Talk to me about modern gas ranges...

[dpsours]

Hey did you take this during an out of body experience while floating at the ceiling? LOL

As a matter of fact, I did. It was my first time using our new kitchen and range after our year-long kitchen remodeling project. I was in heaven!

[melissakd]

mmmmmmm . . . pie AND an old stove

[angolito]

i find some of the assumptions about those who have made different decisions to be really gratuitous. its a Decision, and opinions were Solicited. WEALTHIER folk? really, get a grip. I tend to "stand around" at parties to suport charities and the topic of conversation is certainly not our appliances.

i wouldn't cook on an old stove from the 20's but i don't judge those who choose to do so, nor do i make assumptions about their lives.

[KristenS]

Whoa-- I hope that wasn't a reaction to anything I wrote!! I was just trying to offer a balance to the idea that most people would want new, matching appliances when buying a house. Some people certainly do go for them. And others don't.

I probably came on a little strong just because I'm defensive about the topic. Whenever I have a good idea about my house, someone I know will pipe up with the resale value thing. So I'm a bit sensitive. I like holding on to my belief that if I like something, and it works in my house, there's got to be someone else out there that will like it and buy it one day!

I'm sorry, though, Angolito. My defensive energetic response wasn't directed at you.

[melissakd]

Not you, Kristen. I'm the one who mentioned rich people.

It's not that I hate rich people. It's that one cause of violence in a society is a large gap between the rich and the poor, AND the poor perceive that the rich don't care about them. It's that when I took a class on fundraising, I learned that you can maximize your chances of getting funded by sucking up to rich potential donors. I learned that part of your application for a grant is explaining how you will burnish the foundation's name by mentioning their name and in what size lettering. It's that those sons of guns on Bang For Your Buck spent $50,000 on their bathroom when there are children starving. It's that I performed with a local arts group, unpaid, and I loved it, but I noticed that an unofficial part of my job was to provide color during parties for the high rollers, who liked to feel they were privileged to rub shoulders with the artistes.

Why do I have to grovel for money if they're so interested in the cause? Why must I throw a party to get the $50 ticket price, so that I get $40 for the charity and waste $10 on the party? Don't all humans agree on the most important things in life, despite variations in our prioritizing of the list?

Someone, please talk me down.

MKD

[angolito]

Kristen, no i wasn't refering to your comment.

melissakd, i do find your comment to be presumptive, and don't much care for it. it is condescending and mean-spirited, imo. the phrase "sucking up rich potential donors" speaks volumes. fyi, in my experience most "rich people " got there by working, and those who were lucky enough to start life with w leg up are taught at an early age to understand that they are privileged but not better than others.

as long as you see simple etiquette and business sense as groveling you won't have much luck bilking those bad rich folks for their hard earned dollars. and don't forget that someone got paid to build those uber insane bathrooms which you so disapprove of........

off my soapbox , , signed a former trust fund baby who blew it all. sorry for taking this off topic.

[melissakd]

Sarah, if I can say what I've said without being decked by more than one person, you should be able to spend as much time as you want on your soapbox, decked by no one.

You're quite right; I'm tarring all rich people with the same brush.

Waste distresses me, including the waste that follows on the fake "need" to demolish perfectly serviceable walls, etc. Construction waste was the #1 component of landfills as of 20 years ago and I doubt much has changed.

One thing rich people do that offends me is building monuments to themselves. I don't care if it doubles as a dormitory or a hospital wing; if it sports a big sign with the giver's name, it's a form of self-aggrandizement. Not that they don't genuinely believe they're being generous.

Maybe I shouldn't say "sucking up." How about "court," or "wine and dine" ? I guess people of every class have to be talked into being nice, like a five-year-old whose mother has to say "Now tell Mrs. Vine hello, Mordred." I hate that the charity has no choice but to play these humiliating and wasteful games of pretend.

I've spent lots of quality time with social climbers, what passes for society people in most burgs, and really rich people. The truly rich were the nicest and least fake. On the other hand, for every Bill Gates there's umpteen Kardashians. I hate the people who are, even now, lobbying against tax increases for the top 1%. Bastards. Money doesn't make people horrible. It just helps.

Oh, Sarah, i fear the truth is that I'm filled with hate. It's a response to the pain I feel. I've been poor, lower-, mid- and upper-middle-class, and the amount of pain and suffering in the world makes me crazy. It could be alleviated so much by the thousands that go into replacing cupboards that were the wrong color.

i feel so small.

[downtowndahlgren]

t/j Melissa, you're right about the "truly rich" being the nicest. Doris Buffett (big sister to billionaire Warren) lives in nearby Fredericksburg, VA. Since she inherited millions, her life's mission has been to give it all away. In fact, she has stated that she wants the last check she writes to bounce due to "insufficient funds". And she is one of the nicest people you could ever meet. However, I also grieve with you about the huge amount of waste in materials, resources, and money there is today. That's why I come here - because everyone is so passionate about saving homes and heritage.

[Neighmond]

We always had Hotpoint or Caloric (sp?) gas ranges when I was growing up. Never really fancy but they went forever and gave little trouble. My range in this house is a Tappan from 1934, and it has a smaller oven than modern stoves. My biggest Manga-lite roaster will fit on the lowest rack with an inch all round it, but only barely. While I love it, if I were cooking thanksgiving for a houseful or lots of canning, I would hope I had another one in the basement.

As for waste, Yes Lord! I go over to the Lake Okoboji area (where I grew up, and now an hour away) and any given week you can see a pile of perfectly good doors, windows, appliances, furniture, you name it, where some dime-store millionaire has decided that a year or two is plenty long between gut remodels. In 07 I found SEVEN two panel fir doors out at the curb one day, and we snagged on to them. At that same house three years later, there was a stack of mission-y looking three panel doors (Menards or HD, but still pretty nice doors) and some new oak trim. Also a VERY nice black cook-stove that looked like it was used about three times, that we gave to a lady in Milford. I have no idea what the stove was but we got boxes of cookies all last winter from her.

[Lynners]

You guys...I really think we need to stop stereotyping the "rich" and the "poor". There are poor people who are equally as wasteful as rich people. There are both rich and poor people who love olds homes and want to preserve them. Do you not realize you're being incredibly offensive to some on these boards who are probably considered rich?

Can't we all just get along!? Oi vey.