Friends and dishes...

Do you remember when you were younger...high school and just beyond?  Friends were people you went dancing with, went shopping with, talked about boys with.  Years go by and you grow up.  Your needs and wants change.  You don't go dancing and shopping is more likely be about heading to Home Depot than heading to Nordstrom.

Friends still find a way to warm your heart though.  It makes you feel special to know they're there, even if they are just as busy as you are.

Remember this picture and my incredulous post about my latest phosphate-free dishwasher experience?  I seriously wondered if I'd be forever more hand-washing my dishes.  I was obviously forgetting about my friends.

One friend emailed and offered to share her contraband dishwasher powder, even going so far as to being willing to be my dealer.  How sweet was that?  She skirts the law and I reap the benefits...now that  is friendship!

Another friend emailed and offered to ship the "good stuff" directly to me from Texas.  Wasn't that wonderful?  Another friend willing to be a black-market dealer...can you ask for more?

Another friend was quick to email me with what worked in her mom's house (said house is in our water district, so it matters).  I was just so touched.  (Oh, and I'm envious that it works in her mom's house, because that combo didn't work in mine.  I hope her mom a) knows how wonderful her daughter is and b) knows how lucky she is to have clean dishes!)

And yet another friend handed me two samples of the product that works in her house.   It was like a drug deal that was free (and legal).  I slipped the "package" in my pocket and went about my business.  I was feeling the love, I tell you!  Anyway, I went home and tried the Finish Powerball as soon as we got a half a load full of dishes.  (Seriously, I figured when I rewashed them, I'd only have to wash half a dishwasher full.  Can you tell I had low expectations?)

Imagine my surprise when I opened the dishwasher and pulled out clean dishes, clear glasses, and sparkly silverware.  Not to get giddy, but I still wasn't convinced.  Nope, I filled the dishwasher completely and put the second sample to the test.  It worked.  Seriously worked! 

I don't know if it was the blue layer, the white layer, or the cute little red ball in the center, but it worked.  Woot!  What a win!  Not only did I get to be surrounded by the warmth of friendship, but my dishes are clean.  But don't take my word for it, judge for yourself.

Yippee! Aren't they bright and clear?  As you can see, I will not be driven to life on the lamb.  No life of crime will be necessary.  No exorbitant shipping costs will be incurred and no friends will be inconvenienced by my dishwasher dilemma.   Shiny clean dishes and good friends.  Does life get any better than this?

Seriously? Seriously.

I live in one of the first counties to have banned phosphates in dishwasher detergent.  I am also one of the hold-outs who quickly realized that the phosphate-free stuff wasn't going to work in our hard water, so I stocked up on the "good" stuff before the ban went into effect more than a year ago.  Unfortunately, my stash has run out and I'm a bit peeved.

Now don't get me wrong.  I completely understand the desire to get phosphates out of our waste water, but this is unacceptable.

This is what my glass looked like after going through the dishwasher.  (I broke it when I put it into the sink to hand-wash.)  So, for all of you who think those of us with hard water are just being babies about this (and there are plenty of them), take a look at this glass.  Let's be clear here:  This was washed with one of the "new, reformulated to work better in hard water" formulas.  Really? Oh, yes.  This is much better than the one I tried last year.  Still, I'm thinking this isn't going to work for me. (And I didn't even show you the silverware...trust me, you really didn't want to see that.)

What do you think?