It Slices! It Dices!

Day 169: The words of the TV commercial still ring in my ears: "It slices! It dices!" and although I didn't fall prey to the hype, my husband did, and on a notable Christmas morning close to fifty years ago, I became one of the myriad housewives who possessed a Veg-o-Matic. I remember feeling somewhat disappointed when I tore through the wrapping paper, but like several of Bruce's other peculiar gifts, the Veg-o-Matic proved its worth, slicing and dicing its way into an honoured position in my kitchen. I'm not big on food prep. If it broke, I might never again make scalloped potatoes. I suppose it's considered a "vintage" item nowadays, a term which could be applied equally to me. We're both a little stained and dented, not quite as sharp as we were in our salad years, but we still get the job done.

What were some of Bruce's other odd gifts? Well, two spring to mind because they're still standing me in good stead half a century later: 50 spools of sewing thread in every colour but pink, and a 5000-yard cone of common string. Believe it or not, that cone of string was one of the best gifts ever. I only have about a third of it left. Conservation measures have been put into effect.