... and curtains that weren't actually the length the package said they were. Even a loaf of bakery bread I bought for the holiday was solid, inedible dough inside.

So what the hell? Am I under some kind of appliance curse, or is everything just made like junk now?

P.S. We managed to have a great Thanksgiving anyway, which just goes to show you that it's not about the stuff. As long as there's family and love, the rest is just gravy. So to speak. Hope your holiday was wonderful too!