Ode to the Whirlpool Washer

Not surprisingly, I do a lot of laundry. Surprisingly, I don't really think of it in those terms. I spread it out. I don't have a "laundry day" schedule or anything; I just wash on an "everything is dirty so I better do some laundry" basis. No matter how many loads I do, there is always some "must have" item that is dirty when someone needs it, be it uniform parts, socks, undergarment, or that one special top that no other top can substitute for.
I have had the same washer and dryer for about 10 years. They are front loaders and have been pretty good machines with small exceptions. Not too long after we moved and moved the washer ourselves, the computer went out on it. I can't say for certain that the two events were connected, after all there was a bit of a time lapse and we didn't exactly toss the thing around, but I always wondered. Then there was some other repair that escapes my memory, and then the rubber door gasket ripped open due to a piece of broken glass that made it into a load of towels. That one was costly and a nuisance because it took a couple of weeks to get a replacement part. Last year, one of the "paddles" on the inside of the drum broke off. That was sure to be another costly one, so I pretty much ignored it after my attempts at home repair failed. Then a few weeks ago, the washer started making a loud rumble when it was in the spin cycle, as though something was falling off, a belt perhaps. It still ran, just loudly. This weekend, the noise got increasingly worse and started to interfere with the spin cycle. It was time to make a choice. Fix or replace. I am usually a fairly thrifty person in that respect, and opt for repair, but since these are 10 years old and have had 20 years of use as my mom put it, I decided to replace. Lucky for me, I found a great sale on a floor model of basically the more modern version of my old faithful. To top it off, it is a pretty navy blue, my fave! I never would have sprung for color at regular prices. Anyway, though my dryer has been trouble free, I decided to go ahead and purchase the matching one and that made me feel a little guilty and wasteful. HOWEVER, after doing several loads in my new washer, I can't wait for the new dryer to come in. (They had to order a gas one for me.) The washer is sooooo nifty. It makes doing laundry fun! It has all these different buttons and lights and little musical beeps. (Did I mention I sprung for the 5 year warranty?) I do feel a little wistful about my good old non-living washer being banished, but I'll get over it. My laundry room is nice and clean and the new machine is in there quietly humming along and all is right with the world.