Mysteries of the Frozen Box

Yesterday was a darn good day.

As you may have read, it started out poorly...having consigned myself to dropping at least a grand on a new refrigerator, and kissing any hope of a vacation goodbye.

However, the nice people at the Appliance + Store here in Olney saved me $900. It turned out that this little guy was the culprit:




Indeed, this is a sensor that tells the fridge when to defrost. It died, so the fridge built up quite a bit of frost in places we couldn't see. The frost then obscured the air flow vents that circulate air from the freezer to the refrigerator compartment, which is why the freezer basically still worked, while the fridge blinked out.

The nice gentleman from Appliance + was very quick to diagnose the problem, just as quick to fix it, pleasant, and didn't even humiliate me for the sad state of my kitchen. And - it cost $101.00 to fix!!! I was thrilled.

And, as long as I seem to be on a kick of praising local businesses, I certainly want to praise Appliance +!!! They also sell appliances, and could have made a lot more money selling us a fridge than fixing this one. But - their honest, efficient service made me incredibly happy, and even though it may be more expensive to buy my next appliance from them than at a big box hardware/appliance store in Vincennes - I will give Appliance + first dibs.

(Are you listening, Olney?)

This weekend will be filled with the musical delights of playing with the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra, so perhaps I can share some of the yummies we encounter there. I also have a music-related blog, "Tales From the Music Room", that is long overdue for an update. Time away from the crazy-busy schedule of teaching/performing/organizing/counseling/etc. is allowing me to do some things I want to do. Blogging is one of them.

And if you'll excuse me, I think I'll go get a glass of water...chilled nicely from my fully functional fridge!

Location:W Gassmann St,Olney,United States

It's All Fun and Games Until...

Last night, I was sitting comfortably on the couch, iPad in hand, relaxing after a productive, yet low-key day.

My hubby got up to get himself a glass of orange juice.  Then, he spoke the fateful words -

"Honey, I don't think anything in the refrigerator is cold."

Really?

Sure enough, "luke-cool" was the best way to describe it.  I cleaned off the back of the fridge - hoping that simply brushing off some dust from its nether-regions would inspire it to get back to work.  We also moved anything that truly needed to be moved into our garage fridge (it's not just for 6-packs of Upland Wheat anymore).

However, I went to sleep knowing that quite possibly, we'd need to plop down a grand on a fridge the next day.

This morning, we inspected the fridge - and indeed, while the temperature was "cool", it certainly wasn't cold.  The freezer - which was keeping things frozen last night - now would make a good refrigerator.

So, into the garbage went most of the contents, anything salvageable went into the outside fridge.

And this morning, I begin the quest to either fix it, or buy a new one.  Any suggestions you may have would be welcome - for either fixing it or purchasing a new one (I'm eyeing a bottom freezer model, actually).

On the bright side - I may get to go shopping!  Sure, it's with money we'd expected to save, or spend elsewhere, but who needs a vacation, really?

Perhaps a "stay-cation" would give me opportunity to try out new and exotic recipes...

...once I have a fridge to keep the left-overs in.

*blugh*  This song seems quite appropriate right now...I've been going through an 80's rock phase lately anyways.  Enjoy!

This Is the Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship.

Did you ever have a relationship that you knew was potentially dangerous, if not kept in check?

A relationship that you knew had the power to destroy all that you had worked for, and went against much of what you value...yet you still, by force of sheer magnetism, dizzying desire and intoxicating charm, feel driven to keep going back to what you know could be your downfall?

This is the relationship I have with Chilly Willy's Ice Cream.

About 4 years ago, this wonderful little shop opened. It is a ray of hope - a beacon of light in a culinarily dark place...in a land where eating options range from "chain-blah" to decent ethnic cuisine, this light shines even brighter.



Now, technically, while the title of the shop says "Ice Cream", they specialize in frozen custard - and this, my friends, makes all the difference. The difference between "ice cream" and "frozen custard", according to Alton Brown, is eggs. True ice cream is just that, frozen cream, sugar, etc. Frozen custard includes eggs to the mix - and to my palette, brings about a wonderfully unctuous mouth feel...so smooth and creamy on my tongue.

