I almost always start the day the same way. I set the kettle boiling to make tea and slap bread in the toaster. I did the same thing today – well, almost.

I put the bread in the slots and pressed the lever… which came straight back up again as soon as I let it go. I checked the power point to see that it was turned on – it was – and tried again. The bread came straight up again and this time I noticed an ominous green flash inside the toaster.

I breakfasted on “raw” bread while meditating on the problem. We have had that toaster for several years now and so it is well out of warranty. There seemed to be two possible solutions: (1) find an electrical repair shop to see whether they could mend it and (2) dump it and buy a new one.

I couldn’t think of any electrical repairers in our neighbourhood and, in any case, it’s likely that the cost of repair would be at least equal to the price of a new toaster. Solution 2 seemed the more viable option.

As for the old toaster, we have a reliable way of disposing of defunct electricals and even furniture: we put it in the front garden. We live on a main road and the gardens are continually watched by the “garden fairies”, as Tigger calls them, mysterious beings who, usually in the dead of night, make off with anything they think they can use. We have disposed of TV sets, computer printers and even a Welsh dresser and a gas cooker by this means. I’m pretty sure the old toaster will disappear in pretty short order. If it doesn’t, I will carry it down the road to a set of bins that are there for clothes, shoes and, yes, electrical cast-offs.

Tigger did not have to go into the office today but had to “attend” a meeting via the Internet. When this was over we had lunch and then set out to replace the toaster.

We started with coffee at Jusaka and then set out for the Angel Centre, where there is a branch of Argos, the catalogue store.

Argos in the Angel Centre

Covid-19 has transformed the operation of this store as it has everything else. First, you find a terminal that is working (all but a few have been turned off to enforce social distancing) and do a search on it for toasters. Up come the pictures and specifications of the models they sell, along with indications such as “In stock”, meaning that you can have it straightaway, or “Order and collect tomorrow”.

We found a model that was cheap (less than £20) and available immediately. We then proceeded to order and pay for the article. Yes, Apple Pay is accepted, along with other electronic payments, including the now old-fashioned method of typing in your credit card details. The terminal then produces a paper receipt.

You take the receipt to a human operator and then take a seat while your item is fetched.

Flying Tiger

Afterwards Tigger wanted to take a look in Flying Tiger, which, as you probably know, is a chain that sells mainly Scandinavian goods and changes its stock often, in response to the season. At present they are stocking many items to do with Hallowe’en and even a few for Christmas. It’s a fascinating collection but I never find there anything I could conceivably need or want. Even so, it’s fun to take a quick look.

Building works in the Angel Centre
Photo by Tigger

I had to photograph Argos and Flying Tiger from an awkward angle because the middle area is fenced off for building works.

We had stuffed the toaster in the shopping trolley and now started trundling it home.

Chapel Market

On the way we passed along Chapel Market, which, you remember, is the name both of the street and the market that operates there every day except Monday. The busiest days for the market are Saturday and Sunday but even for a weekday there were not many stalls, although it was becoming late and I suppose some stalls might have shut down by now.

Autumn skyscape
Photo by Tigger

Tigger took this photo of the autumn sky along the way.

The new toaster

And here is the new toaster, ensconced amid the clutter we humorously call “the kitchen” (which is also our dining room and our lounge).

The instructions with the toaster tell us to run it several times at full heat without any bread in it. I am doing so and tomorrow shall try it out for my breakfast toast. The proof of the toaster, as they say, is in the crunch.

How long will this one last, I wonder?