Del-icious!

As I have no foodie comments to make this weekend, (having eaten out quite forgettably for the last two nights), I would like to sing praise to a labour saving device, revered by busy, young, condo-dwelling cooks here, but virtually ignored in the UK. It is the mighty dishwasher.

Is there anything this appliance cannot do? Not only can it help you create dinner, it can give you a social life, nice, clean, soft hands and sparkling glasses to impress your friends with while they sip their cocktail on your balcony overlooking the ocean, (or the alley if your apartment is at the back, or the building in front if you can't afford a higher apartment).

In the UK I would often express an interest in owning one, only to be bombarded with many excuses to avoid the purchase. "You have to rinse the dishes first, so what's the point?", would  be a main contender. Yes, you do have to rinse the dishes, but SO WHAT? It takes 10 seconds of a rinse under a cold tap, compared to, let's say, 2 minutes filling up the sink, 2 minutes to find and put on the rubber gloves, (if you have delicate hands, no names mentioned), 5 minutes to wash, 5 minutes to dry and then 5 minutes to put away, as well as two sopping wet tea towels, a filth ridden dishcloth and a blocked up sink. Ugh!

With my dishwashing friend, I rinse, load and close the door. Then I go and do something fun, like go to bed or go out, (it is quite noisy). When I wake or come home, I have sterile, perfectly clean dishes with spanking clean glasses which all actually smell nice. No contest.

I do not believe people who say they enjoy the washing up. They are usually very miserly or have some warm water fetish, no-one actually enjoys the physical act of scrubbing bits of dried on food off dishes, do they? And that disgusting water that you have to put your hand into to pull out the plug, no thanks.

Of course not everybody can afford the luxury of a dishwasher and usually in Vancouver condos they come already installed into the kitchen along with the fridge, oven and microwave, (otherwise I'm doubtful that we would have one), so you never really own them, just borrow them for a while until you move. But, when you do have the luxury of  having one at your constant disposal, you become a dishwasher snob very quickly. I have been known to buy my lunch or dinner out because there are no clean dishes ready, I will NOT take the dishes out and wash them by hand, darn you!

I know I am not alone in this. Our friend's dishwasher was broken for 2 weeks, (still with dishes unwashed inside). He ate out for every meal. No word of a lie.