Binge and Purge
This past November, I officiated at the wedding of two of my friends (Gabi and Daniel.) I just mentioned a bit about cooking with Cast Iron, and having gotten a couple of pans. Well, this morning, the mother of the Bride came by with 3 more. One is the same size as the Wagner (#3) with a surface that was less seasoned, so you could still see the spiral pattern in the face. This was purely visual. When I felt it, it seemed smooth as glass. The other is a #10. Slightly larger than the Griswold, and again, smooth-surfaced. The last didn't have a number on it. It was a novelty pan. Definitely not as smooth as glass, but probably good for it's own purposes. It was sectioned out into 'pie slices,' and looked like it might have been used for cornbread at some point. I boiled some vinegar solution in them to clean them out, and they are seasoning now.
Saturday was a bit of a mess at the antique mall. Emily felt a little resistance to my picking up more cast iron, but she wasn't without reason. As I've mentioned, one pan was a wedding gift, and the other a Christmas gift. Emily attaches some significance to gifts that I don't tend to.
For her, gifts seem to carry the significance that I think they are intended to carry when people give them. They remind her of a particular event (such as our wedding or Christmas) and serve as a token that someone cared for her enough to get it. If it has practical value (such as serving as cookware) all the better.
I think I take more of a 'fruitcake' approach to gifts. Someone gives me a gift, and I appreciate it. I love the fact that they thought of me. But I may pass it on if I find something else with more practical value for me, and perhaps had potential that I was simply unable to unlock. What you gave me was a piece of the journey, and now it's a piece of someone else's journey (the fruitcake theory is that there is only one fruitcake, and it just keeps getting passed around because no one wants to eat it. [as a sub-note, I actually like fruitcake.])
I do not think either take on the giving and receiving of gifts is neurotic. But I do have a neurosis that tends to validate Emily's concern.
Aside of the fact that she doesn't like to pass on things that were given as gifts, I have kind of a problem. I don't like to get rid of cookware. I don't know if it's symbolic or not. Yes, I have prepared food with something, thus it has practical value. It also seems that if I have cooked for my family with it, there is some psychological attachment as well. 'I need this to provide substance for my family. Without it, those in my care will go hungry.'
On a conscious level, I understand that one pan is enough to cook in. If I have one pot, and one pan, I have enough to cook in. Theoretically. When I really get to cooking, the reality is that all burners are occupied with something or another, and if I have cooked in something, that proves that it does have a practical use. But still- if I have two pots and two pans, that is enough on a practical level. Because my stove cannot accomodate more than that.
My problem doesn't seem to be that I have more than I need. My real problem is that I need different things for different dishes. That is the excuse. However, if Emily does not want to pass gifts on, and I have a tool that seems more practically useful than the tool I am substituting it for, that means we have kitchen clutter (ie: 7 pieces of cast iron cookware when we started with only 2.)
The author of the Secret would have a hayday with this. The basic premise of the Secret is that if all the starving people in 3rd world countries would just meditate on food and have a more positive attitude, they wouldn't be starving anymore. And that because I've been having sort of 'a meditation' on cast iron, it has presented itself to me. Realistically, two days ago I didn't have cast iron that I could use with any versatility. Now I'm sort of bingeing.
But Emily and I have been talking about purging things lately, and I'm not sure what exactly I will get rid of in the kitchen. One definite thing is a little single-serving combine. A thing that we at first thought was an apple-corer, but on closer inspection seems to be a tool that you run down a corn cob and it knocks off the kernels. I would be surprised if we ever came to use it. It's a definite thing to get rid of.
And there is a broken wooden spoon (that I still use, but need to get rid of, as I have wooden spoons that are not broken.) A pillet (cross between pan and skillet) that I need to pass on, because we already have one. A meatloaf pan that came as a 2-for-1 with a meatloaf pan that I ordered because I wanted the miracle knife that came with it (I had actually looked for this knife in stores and could not find it.) And, as much as it pains me- I think it may be time to get rid of the boxes things came in. I tend to hang on to them for two reasons. One- I may need to return the item, which tends to be allowable after 30 days only if you have the boxes things came in. Most of my items are well beyond returning, and many are beyond the warranty, so the box is a moot point, and only remains for one other reason. Portability. If you have to move- or take the deep fryer to the farm to make cannoli shells- having the box it came in makes it much easier to move. Regarding the deep fryer, we rarely use it, and it lives in it's box, because when it tried living outside the box it became sticky on top. That wouldn't do. But we have boxes of dishes, and a box from the coffee pot. Now the coffee pot box I kept purposefully, because I thought I may have to return it due to the fact that I got a defective pot of the same model that I had to return. This pot has not proven to be defective. The box? It needs to go. And then there's another item that needs to go to make the purge a reality. The recycling. The recycling is not being kept for any particular purpose. It's just taking up space and making us look like hoarders. Let's do some inventory.