I'm a "texture eater". Meaning - it often isn't the taste that lures me in, it's the feel of something in my mouth that gets my attention. This would be why raw oysters hold no appeal, and the Jimmy John's Potato Chips, with their extra crunchy, thick layers win out over all others. Chilly Willy's, you had me at "custard".

But, then, it gets better. As I have mentioned, I'm trying to reduce the size of my waistline (and reduce the amount of junk in my trunk, the badonk in my badonky-donk). To this end, Chilly Willy's offers an equally rich fat-free frozen yogurt option each week! So - it is much easier to save up Weight Watchers points for this treat!

And, to top it all off, they have dozens of specialty sundaes, "willi-waws" (a Blizzard, but you can't call it that, of course), milkshakes...any number of goodies that just keep you coming back for more!

And - they serve "real food" too - burgers, hot dogs, fries...but I'll be honest, I go for the cold stuff. The hot stuff is OK, but if I'm watching my waist, deep fried-fried is what I try to avoid.

The employees are very bubbly, enthusiastic teens, who are good kids - being a small town, everyone knows everyone, and I've met many through the schools in one way or another. How they keep going day after day with such a rabid customer base, I'm not sure. The shop is clean, and the aesthetics say "this is a fun place to be."

All in all, if I had to vote for a business that most represents what Olney could and should be, I'd vote for Chilly Willy's. Not only does it prize quality in their product, it listens to the heartbeat of the community, and is ever-changing to meet their needs. For example - last year they did not carry frozen yogurt every week, and each week they did, they kept selling out of it. This year they have a new flavor of it every week, and always seem to be well-stocked. It prizes the customer experience - never cutting corners for the bottom line, but understanding that if you go the extra mile to make customers happy, they will return your efforts 10 fold. And they have vision - it would have been easy to say, "Well, it's a town of 9000, and we already have a Dairy Queen - so we don't have the customer base or potential market share to make a place like this work." Gutsy, fresh, confident business acumen - and again, not limited by what "has always worked", but bolstered by belief that our community would support something that is truly good.

(Are you listening, Olney?)

And - they reach out to the community by creating events centered around the park directly next door. They sponsor classic movie showings on the weekends, where people can bring their lawn chairs, enjoy some food, and enjoy an evening with their neighbors. Movies range from "Casablanca", to "Back to the Future", and this summer..."Rocky Horror Picture Show". Can I dress up as Magenta and get away with it?

I will continue to budget WW points for visits to Chilly Willy's, because I know I will never be let down. Yes, it has the potential to unravel my health efforts - but, wisely managed, I believe you can have your frozen yogurt and eat it too.

So - when are we going next???

Location:W Gassmann St,Olney,United States

I have proved my point.

The last post I made on this blog was on February 17, 2012.

That would be 13 weeks ago.

That would be Approximately 24 performances (including 7 musical performances, 2 OCC Concert cycles, 5 EPO Cycles, a jazz festival hosting 100 students and nationally renowned guest artist - among others), 80 rehearsals, and a college trip to Cincinnati and Cleveland ago.

Yeah, so what - everyone's busy, right?

And, I will admit, meals weren't often my priority. As a matter of fact, I went off the deep end returning to some pretty poor eating habits.

Mi amigos a las restaurante Mexicana me recuerda, y tocame muchas margaritas.

So, now what?

Well, for starters, I reacquainted myself with Weight Watchers. This week makes a month - and I've lost about 6 pounds. Yay!

And, I've started riding my bike again - his name is Hannibal.

And, school is out.

So, the focus of this blog, methinks, should shift. I'm not going to be as busy - but now, the schedule will require more meals - with everyone home for all 3 meals, this means I have to come up with some grub options!

And, the aforementioned grub options need to be healthy, and when they are not, they darn well need to be worth it!

I hope you will join me, again, on this new adventure! And - if you have any recommendations for healthy eats - I'd love to try them out!

Location:Mary Ln,Olney,United States