But not as much wisdom as I would like, apparently.
I only wanted to make Turkey Soup. Is that too much to ask? I wouldn't think so. I was even carefully determining the days and foods for Hubby, so that said soup would be done on time, would be palatable, and wouldn't make him drop dead, like if a noodle got in.
We had one turkey left from last year. It was probably 45 pounds or so; definitely not a lightweight. It would not fit in the roaster. So I asked Hubby to saw it in half, because I thought half would probably fit. I should not have done that.
Hubby sawed.
The counter broke.
I don't know if it shows up in the picture below, but the break is reminiscent of a windshield ding. It has a center point, and 5 or 6 cracks and breaks radiating out from that point.
(and no, don't buy that brand of honey shown in the picture. Yuck.)
This is my beloved kitchen island. Thankfully, it is a stand-alone island and not the main along-the-wall counter. This island is about 27" wide and 6 1/2 feet long. A solid-surface guy a couple hours from here gave me a "ball park" figure of $600-800 to replace it. [choke, cough, sputter] JUST the countertop. Not installing it. I didn't even buy duct tape last time I had the opportunity because IT was too expensive. Of course, if I wasn't picky about color, they might have some "remnants" for somewhere around $450. Is that all? Walter, I wish we lived about 40 states closer. Maybe then you would be able to hook me up with a nice salvaged slab o' granite for a tenth of that price...
I HOPE to be able to hook up with the original maker of the counter. He is the brother of the guy who built this house, and his business is these counters. Is there such a thing as an "acquaintance-of-the-family discount" on a remnant? I'm not sure it would even be in the budget then. But boy, I SO don't want my kitchen held together with duct tape (or baling wire). Trust me, it's not like my standards are so high that I'm impossible to live with.
But in light of the price of replacing the counter, I might have to re-think the "duct-tape is too expensive" idea. That or try to convince the insurance that we felt that San Francisco quake at just the moment Hubby* was sawing the turkey.
*Just a thought: Can you insure a person? No, not like life-insurance, more like liability...?
5 comments:
Not that I am not sympathetic about the dilemma with your counter, but wait...did you say a 45 pound turkey?
Oh my! I can certainly say that in all my adventures with a raw (4lb10oz) chicken, I've never needed to get out a saw to get dinner ready!
We actually have been pricing countertops lately. Not because we have oodles of money, but because our house came with pink with gold flecks formica counters. Classy. I'm hoping in the near five to seven years we will be replacing those :)
Lynne, sorry it takes me forever to approve your comments. The email alert from yours seems to end up in my junk mailbox... I hope I've taken care of it.
Yeah, I estimate that one at around 45 lbs or so. And yes, that's gutted and plucked and dead, not live-weight. :) We raised 6 last year, to varying weights. Our largest dressed out and went into the oven at 52 lbs. I don't recommend it. While they're easy to catch (since they can't run), they're too heavy to scald (I'm not sure their live weight, but add to that waterlogged feathers, and even Hubby has a hard time), don't cook evenly, are tougher meat, and take a month to eat!
P.S. There is an early blog here that details the, er, demise of one of our toms... Reader beware. It is a funny post, if it doesn't bother you. I believe it ends with a picture of a big cooked 46 lb bird.
I've been reading about your homesteading experience and appreciate you sharing your wisdom. Thanks. I'm sorry to hear about the counter. You know, if you are willing to have a non-granite counter-top, you could buy a laminate top and install it your self (it's pretty simple if you have the tools) for probably $100-$200. At least you can where we live. Just an idea, maybe not what you want but I wish you well either way.
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