Appetizing Muse

We bought a new refrigerator two weeks ago. I'm still excited by the new appliance, and get a thrill each time I open the doors to the main fridge, or the spacious freezer above.

As dull and mundane as it may sound to most people, if one could envision our old fridge in all its crappy glory, my joy would be understandable. The old hunk-of-junk had no crispers, an icebox instead of a freezer and very little room to maneuver. The icebox froze over every few months, making it impossible to shut the icebox door. After awhile, we quit bothering to defrost the mess and it was soon unmanageable.

My husband and I both hated it, and we both refused to clean it or take out the old food which became lost in the back recesses of the olive-green monster. Other times, putting leftover food away became more like tossing the Tupperware container or plastic baggie into the fridge and closing one's eyes.

Our new blessing is a black Whirlpool refrigerator, with a 21.7 cubic feet capacity. Click on the pictures below to view larger sizes in a new window.

The day after setting up, we made a trip to the Wal-Mart Superstore near our house to stock up on frozen items. We only meant to buy a few things, but ended up spending more than $100. Prior to loading up, we had the typical assortment of frozen goodies: hot dogs, lunch meat, boneless and skinless chicken breasts, link sausages, bagged vegetables, chorizo, and ice cream. There was never any room for ice cubes, though.

After our shopping spree, our new refrigerator was stocked with some of the following:

• Tai Pei Garlic Shrimp (12 oz.)

• Banquet Crock-Pot Classics, Beef & Vegetables (2 LBS)

• Ling-Ling Chicken Vegetable Pot Stickers (9.5 oz.)

• Wal-Mart Stores Pre-Cooked Meatballs (2 LBS, 80 count)

• Bird's Eye Steam Fresh Vegetables (4 bags)

• Gourmet Express Chicken Stir Fry (2 LBS)

• Tyson Chicken Fajita Meal Kit (1.6 LBS)

• Confucius Chicken Egg Rolls (2 LBS)

• Don Miguel Grande Dinner (2 LBS, sour-cream & chicken enchiladas)

• Don Miguel Saltillo Dinner (2 LBS, cheese & beef enchiladas)

• Beef Patties (5 LBS, 20 count at 1/4 LB each)

• Ground Turkey (2 LBS)

• Ground Turkey Sausage (2 LBS)

Needless to say, we are not hurting for food and probably won't be for some time to come.

The best part? I have new ice trays, and a large ice container where I can keep fresh ice without having to look for room.