{"id":2906,"date":"2015-02-20T05:02:12","date_gmt":"2015-02-20T05:02:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/wpmigration\/?p=2906"},"modified":"2017-02-18T11:06:05","modified_gmt":"2017-02-18T18:06:05","slug":"10-reasons-why-i-dont-miss-having-a-microwave","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pantryparatus.com\/articles\/10-reasons-why-i-dont-miss-having-a-microwave\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Reasons Why I DON’T Miss Having a Microwave"},"content":{"rendered":"
10 Reasons Why I DON’T<\/strong> Miss Having a Microwave:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I love my blogging community of homesteaders and food writers\u2014they are experts at what they do.\u00a0 Many of them have written about the dangers of using a microwave; there seems to be a healthy body of information out there about why a person should not use a microwave.\u00a0 This is not that.<\/p>\n This is the practical side of not using a microwave<\/strong> and I won\u2019t even touch upon whether it is or isn\u2019t harmful to health.\u00a0 I figure that people don\u2019t care.\u00a0 People are still eating margarine, refusing to wear seatbelts or helmets, and smoke cigarettes. \u00a0But as a highly practical individual, I want to instead appeal to your sense of logic.<\/p>\n We (Wilson and myself, pre-kids) used to live in Europe.\u00a0 We learned to live quite well without a microwave, something that\u2014having only been the part of the American home for 20 years\u2014had become unbearably important.\u00a0 I really did not feel the need to have one upon our return to the United States, but visiting family did and thus\u2014it was a Christmas gift to us one year.\u00a0 It swallowed my countertop and eventually made its way to Craigslist in my constant endeavor to keep things simple. “Living without a microwave for the past month has been challenging, but as time continues, life without a microwave becomes easier.” <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\n We (the Pantry Paratus crew) have not had a microwave this time around (yes, we fell off the wagon for awhile) for over 2 years.\u00a0 I just burnt myself on a cup of coffee while using my parents\u2019 microwave…<\/p>\n and so I am oh-so-inspired now to give you this list:<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cleaning it.<\/p>\n 2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Scalding hot drinks and food.<\/p>\n 3.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 An icy-cold center to the food.<\/p>\n 4.\u00a0\u00a0 Food that is ice cold in the center and yet still scalds your mouth.<\/p>\n 5.\u00a0\u00a0 Mushy, slimy textures<\/p>\n 6.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The weird smells foods take, not noticeable until you ditch the microwave altogether.<\/p>\n 7.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Losing 1 whole countertop to the space hog!<\/p>\n 8.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 One more clock that\u2019s wrong in the house.<\/p>\n 9.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The hum-buzz, electronic beeping, and iridescent lighting that consumes the kitchen when in use.<\/p>\n 10.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Food explosions, which brings us back to\u2026.cleaning it.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Tessa, The Homestead Lady,<\/a> wrote a nice email to me today, when I asked her to read this blog.\u00a0 Did she agree?\u00a0 Did I miss anything?\u00a0 This is what she said:<\/p>\n We’ve been microwave free for several years now and so I had to think back to when we first ditched it and what that was like.\u00a0 We never did use it for cooking since we don’t buy pre-packaged foods but we used it to warm leftovers and melt butter, that kind of thing.\u00a0 I remember wondering what I would use instead of the microwave to do all those things and then I realized, duh, I’d use the stovetop and a pan.\u00a0 It took longer to do those things but if it was inconvenient at first, its not now.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n There you have it\u2026.leave a comment and tell me what you DON\u2019T miss\u2026or perhaps why you\u2019ve chosen to keep yours after all.\u00a0 You know, I actually heard from another friend of mine about 5 reasons why she cannot give her microwave up<\/a>!<\/strong>\u00a0 I have to laugh–we do not all have the same gait as we walk our own journey to simplicity.<\/p>\n What about you?\u00a0 Keeping it or ditching it?\u00a0 What is your experience?<\/p>\n Keepin’ It Simple,<\/p>\n Chaya<\/p>\n <\/p>\nEliminating Electronic Dependence in the Kitchen<\/em><\/h2>\n
\nMy friend Julia loves simplicity.\u00a0 In fact, she authors a blog by that name: Simplicity for Julia<\/a>, and she has officially been microwave-free for a full month.\u00a0 She wanted me to pass along this encouragement to anyone considering the freedom (and free counterspace):<\/p>\n\u00a0Top Ten List of Things I Don\u2019t Miss By Ditching the Microwave:<\/strong><\/h3>\n