Adieu to 1982

Isn't it Uncle Rico from Napolean Dynamite who harkens back to 1982 as his glory year? Well, here in Alexandria, VA, where I'm staying at my parent's place during my sister's wedding festivities, we bid adieu to 1982. As in a microwave oven. I remember being in 6th grade and going with my sister and mother to the store to get one of those new microwave ovens, to the protests of my father. Something about the Dire Straits' Money for Nothing lyrics, "We gotta install microwave ovens" that gave us the fever.

Anyway, the General Electric workhorse finally went kaput yesterday morning. 23 years of hard work. It deserves a pension and social security.

In its place is a sleek new stainless steel Panasonic whiz kid. If this lasts for 23 years, my parents will be very lucky. I just don't think they make 'em like they used to.

I removed the old microwave and almost dumped it on the floor. I slid it off the shoulder-high shelf not knowing how damn heavy it was. Like a T.V., with all the weight on the back. Seriously, the GE heavyweight champion weighed in at over 80 lbs. The new one, just as big, weighed less than 25. My back salutes you, featherweight newcomer. Let's hope you can earn the title belt.