We have front loading machines, the same as are sold in Europe. We also have a gas stove but that was quite expensive to arrange ($604 for installation + the cost of the tank + the cost of the propane + the cost of the stove itself).

Hmn, need to make sure I get a good one then! My days of washing diapers are over, thank goodness.....

Phew, thought for a moment there, I'd got swamped by displaying cats and pics of horse's bums!

If you are on a water meter a front loader might be better...they use less water for sure, although our (rather rare) energy star rated top leader does a good job for us...we are on a well though so dont worry about water usage so much.

Was that from this past weekend?

Nope, definately not Swindon .................. is it really that bad? My mates used to go on daytrips to Swindon for the shopping.

This is a very bad shot of a tall ship. I offer it as a better example of what the Toronto waterfront looks like than the usual shot of the CNN tower taken from the Island. The larger chimney is a useful navigation aid when sailing, it's the smokestack for Toronto's garbage incinerator. The "land" is actually infill, rubble tipped into the lake to form a spit. The area, not just of the spit but for a long distance inland and east-west, suffers from ground pollution and so cannot easily be redeveloped. There used to be a large homeless encampment there called "Tent City" but the occupants were driven off as if they were indigenous Canadians on their native land. The area is now nominally a bird sanctury pending a developer finding a way to get around the prohibition on building on oil spillls. Lots of people bicycle on trails through the area and I'd sometimes ride that way to work. There are signs prohibiting bicycling but then there are signs prohibiting most things.

This is building called a "club house". They're quite common in Toronto. Typically they're built of block, have no windows and have a camera arrangement for inspecting visitors. The Hell's Angels one on Eastern Avenue is a bit more fortified than this one; they strengthened it after a bazooka attack.

Things may have changed but I don't recall motorcyclists in the UK being a major force in organized crime. They certainly are here.

Pretty grim yeah.... why go from Bristol to Swindon shopping?
I do the opposite, love Park St!!!!

I am loving this thread, v good idea!!! Still hasnt put me off though.

Top loading washing machines are not nearly as efficient as front loaders -and they do use more water. The (one) good thing about them is you can just open the top and throw something else in. It's a real bummer, though, for a small person, leaning in to drag the wet clothes out - always heavy and tangled.

Then there's all the snow shifting to do......my OH two weeks ago

My daughter & I miss Park St

Ah thread drift.

On washing machines.....We bought a Whirlpool toploader. It does the job but uses a prodigious amount of water which is a problem when your well runs dry in the summer, so we plan to switch to a more efficient front loader when funds permit.

Good idea for a thread. I'm gonna do a dbd and take my camera around with me tommorrow so prepare for the gritty reality of St John's in the thaw!

Tomorrow will be a good day for me to carry a camera. I have to drop by the tractor dealer and finalize the arrangements, perhaps he'll let me take a shot of our new blower.

I'm charging up my camera batteries... I can't wait to read this thread tomorrow!

Older pic... flying over NW Calgary.

Most top loaders are not as efficient, simply as they use more water, so need to heat more water, However, not all toploaders are created equal...there are energy star compliant ones out there if you look for them that are pretty efficient.


The short people I know have the sense to build a small platform in front of the machine to make reaching in easier As a taller person I used to hate bending double to empty a front loader, although a platform would work there too I suppose.

I still dont fancy trying to pour a bucket of stinky diapers into a front loader though Retailers like top push front loaders because A: as a european import they simply must be superior . B: newer is always better, so you can sell a new front loader to someone who already has a functioning top loader, and C: with the heavy load cantilevered on the bearing, and a dependence on seals to keep the floor dry, they can count on selling you a new one much sooner than if you buy a top loader


I wonder if they are like cars...it takes more energy to build a car than it will use in its lifetime, so justifying buying a new washer based on reduced energy consumption might be doing more harm than good in the long term

Another... interior BC