ANOTHER CONVERSATION WITH BOB

Pepper pauses above the water's edge

I guess I’m a little paranoid about the way the dishwasher runs, and who can blame me? We paid $280 to repair a dishwasher less than two years old. Add to that the fact that it serves a household of two who are not here a third of the year, makes the costly repair further frustrating.

So, I was finding suds in the bottom of the tub after a wash, and we decided I should call Bob the repair guy again.

“How are you running it?” Bob asked.

“Well,” I began with some trepidation, “I toss a pod in the silver basket and run the one-hour wash. But sometimes I use the ‘smart wash.’ And sometimes I’ve also used powder instead of the pod.”

Nellie

“DON’T use those pods!” said Bob. “Go to the store, buy liquid soap – or powder. But QUIT using those pods!”

Basalt rosette on Snake River across from Asotin

“Bob, have you seen the soap aisle in the store?” I queried. “It’s full of pods.” (In fact, I didn’t say so, but the powdered Cascade I have now I purchased at Albertsons on clearance.)

“You aren’t looking hard enough,” Bob replied. “You can still buy powder and liquid detergent, and that’s what you have to do. Just don’t buy Kirkland.”

“And,” he continued, “that ‘smart wash’ cycle simply runs the same cycle three times. Use the ‘one-hour wash.’”

“All right,” I said contritely, feeling properly chastened.

“That’s ridiculous,” said Mike. “Any dishwasher detergent should work.”

“Yes,” I said, “but I don’t really want to chance more problems, so I will comply with what Bob says.”

Columnar formation

So, I took myself to Walmart and checked the dishwasher products. The first repair guy said I should buy Dishwasher Magic, which son Milo also recommended. I tossed a twin pack into my cart. Rows of shelves were filled with pods in a variety of brands and sizes – Cascade, Finish, and “Great Value” (the store brand). On the very bottom shelf were several brands of liquid detergents. I saw no powdered product. KW

[The words are about the dishwasher but the photos were taken Monday, March 27, as we hiked along the Snake River. (See previous post.) The basalt formations are quite spectacular.]