# Common Things You Don't Have **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 18, 2009, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904 "2009-05-18T21:41:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/1 "2009-05-18T21:41:00Z")
I’m hypothesizing that even households that are reasonably well-equipped may be lacking things (for whatever reasons) that most comparable homes would have. Is there any such void in your home? I, for example, do not have a toaster. I don’t particularly like toast, and its uncommon that I have guests for breakfast, so I’ve just never gotten one. As I live within five minutes of a number of places that would gladly sell me my choice of toasters 24 hours a day, buying one with little short-term prospect of using it has no appeal to me. What other pseudo-necessities might these my brethern and sistern be without? ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/2 "2009-05-18T21:48:43Z")
Neither my wife nor I have a cell phone. All of our children do, but they no longer live in the same house as us. We occasionally say to each other, “It might be useful to have one sometimes,” but we’ve never gotten around to buying one. ---
**Author:** ![apollonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2bfe46/32.png) [@apollonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apollonia)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/3 "2009-05-18T21:51:39Z")
Until a couple months ago, I didn’t have a pair of scissors. I either tore things open or I used my jackknife. It sucked. But then I bought a two-dollar pair of scissors and now I can open things again. I also don’t have a real broom. I have a dust mop and a Dirt Devil Broom-Vac. I live in a shoebox, so it doesn’t really prevent me from keeping my apartment spotless. ---
**Author:** ![yellowval](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/919ad9/32.png) [@yellowval](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yellowval)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/4 "2009-05-18T22:00:09Z")
We don’t have a coffee pot. We were given one for our wedding and had used it approximately twice in seven years when I finally got sick of dusting it or finding places to shove it in the cupboard and sold it to one of the neighbors. It’s been two years, and we haven’t missed it. Some people (my grandmother, the same one who bought us the coffee pot to begin with) seem to think that it is the height of rudeness to have people over for dinner and not offer coffee to them after we eat. Oh, well. ---
**Author:** ![PatriotGrrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9dc877/32.png) [@PatriotGrrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotGrrrl)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/5 "2009-05-18T22:02:45Z")
I don’t have a normal vacuum cleaner, I just use my shop-vac. It takes longer, I guess, but I don’t have much area to cover so I don’t care. ---
**Author:** ![Valgard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/7feea3/32.png) [@Valgard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valgard)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/6 "2009-05-18T22:10:05Z")
A dishwasher. Don’t miss it one bit. I find washing dishes to be kinda relaxing. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/7 "2009-05-18T22:14:51Z")
No TIVO. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/8 "2009-05-18T22:16:22Z")
A game console. If I want to play games, I use one of the pinball machines or play Qbert or Missile Command. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/9 "2009-05-18T22:26:23Z")
Don’t have cable, Tivo, or a stereo. I used to have a stereo, but I never used it and I donated it to the people who bought our condo. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/10 "2009-05-18T22:26:59Z")
No toaster, no coffee maker, no video games, no tivo, no full-size vacuum. I also do not have a radio, CD player, or anything else that plays music in my house. I sometimes listen to music in my car but don’t care to when I’m home. ---
**Author:** ![Diz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/87869e/32.png) [@Diz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diz)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/11 "2009-05-18T22:29:22Z")
No garage door opener. The cars have always been parked in the driveway, so we never bothered to get one. ---
**Author:** ![shantih](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@shantih](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shantih)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/12 "2009-05-18T22:29:48Z")
I lack common sense, but I suppose that’s not what you meant. We don’t have an air mattress for guests, which means that at the rare times that our guest bedroom is overflowing, we have to get extremely creative to find places for the unlucky overflow to sleep. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/13 "2009-05-18T22:30:26Z")
No toaster here as well. We just moved, and we gave our sad little toaster oven to Goodwill. We went to buy a regular toaster at Target over the weekend, but they were out of the cheap little $6 one they carry, and my wife thought that all of the others (ranging from $15 - $60) were ridiculously overpriced for the purpose of making toast. So, we don’t have a toaster. ---
**Author:** ![Randy\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ee7513/32.png) [@Randy\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randy_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/14 "2009-05-18T22:31:00Z")
[Microwave](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=493198). As I mentioned in that thread, one can certainly do just fine without a microwave, but some things are made more difficult:[ul][_]Defrosting meat quickly. [_]Microwave popcorn. This limits my popcorn-making abilities significantly. [_]Heat water quickly and efficiently for tea, etc. [_]Some frozen dinners don’t give directions for conventional ovens [_]Reheat leftovers. I eat most leftovers cold. Sometimes, I’ll stick it under the broiler, but this doesn’t usually produce very good results. [_]2-minute oatmeal. [\*]Fun with peeps.[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Dying\_Butterfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d2c977/32.png) [@Dying\_Butterfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dying_Butterfly)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/15 "2009-05-18T22:31:30Z")
No landline. Those are still common, right? ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/16 "2009-05-18T22:38:40Z")
I somehow manage to have two toasters and use neither of them. No landline. No pets and no (remaining) houseplants. No “regular” coffee maker (I use a French press). No TiVo, but I do have a computer I use to DVR stuff, so I guess that doesn’t count. ---
**Author:** ![FallenAngel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@FallenAngel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FallenAngel)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/17 "2009-05-18T22:43:12Z")
No DVR, flat screen TV or video game system. ---
**Author:** ![Miss\_Woodhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@Miss\_Woodhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Woodhouse)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/18 "2009-05-18T22:53:47Z")
No HDTV. No cable, satellite, or other tv service. Obviously no use for DVR or TIVO. no cell phone. no coffee maker. ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/19 "2009-05-18T22:56:29Z")
No: Car Driver’s License Microwave (I do have an electric water heater, because I’m temporarily without a stove - before that I used a kettle on the stove like god intended) Land line Video game system Clothes Dryer (but they’re not all that common around here) edit: Coffee Maker. I prefer my french press, which takes up about as much space as a cup. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904/20 "2009-05-18T22:58:05Z")
No cable, so by extension, no DVR or TIVO. No game consoles like Wii. No ironing board, but I do have an iron. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-things-you-dont-have/496904.md?page=2)