Timer

Day 312: Timer

There's something viscerally pleasing about simple mechanical devices. Things that you can look at and understand, things that never break down, things that don't require any external sources of power. One-speed bicycles. Hourglasses. Balance scales. Candles. Whisks. Wooden pencils. Wind-up timers.

Back in the day, I rented a flat with a little gas stove and no microwave. No digital thermometers. No self-cleaning. No popcorn setting. No timers. Now I've got a fancy gas stove with an electric convection oven and a microwave, both of which have timers, and countless other clocks and timing devices.

It's a little hard to let go of this wind-up timer. When I moved into my first apartment, Grandma Lu (my dad's step-mother) gave me a check for $25 to set myself up with some kitchen supplies. This was one of them, along with a hand-mixer, cookie sheets, a set of measuring cups and spoons, and potholders. Grandma Lu didn't believe that all these things could be had for $25, but indeed, in 1985, it was possible.

If the little blue timer was a little cuter - shaped like a tomato, perhaps, or a pig - I might keep it. But it's not cute, and it's not necessary, and it's cluttering up the bookshelf. I've got a couple things left from Grandma Lu's $25 gift. I haven't used the hand-mixer, for example, since Mom and Dad gave me the CuisinArt stand mixer a couple years ago for my birthday. Maybe the hand-mixer will be the next to go.