Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Mundle


From the Dictionary of Newfoundland English
mundle n also mundel OED ~ dial; EDD sb 1. Wooden utensil used for stirring various mixtures; SHIM, SLICE.
1896 J A Folklore ix, 23 Mundel: a stick with a flat end for stirring meal when boiling for porridge. P 118-67 There's an old mundel out in the pantry now. C 75-144 ~ a wooden utensil used for stirring large amounts of dough, soup or batter. [It] is the shape of a miniature shovel. C 75-146 ~ a flat, wooden stick about 12 in. long, pared at the top with the bottom flat. It was used to stir up mixtures of paint, paste, batters, limestone, etc


It's that kind of day. I realized I couldn't live without a dishwasher after 6-1/2 years of living here, mostly part-time until this year. Housekeeping and dishwashing are never at the top of my list. And I never feel I do a good job at it anyway. Never have. I come from a proud long line of non-housekeepers on my mother's side and am delighted that the gene is being carried aloft like a banner by my daughter and granddaughter. There's a huge benefit in that it forces one to get a good education to afford the outsourcing of those tasks.

However since my slender means don't extend to a live in, I'm left to my own devices for most of every two weeks when my wonderful Emma shows up and shovels me out. I've never had the nerve to pile up the dishes for two weeks, though my china and cutlery could be stretched out to that time length. And being the environmentalist that I am paper plates would be a no-go. So I'm stuck with washing dishes and stuck with doing a rather rotten job of it too. Hence the dishwasher. Which is very tall as I don't want to do casserole dishes and enormous bowls either.

Hence Gordon-the-Gift here looking askance at my tiny kitchen and not-tall-enough counters and having me crunch depth and length and height numbers and scratching his head and shaking it at me and me saying: please, please, Gordon, wave that magic measuring tape, fit it in somehow!

It's a mundle of a day alright.

18 comments:

  1. loved hearing about your lack in interest in housekeeping, which is one of the reasons I write. The dust bunnies aren't as visible when I'm at my computer.
    Best of luck with the dishwasher.

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  2. We inherited a dishwasher with our new house, but we've hardly ever used it as it takes forever and is a real energy-guzzler. I quite like doing the washing-up myself anyway, it makes a soothing break between more mentally-demanding activities.

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  3. Twain:
    We're out and we're proud!
    XO
    WWW

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  4. Marcia:
    Ah one of me own too! I can honestly say dustbunnies and piles of dirty dishes do not bother me in the least either in your house or my own but I maintain a level of non-eccentricity for the drop-ins here.
    XO
    WWW

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  5. Nick:
    Mine has got a very high energy star rating and rates better in water usage than washing by hand.
    If I'd known you were a bottle washer I would have shipped you over here years ago. I'm sure Jenny and I could settle amicably on a price. No?
    XO
    WWW

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  6. I'm quite minimalist in my housekeeping, not sure if that warrants a "coming-out". ;-) Never did mind washing up though, because you can actually see the big difference you've made at the end of it....whereas piddling around with a duster and polish doesn't offer the same satisfaction.

    First time I'd even seen a dishwasher in action was when I arrived to live here in the US. Himself had hardly ever lived without one - except when with me in the UK. We use it sparingly - when it's good and full, doing our best to save energy and water.

    Did Gordon manage to do the necessary then?

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  7. Oh the man's a genius, T. I want to wrap him up after he finishes each job and lock him in a safe until I need him again. His wife does my hair so that could be a problem.;^)
    He's getting there, he's never been more challenged with a dishwasher installation and I'll be ecstatic. It's hard to go back after nearly 40 years of machines.
    I thought I could. LOL.
    XO
    WWW

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  8. Any chance I could borrow Gordon-the-Gift? I have a mound of chores that he could do for me. Years ago it was easy to find a handyman, alas not here, nowadays they are more like one task wonders! :(

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  9. GM:
    I agree, Gordon-the-Gifts are very, very sparse on the landscape. I've had disasters here as you know. I found him through a friend who hired him, prior work unseen, and then raved about him. He has jobs lined up all around this area.
    Asking around the neighbourhood might be a place to start for you or you may have tried that.
    XO
    WWW

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  10. I'd want the dishwasher too if it is at all possible. I'm afraid there is no room in my tiny kitchen unless I get rid of my oven. Well, I barely use it anyway. I may just do that.

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  11. I don't find housework particularly enervating, but find the alternative too depressing for words. To have more than a couple of items on the bedroom floor at one time makes me feel like my life is spiralling out of control by stealth.

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  12. ah, I don't mind the warm sudsy water, the contemplativeness of the view from the kitchen window, the satisfaction of having my treasured dishes in my hands...

    don't ask me to dust, though ;)

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  13. Pauline:
    LOL!
    I adore the treasured dishes locked swishily and sudsily behind that crisp black door, ha!
    XO
    WWW

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  14. Nora:
    I don't have an oven and that's the secret. I have a two burner range, a convection oven, a microwave and a roaster (I haul this out for large DPs) and the woodstove which I use in the winter time.
    I've never missed a full size oven and I find the convection amazing both in speed and quality.
    XO
    WWW

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  15. Laura:
    I hear you. People are always shocked that my bed is always made and the only clutter are the stacks of unread books. I never throw clothes on the floor anymore since I tottered beyond the age of wild abandoned nights. Ha!
    XO
    WWW

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  16. Mundle is a lovely word that deserves a revival. Maybe it could be put to another use – as a verb, for example. I expect it wouldn't mind.

    Speaking of not minding, I don't mind washing dishes. But don't tell anyone.

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  17. Stan:
    Ah you're a mundley man alright, elbow deep in the sudz. We'll keep you!
    XO
    WWW

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