Let Their Be Ice!

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7080124.post-90092200171130828572007-08-27T16:25:00.000-05:002007-10-19T20:35:13.173-05:00Let Their Be Ice!It's a cliche to see a cheesy sci-fi flick in which computers, machines, or some form of technology begins to run amok to the detriment of the well-meaning humans who created them. It may be cheesy, but truthfully, I have one of those machines. My friends will tell you I love ice and in all my many years I never had a refrigerator that made ice until my husband and I purchased our latest model of fridge when we remodeled our kitchen. My husband understood it was imperative that the new refrigerator spit cubes out reliably and generously. I would then be free from my enslavement by plastic ice trays that took up freezer space, cracked after long use and sometimes spilled all over everything. My handy husband installed the ice machine into the freezer and we sat back and watched in wonder for our bounty of icy goodness to commence. Our first batch of ice was partially black. BLACK! Rob said it had something to do with the charcoal filter installed in the line. We threw out that batch and waited for the next. That batch looked normal, but all the cubes were hollow on the inside. I asked The Hubster, "Dear, is our ice supposed to be empty on the inside??" He said no, definitely not. Another adjustment later and the ice seemed to be coming out fairly normal. This went on until we felt comfortable with our official entre into the ice making world. I felt important and proud. I'd jump at the chance to give people icy cold beverages. My life had changed. A couple of years ago I was showing homes to a client of mine. She was complaining that the houses they were looking at didn't have ice makers. I told her it was really no big deal, the fridges in the houses she was looking at already had ice makers. She corrected me saying, no, ice MACHINES, not ice MAKERS. I had no idea that in one's own personal home one could have a consumer ice machine. Apparently this is a "just so" thing to have if you entertain. How could I not know this? I entertain, but it turns out the type of socializing I do is not really "entertaining". I am naive when it comes to these things. So, am reminded of it all again and tell Rob about that 8th wonder of the world over dinner. Later that night I realized we'd been using ice all day and the ice maker had not been producing replacement ice. My husband proceeded to check into the situation and said nothing was amiss and that we were just using it faster than we were making it. In the morning, still no ice. Once again, The Hubster heaves himself under the kitchen sink knocking cleaning chemicals aside and groaning that he's breaking his back and was I trying to kill him and use the insurance money to lure another, younger, husband into my black widow's web? (I wasn't but I have to admit I've considered it more than once since he's put the idea into my head.) As brilliant as my husband is with various household emergencies and dilemmas, he could not resolve the issue with the ice maker. I had to break down and buy a bag of ice from the store. I slammed it around on the back porch then emptied it into the ice bin, loudly complaining. Not five minutes later I heard the ice maker kick on and some time after that, a batch of ice was dumped onto my store bought ice. I was thrilled the ice maker was working again. It tossed out a second batch and we assumed the problem was solved. As soon as the store bought ice was gone, the ice maker stopped making ice again. Over the last two years we have discovered something about our ice maker. It makes ice only under these circumstances: -- When we purchase ice from the store -- When we threaten to replace it The real truth is that our ice maker has a real personality and it's mad, considering me disloyal by displaying my lust for the wonder of a consumer ice machine. I can't explain it any better than that. In fact, in order to punish me further, the little wire thing on the ice maker that tells the machine to shut off has popped off and we can't seem to get it back on where it goes. I didn't worry about it because the machine wasn't making much ice anyway. We were having friends over for a barbeque, so we bought TWO bags of ice, filled the ice bin and an ice chest on the back porch, vociferously complaining about our stubborn ice maker and how ungrateful it was for the nice home we'd given it. In true form, the ice maker, under the threat of replacement began to produce ice. It heard my final and powerful threat, "I mean it this time, darling, the ice maker has to GO. I'm so sick of this thing not doing its job!" It had to prove itself to me, that it could truly be the ice maker we had adopted. It made ice. And made ice. And made ice. There was no off switch any more. The ice flowed. It flowed over the bin, spilled out the side, erupted from the freezer each time we opened the door. Despite the amused guffaws of our friends, we know the ice maker has a personality. Now in order to control the ice, I offer a varying mix of praise and scorn to lessen or increase the amount of ice it dumps into the bin. Call me crazy, but it works. Rob mentioned that he wanted to replace the ice maker on Saturday and I found myself talking him out of it. I said it was only about the money and it seemed silly to spend extra money on a new ice maker when this one seems to be working. But the truth is I feel that the machine and I have come to an understanding, a real working relationship, and I just can't give up on it after all this time. Now, I just hope it's not reading my blog after I go to bed at night. I'm not buying one of those Internet-ready fridges, that's for sure.Wendyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03115002505324651653noreply@blogger.com