Sadness in the Kitchen...

I know, strange title for a post eh? But seriously I'm not in a great mood. My oven just decided that it'd die on me three days ago and with all my free time (having finished exams) I've been forced to do all of my baking via a toaster oven... it is simply not the same.

All-in-all, I suppose I should be proud of my oven for having survived this long; it's pretty old. The oven came with the house when we bought it 15years ago, so I'd say it's outlived it's shelf-life... but still, so many fond memories.

I first noticed something was terribly wrong when I used the knobs to adjust the oven's temperature for baking and the numbers would get all screwy. Usually, twisting the knob to the right would result in the degrees increasing by increments of 5; but for some strange reason it would increase a bit and then as you continue turning the knob, the numbers would jump back down to zero. Annoying I know, but this I could live with; I just had to give my precious oven some coaxing and the baker's loving touch and eventually the temperature would be just right. This craziness continued for 2-months, and then just three days ago I awoke to my oven's cries for help.

The timer alarm started beeping incessently, and to stop it I would have to press the "stop-timer" button every 2 minutes (otherwise it would start beeping again). I guess the buttons couldn't handle the multiple pokes, and then eventually they broke :(

So, now I am ovenless; and although I've had many people offer to lend me their's (people are so sweet) I will forever miss my almond-colored gas oven...

P.S. On a happier note, I'm leaving for Arizona (only for a week's vacation) and won't be back until after Christmas. So, I just wanted to say "MERRY CHRISTMAS" and "HAPPY BAKING... I mean HAPPY NEW YEARS!"