from each according to his ability

You probably know by now that I live my life according to what I call the "aggravation factor." There is a threshold of aggravation above which I will not proceed, though that threshold is calculated using a wide variety of factors.

In late April our fridge went on the fritz. Sears told us it would take two weeks to for someone to come to fix it, that they weren't required to lend us a temporary one, nor were they liable for any losses. After several phone calls they finally agreed to move it up a week. We spent about $70 on dry ice during that time. It turned out to be the circulating fan. The bottom freezer was working fine, but cold air wasn't being pumped into the fridge. Known problem (wtf!?), simple fix.

Yesterday I heard the thing buzzing, as if it couldn't get water to the ice maker. Then I noticed the temperature in both the fridge and freezer was rising. Once again, Sears informed me that they could be here no sooner than July 12th. This raised the aggravation level here at the labs significantly. hobbitt is leaving the country a week from today, and was aggravated that he'd be leaving me to deal with the problem alone. I decided I'd stop by the local appliance shop and purchase a little back-up fridge. They're going out of business and having a major sale. A major enough sale that there was a single fridge left in the place, with a placard that read "Runs OK." For $100. I wasn't sure "OK" was good enough, and decided to get some dry ice instead.

Martinis at 30 degrees F suck, by the way. As does drinking one's Skinny Cow ice cream out of the cone.

The Pandammys stopped by today to ask us to dinner for tomorrow. I related the tale. Mr. Pandammy allowed as to how I should threaten a lawsuit. Perhaps, but doing so would put me far above any acceptable aggravation factor. Mrs. Pandammy told me she'd take care of it.

She called a few minutes ago to tell me they'd be here on Monday to fix the fridge, and in the meantime I can purchase a small one for $75, all of which will be credited back to whatever card I use. One more service call and this will be considered a lemon, and it will be replaced. I don't know how she did it. But I'll be grateful for all eternity.