Dryer: I am thankful to not have a clothes dryer, because this way I am forced to use the free energy of the sun to dry our clothes. When we lived in the States, I had an underused clothes line. Sure, on nice summer days, I did hang out diapers and the occasional load of clothes, but only when no rain was forecast for the next three days, I didn't want to wear a wet clothes item within the day, I wasn't running low on clean diapers, I had enough time to hang the diapers, and I was going to be around to make sure the dog didn't tear them off the line. Needless to say, the necessary events didn't happen very often. I always had the much simpler option of throwing clothes straight from the washing machine into the adjacent dryer, then pushing a button. Here, if I want clean, dry clothes, I need to find a place to hang them regardless of the weather. When we have a bunch of cloudy, rainy days in a row, a rack of diapers can be found in front of the fan and another rack of clothes in an out of the way spot, plus various items hung on the backs of chairs. Eris and I have learned to look at the clouds and predict how soon the rain will hit, to leave the clothes outside for the maximum time. We've gotten so good that most times the first raindrops hit the ground as we are carrying the full laundry basket into the house.
Car: This is another easy one for me to be grateful to not have. As anyone who has had car trouble (and who has not?) will tell you, cars are a hassle. They cost a lot of money to maintain, fuel costs too much, and when we own one, we tend to drive more and walk less. In Bangkok, foreigners with cars are often stopped for small (or made up) infractions and asked to pay a fine (aka bribe). Plus, I would not want to drive in this crazy traffic. Taking public transportation has helped me to better learn the city and the city to better get to know us; just ask anybody in our neighborhood about the white family with four children and he/she will immediately know who you are talking about. Yes, taking buses everywhere is a hassle and takes twice as long, but we experience a big part of living in Bangkok this way.
Microwave: When we saw a $3 microwave at a garage sale in Terre Haute, it was hard to turn down. It worked for the four years we lived there, although by the time we moved only two buttons could get it to run and we couldn't read the screen. I always wondered if microwaves were maybe not good for people, but the ease of popping something in and pushing a few buttons to get warm food pushed the fears aside. I was similarly willing to eat lukewarm food for the convenience. Without a microwave, I now have the option to use a pan (which I will have to wash later) to warm something up or eat it cold. With two burners, I can warm up two things at once, which is helpful for leftover meals, and the food stays hot longer than if it were heated in a microwave. So this is overall a plus, but if given the option, I might spend $3 on a microwave.
Central Air Conditioning: Bangkok is the hottest city in the world; it doesn't have the highest temperatures but the average highs and lows for the whole year are the highest. This basically means that it is never cool here. Last year the city experienced a record 30-year low of 60 degrees Farenheit (15.5 degrees Celsius). We live with fans pointed at us when at all possible. We do have air condition units in our bedrooms and in one upstairs, but we rarely use them. If we had central air conditioning, we would like use it more often and then never want to leave the house. Without central air, we (at least our children) have because more acclimatized to the heat. It's easier to leave the house and take a non-air conditioned bus or shop in an open market, because we are used to being in that kind of environment. Our house is opened to sunlight and breezes (and little critters); we live in a more open and less controlled environment.
Dishwasher: Now we are getting into things that are a bit harder for me to thankful not to have. My mother did not want a dish washer, so I grew up with wrinkled fingers and a distaste for washing dishes. I have always wanted a dishwasher, dreaming of the time it would save. How wonderful to simply put dishes in a machine, push a few buttons (similar to a clothes dryer), and come back to clean dishes. It was not to be, I have yet to live in a home with a dishwasher. (There have been a few temporary homes in which we have lived for a month or two with dishwashers, and those have been great!) Really though, it doesn't take terribly long to wash dishes from a meal, and often I can wash the dishes from preparing a meal while it finishes cooking. Eris is old enough to help sometimes, and Philip washes up after supper. This is another area where it is simple to save energy by not owning an appliance.
Running Hot Water: I have running water in more than one place in my house: nine spigots in five rooms to be exact, so I really have no cause to complain. It is really not necessary to have running hot water. Most people, including us, wash dishes in cold water. Every once in awhile we will heat water on the stove to get an obstinate spot off a pot or to wipe the counter with hot water. Actually, the water from the tap is not cold, it's lukewarm, which is a fine temperature for a shower most days in this climate. Our bathrooms do have little electric on-demand hot water heaters that heat water as you use it for a shower. The water doesn't get very hot, but it's enough to take the chill off on the few cool days of the year. I do look forward to one day being in a cool climate and enjoying a hot shower, but for now I can live without this.
Oven: If I were given the option of choosing one thing on this list to have, I would pick an oven. I really like to bake and I like to eat baked goods. Thai culture does not traditionally bake, so baked goods are not as readily available and what can be found tastes very different. We never know when we will find a piece of hot dog in the middle of sweet bread or a red bean pancake. The younger children have adapted to the new sweets, but Philip, Eris, and I still remember the superior (to our minds) baked goods of America. I have found a way to "bake" using a cast iron skillet, a brick, and a large metal pan, but it's definitely not the same. If I had an oven, we would have freshly baked bread, cake, cookies, and casseroles more often. It's probably just as well that we don't have these around more often. I can be thankful that I've had the opportunity to experiment and learn how to cook foods without relying on an oven. But someday, when we can afford it, I'd sure like to have an oven.
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