Potholders

Day 312: Potholders

Why keep replacing the cotton
when silicone lasts forever?

What is silicone anyway? I believed it to be a form of plastic, but no. It's a unique substance, two molecules of silicon, one of oxygen, combined with hydrogen or carbon, invented in 1901. Semi-organic. It's strange to think that my lobster claw potholder could also be used as a breast implant, a lubricant, a raincoat, shampoo, fire retardant, silly putty or eco-friendly dry-cleaning chemicals.

My sister made me feel better about my trashed, burned and stained kitchen linens. I often feel just a little frustrated with myself because I can't seem to keep stuff nice. All my resolutions - not to wear work shoes to weed the garden, not to walk eight miles in a cashmere sweater, not to scrub the sink with the pretty flower-handled dish brush, not to put loose pieces of chewing gum in the bottom of my purse - are easily forgotten in the moment. But Elizabeth says that kitchen linens must be replaced from time to time. Not even Martha Stewart can keep them nice. And she gave me a set of hand-knitted cotton dishrags.

Ah, but silicone! Silicone potholders never get stained or burned. They're odd and rubbery. It's a bit hard to get the hang of using them. But once you do, you can take even the hottest chicken pot pie out of the oven without burning your fingers. I bought one from IKEA because it looks like a lobster claw. I had hoped that it might trigger a Rich-riff worthy of John Stewart. Indeed, it did. But now the riff is past, and the lobster-claw turns out to be the sturdiest and most useful of our potholders. Only one caveat: mice eat silicone potholders when the weather gets cold enough.