American-like Refrigerator

 (Yes, this is worth a dedicated post)

Like many Americans, we used to have two refrigerators.  One in the kitchen and another in the garage to store our stockpile.  I still remember the days of loading up on groceries from Wegmans or Shoprite in my giant SUV and having plenty of fridge space to store it all.  Our flat in Antwerp had a typical European  refrigerator - tiny, no ice maker, no filtered water.  Ours was a Smeg, a 50s style refrigerator that's become the next hottest thing (and way to expensive in my opinion).  We learned to change our shopping pattern by making more frequent trips and buying less.  I would even deter myself from trying new sauces and dressings which came in jars or bottles that would eat up precious real estate in that tiny fridge.

Besides the lack of storage space, it would also build up a sheet of frost in the back and every couple of months, it would decide to purge itself and unfreeze completely.  

We finally decided it was time to purchase a new one but wanted one that we could bring back to the US to replace our old one.  Shopping for a new one was an experience.  There are basically two kinds: (1) Side-by-Side which they label as "American" Refrigerators and (2) Tiny European Refrigerators.  I was drooling over the side-by-sides, which were too big to fit in our flat.  We were on a mission to find one that was in between 1 & 2.  We went to 3 or 4 "Best Buy"-like stores in Belgium and even made a trip to the Netherlands.  We finally located one and had it delivered on the first available date.

I was so happy when it arrived, I almost shed a tear of joy.  While this one does not have an ice maker or a water dispenser, the extra space makes such a difference.   I had to stare at the inside for a few minutes when they put it in place.  I can not believe a refrigerator can make me so happy!  Just so you don't think I went off the deep end, this fridge had a wait list for 3 other orders.

Goodbye Tiny European Refrigerator!