Size Matters

If you ask most people, no matter what the item, they will most likely tell you that size matters. Bigger cars, bigger houses, bigger paychecks, bigger anything........

When I was living in a bigger house, with a bigger kitchen, and a bigger paycheck, I agreed. And, part of me still believes that, particularly now after my recent challenge of having to downsize everything in my life. I have moved out of my 3400 s.f. house to a 1200 s.f. apartment. I have moved out of the 33% income bracket into probably the 0% income bracket. The only trade-off I have not made, and probably will not in the foreseeable future, is to trade out of my big-ass Dodge Ram. I do like being one of the biggest vehicles on the road, particularly when battling the crazy Houston drivers, and will foresake, for now, the extra gasoline and parking hassles. But, check back again when gasoline hits $4 a gallon!

But, does size really matter? Or is it all in how you use it?
After the first week of downsizing, I have come to learn that it is definitely how you use it.

First, let me start with the size of the kitchen in my apartment. As far as dimensions go, it is roughly 5 ft. by 3 ft. with no more than 4 ft. of usable counter space, much of that occupied by the microwave, the sink, and the stove. In comparison, the bigger kitchen in my old house was probably 3 to 4 times that size. Counter space was never an issue.

My heart sank at the first glance at my new kitchen. Small kitchens and gourmet cooking probably don't make good bedfellows. Let's face it, the recipes in Food & Wine and other culinary mecca cookbooks were not created for apartment dwellers. But, I was so busy moving boxes in and trying to control chaos that I didn't dwell on the thought too much.

As I unpacked my kitchen and realized how much cabinet space I did have, which believe it or not was more than I at first thought, my spirits rose quite a bit. Kitchen items were not something I would have to return to storage. Yay! That meant I could keep all of the items I have grown used to cooking with.

Next came the inaugural meal. It was a quick stir fry: Pork Chop Suey. Easy, quick, not alot of pre-preparation. Again, my spirit lifted even more. Same for last night's meal: Pasta Alfredo. I think I'm getting the hang of this. Not so bad.

Tonight, however, was more of a challenge. Food & Wine recipe for Grilled Corn and Salmon with Balsamic Reduction. In my other kitchen, a recipe like this would have been a no-brainer. Plenty of cutting space, and plenty of counter space.

My challenges started with the pungent smell of the boiling balsamic vinegar permeating the entire apartment, complete with my son and his friend running out of his room with their t-shirts covering their noses and yelling "What is that smell?" I wonder if the people in the rest of the building, or even the complex, smelled my bubbling reduction.

Next came the smoke alarm going off in the middle of grilling the corn in a skillet on the stove. WTH? I didn't even see any smoke. I chalked it up to a good test of the smoke alarms.

Last came the cleanup, hampered by the tiny dishwasher that I quickly came to realize will not be one that I can wash my pots and pans in anymore. If I did, particularly if I continue to cook from F&W, I could potentially be running the dishwasher several times during the preparation. Back to handwashing.

So, even in my tiny new kitchen, I pulled off a gourmet recipe with only a few glitches. Best of all, I learned how to use the small space efficiently and effectively.

Size doesn't really matter.

One other issue of size that I can make work in my favor is that of housecleaning. Remember my post last year about speed cleaning a big house? Well, no need for that approach anymore. Only two small bathrooms and a tiny kitchen takes me less than two hours.

I would call that an advantage.

I will have to get back to you on the smaller paycheck, though. That one I am still working on.