Pots: 1 tiny pot. Convenient for ramen noodles and a side dish of vegetables.
Saucepans: 3 medium saucepans. 1 is specialized with a colander-style lid, and was a gift, but does not get much use now that we have a colander. One of the other two gets used until I need two double boilers at once, in which case both get used. I have only once in my cooking career needed two double boilers at once, and I do not anticipate making that dish again anytime soon.
Cast Iron: 3 large skillets, 3 egg skillets, and a novelty pan. I understand this surpasses my need, and will talk to Emily and discuss rehoming that which we will not use (though at current, 5 of the seven pans are gifts.)
Hot water makers: 3. This includes the coffee-pot, the tea kettle, and a little boiler-pot, which I need to get rid of. It was not a gift, and would be good in a dorm room. The tea kettle cannot make coffee, which makes the coffee pot necessary. It (the kettle) was also a gift. And is, in actuality, quite nice. It whistles, which the other two do not do.
Large Soup pots: 2. One is a 4 1/2 quart, one is a stockpot. To get real, it has been years since I cooked for an army, but somehow I can't let go of the need to be prepared for this large-scale cooking project as an eventuality.
Cookie sheets: 2 that I use. Many I need to pass on.
Foil brownie pans: numerous. I should just recycle them, but it's one thing when your recycling makes you look like hoarders and you're not. It's another thing to have it prove the point.
Foil Pie Pans: See above.
Glasses. If it were up to me, I would recycle all the store-bought glasses and just use recycled jars. They have sturdier bottoms and are less prone to spill. But the glasses were gifts, so I may have to recycle the jars instead.
These are the problem areas off the top of my head. Except basic utensils, which I'm sure will shrink greatly when I go through them- right? We also have two sets of measuring cups and spoons. One metal, and one plastic. But when I get to cooking and baking, I tend to go through both sets rapidly. Is this Okay?
The reality of this situation is that I clearly just need to get rid of some stuff. It would quickly solve the space problem in my kitchen. My excuse today is two-fold. I am spending the day recovering from a cold that won't quit. And I also don't have the car, thus, I cannot go to the recycling center, or Penn House, or to people who might want some of this quality cookware that is properly labeled as excess.
Excuses established. I must be reminded tomorrow.
-Claven
Saturday was a bit of a mess at the antique mall. Emily felt a little resistance to my picking up more cast iron, but she wasn't without reason. As I've mentioned, one pan was a wedding gift, and the other a Christmas gift. Emily attaches some significance to gifts that I don't tend to.
For her, gifts seem to carry the significance that I think they are intended to carry when people give them. They remind her of a particular event (such as our wedding or Christmas) and serve as a token that someone cared for her enough to get it. If it has practical value (such as serving as cookware) all the better.
I think I take more of a 'fruitcake' approach to gifts. Someone gives me a gift, and I appreciate it. I love the fact that they thought of me. But I may pass it on if I find something else with more practical value for me, and perhaps had potential that I was simply unable to unlock. What you gave me was a piece of the journey, and now it's a piece of someone else's journey (the fruitcake theory is that there is only one fruitcake, and it just keeps getting passed around because no one wants to eat it. [as a sub-note, I actually like fruitcake.])
I do not think either take on the giving and receiving of gifts is neurotic. But I do have a neurosis that tends to validate Emily's concern.
Aside of the fact that she doesn't like to pass on things that were given as gifts, I have kind of a problem. I don't like to get rid of cookware. I don't know if it's symbolic or not. Yes, I have prepared food with something, thus it has practical value. It also seems that if I have cooked for my family with it, there is some psychological attachment as well. 'I need this to provide substance for my family. Without it, those in my care will go hungry.'
On a conscious level, I understand that one pan is enough to cook in. If I have one pot, and one pan, I have enough to cook in. Theoretically. When I really get to cooking, the reality is that all burners are occupied with something or another, and if I have cooked in something, that proves that it does have a practical use. But still- if I have two pots and two pans, that is enough on a practical level. Because my stove cannot accomodate more than that.
