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Monday, July 31, 2023

Something old

The universe finally properly aligned for me to do something long overdue. When I was first married, my mother-in-law gave me a Revere ware pan, an extra in her collection, though used. My husband was pleased; it was the pan (pot?) in which she cooked spaghetti noodles and potatoes for mashing.


It's the biggest pot, there on the bottom of the stack.  There are two more Revere ware, added to my collection late in life, found at the thrift store for a very good price. I have not cooked since I lived in the trailer; time to gift them to some grandchild. I'll begin with Caroline, next week, and keep trying on up the line.

I remember the sort of embarrassed shuffle we did when Jim's mom presented me with the pot. She put it in my hands, but said to Jim, "Remember our spaghetti dinners? You two need to come to the house and we'll have a regular spaghetti dinner."

Jim could have said "Thanks, Mom, we'll do that soon!" or some such thing, but instead he stumbled around and finally said, "Gee, Mom, Joanne makes good spaghetti." As much as I appreciated he defense, I didn't appreciate being the one of us who dug out of that one.

And it all was so very long ago, please don't hypothesize about why it happened. It just did. I cooked in it for years. So did my kids. So did Jan, when we all lived together. Except for the last two years, it has been in constant use since 1964.

This afternoon I was in my white chair, eating ice cream and watching the construction and realized it's been awhile since a progress report. This really should be called The View from the White Chair, or The View from the Cat's Pillow.


Occasionally we watch together, but Kitty watches far more often than I do. Today they were pouring more concrete:


There are three doors visible here, and today they put a concrete pad in front of each and did some more grading. That ladder has been there since forever and has been the access for building the upstairs, roofing, shingles. Yes, young men ran up the ladder with a bundle of shingles on one shoulder.

The only other thing going on is progress on lime towels. I am half done with the lime thread. I staged the rest of the thread according to how fast the color came into the comment section. So, the next color to weave will be the rusty orange, third from the left in the previous post.



36 comments:

  1. You were wise to take the pot. Good luck in passing it on this time.

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  2. I have those same pots, which I received as wedding presents in 1980.

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  3. Well, that Revere ware pot has more than earned its keep over the decades! The building next door is really coming along. Glad Kitty is supervising.

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  4. We are still using a couple of those same pots!

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  5. Men,trying to be kind, can be tactless.

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  6. My mother cooked with Revere Ware. It made the best pot roast. - Jenn

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  7. My son and his wife have the set my parents had of Revere ware. I've used a set of Amway excellent cookware since 1974. The only dents in those are from my son and his kindergarten buddies using them to bang on and make noise for a New Year's overnight party, with my permission. He doesn't get that set until I'm gone. Linda in Kansas

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  8. Heeey... I have one of those pots too from my mom. And yes, it carries a lot of memories too. Wow! That building is going up fast!

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  9. That pot has done sterling service. I love thinking it will continue to do so.

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  10. I do love a quality pot that just keeps on keeping on. I like "The View from the Cat's Pillow" or perhaps "Cat'seye View"?

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  11. Hari OM
    Proper pots and pans are worth their weight in gold; but will the young'uns understand this? Hope someone does. That building has certainly come on some since last we looked! YAM xx (who is now back in the Hutch, but still reporting on the big trip...)

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  12. Good cookware basically lasts forever it seems. Ours is all in the twenty to forty year range and functions perfectly. And we make good spaghetti too. Drop by and have some one day. We’ll give you a couple of glasses of Valpolicella to make it really perfect. Don’t worry about driving home, your bed’s made, the pillow fluffed.

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  13. I have a couple of pots like yours, a wedding gift from my mother in law, in daily use since 1964. Right up to yesterday!

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  14. I once had a Victorian cast iron pan. I used it for years, mostly for making jam.But it was sooooo heavy and when the enamel interior chipped and it started going rusty, I had to ditch it.

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  15. I gave away my lovely preserving pan in which \i had made chutneys and jams for years - I still miss it - it was an old friend and it never let me down.

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  16. We have a set of cookware that is everlasting too. I hope someone will enjoy it after us. Great progress on the building!

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  17. So many of my pots and pans were hand-me-downs. I used a giant Revere frying pan from My Guy's grandmother for probably 30 years.

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  18. View From The Cat's Pillow would be an excellent title for a painting. Men tend to stumble around and say kind of stupid or outright stupid things. When we went to an important event, such as my editor's husband's funeral, I always told X exactly what to say or something nonsensical would come out of his mouth along with a dumb laugh.

    Love,
    Janie

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  19. I cook in my Revere Ware daily. I got my grandmother's collection and like you, have added a few pots and lids from thrift stores over the years. You can't beat them.

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  20. Let me hypothesize ... naw ... kidding. 😊

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  21. I got my Revere ware set when I got married in 1976 from my Mom and Dad. I still use it! I tried other pots and pans through the years but always liked these best.

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  22. Revere Ware is the best. My sister has the family set passed down. Oddly enough, she dislikes cooking but loves the pots and pans... The building is progressing slowly. Do they have a completion date?

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  23. I have a 3 quart, a 6 quart and an 8 quart pan (pot?) from my mother. I mainly use the 3 quart. It has taken on a layer of something on the inside, it won't wash off, but the stainless steel has a murky look to it. But we use it anyway, and no one has fallen ill yet.

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  24. I have a few revereware pots and a skillet. they are the best. my next best is the stainless steel with aluminum bottom big dutch oven size I got at an estate sale. the one I had before was all aluminum which I try to avoid cooking in. but my faves are my cast iron skillets and dutch oven. the littlest one I bought new and one of the big skillets I got at an estate sale for $10 but the other three have been in the family though don't really know how far back. these I will probably give to Jade skipping my daughter who will ruin them.

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  25. Isn't it a shame how often we say something that comes out differently than we intended? Often it is amusing later but hurts feelings at the time.

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  26. You can have your All-Clad and Creuset; give me that old Revere ware any day.

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  27. I love well made stuff! Kitty might learn enough from watching construction to start her own business :)

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  28. Good luck finding homes for those pots. I am sure whoever gets them will be grateful. Not a bad view from the white chair and also an excellent spot to enjoy ice cream.

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  29. I'm a bit of a cast iron afficionado but that doesn't stop me admiring other pots. I love that it's almost a museum piece and is loaded with the family history. If only it could talk!
    XO
    WWW

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  30. I also have an old and trust Revere ware pot just like that. And a skillet. They are my go-to cookware. I'm quite sure they will outlive me.

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  31. The rusty orange will be beautiful. I still have my Revereware from the late 70s. It works great!

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  32. We've had most of our kitchen utensils for decades, and they're still going strong, in contrast to kitchen appliances that have a much shorter lifespan.

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  33. A pass along pot, I like that. Maybe the pot will be used for 100 years, that would be cool.

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