The microwave is dead

...and its passing has not been noticed.

I would estimate - and I must stress that I have no forensic training, not even an episode of C.S.I. - that the deceased must have passed away over a month ago. And that abscence has had little bearing on my life.

Yes, there have been momentary inconveniences - the need to use a pan (the horror!) to heat some beans or tomatoes for an impromptu snack. Indeed, the necessity of any sort of planning; of lifting a meal out of the freezer in the morning rather than scant moments before I want to eat it.

On the whole, though, it has been neither missed nor mourned.

So yesterday I took the Beast down to the local recycling and electrical goods disposal centre (that's the place that used to be called the Tip in the half-forgotten Time Before WEEE) and said a quick farewell.

The resulting space in the kitchen is startling.