The following story is so funny, I couldn’t help but posting it. After 16 years in this country, I am obviously too stupid to operate a simple German household appliance.
A little bit of background:
When we left Germany, we sold our washing machine to an American gal who managed to break it within three months. It was the most expensive appliance we owned, and I still get teary-eyed when I think about how wonderful this thing was.
The washing machine had thee dials, one for program, one for temperature, one for spin. You had to pick each separately – for example wash at “normal” but at “95 C” with a spin that would knock your socks off. These machines heat their own water, so you have to add softener separately just for that, and a little more if you are washing “boiled” or at “95 C”. Whites actually came out white, and not like here where they are usually gray unless you add bleach – and depending on the spin you picked, you hardly had to dry your clothes.
I thought then that she was just a little inept – after all, it’s just a washer, right? How hard can it be? Until I saw what washers and other appliances looked like here in the US. Apart from the fact that they are all supersized, they are waaaay easier to operate.
After my utter failure in this case, I am now convinced that Germans engineer things for people with doctorate degrees, because my superiority came back to bite me:
A German friend gave me a close-to-new Siemens food processor, which can chop, stir and purée. Great stuff. The plug etc. was not a problem, we have an AC converter. I was planning to use it for the Memorial Day BBQ, and among others I wanted to really purée the herbs and other ingredients for the Frankfurt-style herb dip. This Siemens was JUST the thing to do that with – until I stood there and with a puzzled look on my face was trying to figure out where that attachment went.
I looked all over, even turned some dials – finally gave up and used a hand blender, which didn’t quite do the job. It was only LATER that I had the idea to actually LIFT the dial cover UP – and voilà!
*DUUUHHHH.* 
Have you ever failed at operating a simple machine like this?
Yeah I only have issues like this ummm…all the time
Kayle (The Cooking Actress) recently posted..Father’s Day Recipes
LOL The problem is, I normally don’t. And especially w/ something like this – E.M.B.A.R.R.A.S.S.I.N.G.
Like you and Lyn, I find that life with an engineer is very useful. Particularly for a woman who needs instruction on how to fold the folding table (recent true story). I wouldn’t dream of operating any electronic appliance until Brian has provided clear instruction.
Anita at Hungry Couple recently posted..Strawberry Cheese Crumb Cake
The funny thing is that I am usually not THIS helpless. I find it hysterical this even happened, and w/ a GERMAN appliance to boot. LOL
I love this post Sofie! Thanks for sharing.
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Ha you’re not alone! I married an Engineer for a reason! He shows me how to use every appliance/electronic device in the home. To date, I have never operated my deep fryer (my mom sent me to buy it and it never got used) or my food processor. My husband mumbles something about reading the manual…
That washing machine sounded like a champion! But yeah, I prefer machines with simple instructions. I like to move fast and keep momentum. No time to stop and calculate lol! I like that food processor and the many attachments…
In my defense, I don’t have the manual for this machine… but thinking about it, it was SO FRIGGIN’ OBVIOUS. LOL My hubby is an engineer as well, but usually I’m not that much at a loss. Not sure what happened…
I miss my German washer and dryer! My German husband had to teach me to operate them. This made me laugh. I had similar experience as am American living in Germany buying and figuring our household appliances.
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The sad part is, I should have been USED to this kind of food processor, but I was like, “WTF?” LOL
so funny,yes the wash,machine in Germany are so much better,I still like to have washer/dryer combo.
We never had a dryer until we moved to the States. Now I don’t know how that ever worked for us.
My mom has one that is unvented, and you have to empty out the condensing water after every use. But the upside is, it didn’t need to be ducted and she can operate it in her super-tiny kitchen.