Serendipity

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My 1938 Sunbeam Mixmaster, 2005.

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Himself: Rebuilt Marie’s mixer, took all the Christmas discards to the Discovery Shop, and we spent the afternoon in delightful P3 company….plus the cat, of course. Herself: Went through all the boxes of Christmas stuff, and I was only able to get rid of four out of 18 boxes of ornaments. Everything that’s left is exceptional. After looking at all the ornaments, G decided to decorate the tree with the “character” ornaments….like the circus acrobats or the cats, or any unique pieces we have. We will fill in with red. Everything else got put away. Food: Today toast, Jack In The Box chicken sandwich, and jewish deli dinner: cabbage roll, mashed potato, matzo ball soup, and homemade ding dong desert.

Many months ago, G found a slightly tired mixer. Here a little paint chipped, there a little wear. The cord was worn beyond salvage, and it only had one large bowl. Still, it would be a good gift for the eldest.

I started searching for a small bowl.

There were no small bowls to be had. Anywhere. So I kept looking. Estate sales, yard sales, thrift stores, antique stores, all the usual suspects yet there was none to be seen. Once a green small bowl turned up. The big bowl was white not green. I kept on looking. Weeks turned into months.

Then there it was. Up high, in a kitchen cupboard all by itself and at the price of four dollars. We grabbed it. I put it on the back stairs. There it sat.

Last weekend at an estate sale run by an old acquaintance, there was a truly battered looking mixer sitting in a corner. Little paint, chipped bowls….both of them, and a complete juicer.

“Oh,” said Jim, “for a while I was able to get up to forty dollars for those. Not now. Not any more.”

We bought it and brought it home for fifteen bucks. Yesterday G brought both mixers up to the kitchen.

He opened up the nice looking mixer to discover it was “Whupped.” Beyond worn out. Tired. Disappointed, he opened up the worn out, without paint, chipped, dinged mixer to discover that it was pristine inside. Someone had rebuilt it. Only the grease was a little tired.

New grease, a little oil, this tired but rebuilt mixer now purrs. He popped the knife sharpening attachment on, sharpened a knife or two as proof it works. This morning, after letting Marie know how tired it looks, we are heading north to deliver the mixer to it’s new home.