My problem doesn't seem to be that I have more than I need. My real problem is that I need different things for different dishes. That is the excuse. However, if Emily does not want to pass gifts on, and I have a tool that seems more practically useful than the tool I am substituting it for, that means we have kitchen clutter (ie: 7 pieces of cast iron cookware when we started with only 2.)
The author of the Secret would have a hayday with this. The basic premise of the Secret is that if all the starving people in 3rd world countries would just meditate on food and have a more positive attitude, they wouldn't be starving anymore. And that because I've been having sort of 'a meditation' on cast iron, it has presented itself to me. Realistically, two days ago I didn't have cast iron that I could use with any versatility. Now I'm sort of bingeing.
But Emily and I have been talking about purging things lately, and I'm not sure what exactly I will get rid of in the kitchen. One definite thing is a little single-serving combine. A thing that we at first thought was an apple-corer, but on closer inspection seems to be a tool that you run down a corn cob and it knocks off the kernels. I would be surprised if we ever came to use it. It's a definite thing to get rid of.
And there is a broken wooden spoon (that I still use, but need to get rid of, as I have wooden spoons that are not broken.) A pillet (cross between pan and skillet) that I need to pass on, because we already have one. A meatloaf pan that came as a 2-for-1 with a meatloaf pan that I ordered because I wanted the miracle knife that came with it (I had actually looked for this knife in stores and could not find it.) And, as much as it pains me- I think it may be time to get rid of the boxes things came in. I tend to hang on to them for two reasons. One- I may need to return the item, which tends to be allowable after 30 days only if you have the boxes things came in. Most of my items are well beyond returning, and many are beyond the warranty, so the box is a moot point, and only remains for one other reason. Portability. If you have to move- or take the deep fryer to the farm to make cannoli shells- having the box it came in makes it much easier to move. Regarding the deep fryer, we rarely use it, and it lives in it's box, because when it tried living outside the box it became sticky on top. That wouldn't do. But we have boxes of dishes, and a box from the coffee pot. Now the coffee pot box I kept purposefully, because I thought I may have to return it due to the fact that I got a defective pot of the same model that I had to return. This pot has not proven to be defective. The box? It needs to go. And then there's another item that needs to go to make the purge a reality. The recycling. The recycling is not being kept for any particular purpose. It's just taking up space and making us look like hoarders. Let's do some inventory.
Pots: 1 tiny pot. Convenient for ramen noodles and a side dish of vegetables.
Saucepans: 3 medium saucepans. 1 is specialized with a colander-style lid, and was a gift, but does not get much use now that we have a colander. One of the other two gets used until I need two double boilers at once, in which case both get used. I have only once in my cooking career needed two double boilers at once, and I do not anticipate making that dish again anytime soon.
Cast Iron: 3 large skillets, 3 egg skillets, and a novelty pan. I understand this surpasses my need, and will talk to Emily and discuss rehoming that which we will not use (though at current, 5 of the seven pans are gifts.)
Hot water makers: 3. This includes the coffee-pot, the tea kettle, and a little boiler-pot, which I need to get rid of. It was not a gift, and would be good in a dorm room. The tea kettle cannot make coffee, which makes the coffee pot necessary. It (the kettle) was also a gift. And is, in actuality, quite nice. It whistles, which the other two do not do.
Large Soup pots: 2. One is a 4 1/2 quart, one is a stockpot. To get real, it has been years since I cooked for an army, but somehow I can't let go of the need to be prepared for this large-scale cooking project as an eventuality.
Cookie sheets: 2 that I use. Many I need to pass on.
Foil brownie pans: numerous. I should just recycle them, but it's one thing when your recycling makes you look like hoarders and you're not. It's another thing to have it prove the point.
Foil Pie Pans: See above.
Glasses. If it were up to me, I would recycle all the store-bought glasses and just use recycled jars. They have sturdier bottoms and are less prone to spill. But the glasses were gifts, so I may have to recycle the jars instead.
These are the problem areas off the top of my head. Except basic utensils, which I'm sure will shrink greatly when I go through them- right? We also have two sets of measuring cups and spoons. One metal, and one plastic. But when I get to cooking and baking, I tend to go through both sets rapidly. Is this Okay?
The reality of this situation is that I clearly just need to get rid of some stuff. It would quickly solve the space problem in my kitchen. My excuse today is two-fold. I am spending the day recovering from a cold that won't quit. And I also don't have the car, thus, I cannot go to the recycling center, or Penn House, or to people who might want some of this quality cookware that is properly labeled as excess.
Excuses established. I must be reminded tomorrow.
-Claven