(random in that these were running through my head between 4:30 & 6 this am)

Oh, the “essentials”. Or not. Seriously, or not.
I would have to say that a washing machine is an essential, but a dryer? Hmm, no. Especially when I would only really use it to fluff things, such as towels or sheets. I mean, really, drying racks, clothes lines and hangers work just fine. We could choose a drying rack from Ikea that would cost us $17, with no cost to run it ever, or we could choose a dryer that matches our washer and costs 20x as much as the rack, with the additional running costs.
So, dryer (for us) = non-essential

Dishwashers are a great time saver, and we actually have a one in this apartment, but it is currently non-functional (in fact, it didn’t work when we moved in). And we haven’t missed it. I enjoy standing at the sink with my hands in the hot soapy water, cleaning the dishes and thinking or praying. It’s a nice enforced quite time of sorts. But who knows, when the apartment’s handyman finally gets around to our place, we might use it. Or not.

And a kitchen mixer is also a wonderfully handy, time-saving piece of convenience. Some people do consider them to be essential kitchen tools. I have found that even if I could use one, and enjoy using it, I don’t need it. Making bread and beating eggs by hand is just fine (not to mention a nice little workout for your arms and torso), and the end result is just as good as if I had used a machine. It has been on my wish list, though.
In fact, for my birthday last year, John asked me to choose between a mixer and a camera, and I was truly torn. The thing that decided it for us was that I already knew Baby was on the way, and with that in mind, the camera seemed to fall more into the “needs” more than the mixer.

But, now we might be getting one. A hand-me-down one. So exciting to be blesseds by something you want but don’t need!

Where was I going with post? Um …. at this point I think I finally fell back to sleep.