…we must get a new one. Nine years and one month ago, I bought a 10 kg LG washing machine. While it was still under warranty, both pumps went out, at different times, and were replaced. Otherwise, the only problem I’ve ever had with it (besides the filter needing to be cleaned) was that occasionally it would refuse to turn on till I pushed the power button 20-30 times. It was getting louder and louder, though, and four days before we flew to the United States, I was outside hanging up laundry while my second load finished spinning out. Suddenly I heard a terrific crashing, banging noise, and then silence, other than the washer giving its error code signal. I went inside to find this:
Several sides were dented out,
and a hole had been punched in the wall.
I went to town that afternoon to look for another washer. I knew I wanted a 10 kg one, and I wanted direct drive rather than belt drive. There are three shops in Greymouth that might have what I wanted, within easy walking distance, so I parked behind the one I reckoned I would end up buying from, and walked to the farthest place first. The only large washer they had was a cheap Chinese brand. The salesman really talked it up, but I wasn’t confident, from what he said, that it would hold up to our kind of use, so I asked about the drive. It took most of half an hour to find the information, but he finally worked out that it was belt drive. I thanked him for the information, and said I would keep it in mind.
I had taken Miss Joy with me, and as we walked to the next shop, I prayed that God would make it clear which washer I should get. Well, the second shop, which is the most expensive of the three, didn’t have anything larger than 8 kg. On to the last, which is where I was expecting to find something near what I wanted. They had one 10 kg washer, a name brand. I asked about the drive. The lady (a neighbor of ours, as it turns out!) looked it up and found that it is direct drive. I asked the price, bracing myself to hear that it was $2,000-2,500. She replied, “$1,500, down from $2,399.” I said, “I’ll take it.” The only one of these they had left was the floor model, so I took that home with me. We installed it that afternoon, marvelling at God’s provision, and within two days it had washed six loads of laundry–quietly.
Oh, and the fun part of the day? I stopped to fuel up the ute I was driving, which was Simon’s. (He didn’t have any idea I borrowed it to go to town.) While I was filling up, a car pulled in behind me. I glanced at the driver, registered that it was a handsome, clean-cut young man in a plaid button-up shirt–and then did a double-take. It was Simon! He works about half an hour from town, but had a meeting he needed to go to that afternoon. It’s special to bump into a son when I’m in town.
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