under fire . . .

things need to stop dieing around here.  last night as i was grilling bread and thin slices of zucchini to add with basil, olive oil and some crushed red pepper and the ever present goat cheese, i noticed the grill wasn't behaving itself nor was it the night previously.  so i opened the doors and squatted down to have a lookie loo.  good grief, the entire top of the firebox, or bottom of the grill pan . . . whatever you want to call it, had rusted away.  there were open flame inches from the propane tank.  gah!

step away from the fire.  i had visions of flying through the newly installed pool cage and into the pool as a human torch.  for she who cannot easily rise from a squat, i did pretty darn well. 

kidlet and i dragged the dead body to the street and called the 'metal' man.  within five minutes the carcass was m.i.a.  which leads me to wonder which one of my neighbors is really the local junk man in disguise.

which of course meant that we needed a new grill.  which of course led to a grill shopping expedition.  with advice in hand, joanie and i headed to Lowe's where the pickins were slim and the assistance even slimmer. 

i thought it best to attack from the net.  i found a review of the top ten units in my price range, which did not include all the bells and whistles that the old monstrosity offered but would fit my needs . . .  the 9TS being a lover of all things gadget-y. 

i found it.  top rated.  uncomplicated and sold at Lowe's . . .  just not ours.  nope.  if i wanted it, i would have to drive 36 miles and get that puppy slapped into the CR-V and wobble on home with it.  so i called our local Lowe's and plead my case.  'they were not authorized to sell that particular model and if i wanted the two burner Weber we had seen earlier, they were going to charge me to deliver it around the corner even though the net said, "free delivery".  'bout that time, my happy-go-lucky assistant decided he needed his lunch break more than he needed me and told me to call the other store.  literally.  well, harrumph.

undaunted, i called the toll-free number on the site and chatted with a really nice gal named Candace.  boiled down, yes they had it, yes they would deliver it for free and yes, it would be assembled . . . unassembled being an absolute deal breaker.  perish the thought.

hopefully, those 40,000 btu's will be grilling up chicken, swordfish, assorted veggies and all things short of me in a matter of days. 

now will things please stop ceasing to function for at least another fiscal year.  please.