It must be one of those scientific laws

There really must be some law that says more will be broke in the household than you can ever hope to fix, and if you do try to fix it something will still go wrong.  I try so hard with hubby driving for a living to fix things when they are broke instead of piling everything on top of him the few times he is home.  Some days it doesn't seem to work at all.  Either I fix it and it isn't fixed correctly, or I fix it and something else ends up broken as soon as it is fixed.  It is like a merry-go-round that never seems to stop.  So for tonight, I give up and poor hubby is going to have to put this kitchen drawer that I fixed after it fell apart back where it goes.  I just can't seem to get it in.  I likely could get it in if I took off the roller on the back, but then I would have to crawl under the cabinet and somehow put it back on.  I really hope it doesn't come to that.  I looked at another drawer to see what I was doing wrong.  I wanted to pull it out so I could see what angle etc. I needed to put it back in and it didn't even want to come out.  Oh why must it always be the simple stuff that seems hard?  Well I suppose I will quit my whining that isn't going to help it any.

On to more American Made things.  This one is a product that I love.  It is Lodge cast iron.  For a few years after I first got married, I stayed away from cast iron due to the fact I thought it was hard to clean.  Turned out it is super easy and I just didn't know what I was doing before.  so 20 years ago, my mom asked me what I wanted for Christmas and I told her a cast iron skillet.  She bought me a smaller one that doesn't see much use.  But Granny bought me a nice big one!  20 years later, I am still using "old faithful".  It has been on gas stoves, electric stoves, the grill, the campfire.  Beloved bought me a new one a few years ago and I am ashamed to say I have yet to use it once.  I just don't want to do a new one lol.  Old faithful has one problem, she is a little thin in the middle of the pan so things like to puddle there.  But she is still non-stick and easy to clean.  My son was going to buy himself one for when he moves out (is he really ever gonna do that?) and I promised him old faithful when he does.  Secretly, I would rather give him the new one lol, but I know that old faithful will never leave him hanging.  Then, I will have to start working with "new faithful".  I don't even like the sound of it!!!!!

Anyway if you are looking for some cookware that will last you years and is made in America I suggest Lodge.  There are other brands and I don't know where they are made, but they are not as heavy duty.  Also avoid cast iron that has handles of wood or some other "heat proof" handle.  These will not hold up nearly as well as something that is cast in one piece.  I had to buy the lid for my large skillet separately, but it was worth it.  Cast iron is not all that expensive, especially when you consider the life it will have.  So here is the link, Lodge cast iron.  You can buy it many places and locally may be much cheaper when you consider the shipping.  Some will tell you that cast iron has other benefits such as adding iron to your food to keep you from getting low on it.  I have no idea if that is true or not, so I won't say that it is.  Things like that don't matter to me, mostly because the benefits that I do know of are enough to keep me happy.



Ok, someone is wondering do I use any non-stick skillets?  Yes I do, two of them.  One small one for when I am making eggs for breakfast burritos and such.  Another bigger one when I am doing something like fried potatoes.  They don't see much use, but they are handy to have around.