That jet engine downstairs

Was in truth a dying washing machine. An eighteen month old washing machine (six months out of warranty) which now needs to be replaced. On the plus side, I love the realities of shopping in 2013, where not only can I look up stuff on the web ahead of time, while in the store I can borrow a friend's iPad to confirm Consumer Reports ratings and look at customer reviews.

Visited the stores to check out the options, had lunch at the brewpub while thinking things over, then went back to the first store and plunked down my credit card. New machine will be delivered and installed Thursday. And yes, this time I'm getting the extended service plan.