Being quite tall, our kitchen work surfaces are a little on the low side for comfort. We would have preferred them to be higher, but they are against the long side of the kitchen which is nearly all window, so they couldn’t be. Recently, Mrs. D. has been experiencing twinges in her back, aggravated by chopping vegetables and other jobs. “Is there something we could put on the surface to raise them up a bit?” I asked. A bit later we found this raised chopping board from Ikea (their image).
Her back is now much better.
There you go! If you require advice about such issues, you should ask the husband of an occupational therapist.
An ergonomically designed house would be very useful for one person. I find it's not easy being left handed either. Everything is designed for right handed folk.
ReplyDeleteFor right handers of a certain size and height. The bathroom in my son's flat, which is fairly new, is awful.
DeleteSimple solutions are usually to be found. We used to make them ourselves, now we rely upon mass production and shops to provide them I suppose.
ReplyDeleteI would have had a go at making something, but for £12 it isn't worth the trouble. That sounds a lot for a chopping board, I know, but some are priced at £40 or more.
DeleteI live in a world of someone will make it for me, my brother usually. I don't know what to make of this post. I don't mean to say the wrong thing here. I understand what you mean about it only costing £12 then you might as well buy it but thinking I can buy it is not usually my first thought when it comes to good inventions.
DeleteI like to make and do things myself, too. Having grown up in a time of make do and mend, contemporary clean and shiny, everything matching, design with seem sterile. But chopping boards don't use any old piece of wood, it has to be hard and non-porous. I would have been lucky to be able to buy the materials for the price of the bamboo one.
DeleteYes, I see that. I was thinking I would probably have incorporated my existing chopping board into something to my level. Incidentally I am one of those rare breeds of people who has never been in an Ikea. This is probably mainly due to the fact that Norwich doesn't have one although I do hate all these sort of places and find I break into a headache the minute I walk in and am overwhelmed and want to get out.
DeleteAnother solution might be you doing the kitchen work while Felicity sits in the lounge chortling in response to "Loose Women".
ReplyDelete"Another cuppa please Tasker!"
"Righto darling! Just give me a minute!"
Don't assume every marriage is like yours. I have not been permitted to do anything significant in the kitchen for 30 years, when I put a frozen pizza in the oven and forgot to remove the polystyrene backing. Who is Felicity, by the way?
DeleteFelicity is your wife. It's worrying that you could forget that. Do they call it "brain fog" these days?
DeleteIf you could remember anything you read for more than a few minutes, you would know her name begins with J.
DeleteBut in Dunhamworld one never knows as there is a high level of security secrecy. It has taken me ages to discover that your real name is Ben Down.
DeleteDoes J stand for Juanita?
You've obviously picked up tips from your wife. I sit down to chop vegetables, sometimes.
ReplyDeleteIt is amusing that she did not think of it herself, seeing that OTs find ways to make everyday tasks easier for people with difficulties. She had never seen anything like it before.
DeleteI imagine that being tall has as many limitations as being short.
ReplyDeleteOur kitchen wall cupboards are very tall with high shelves. I have to drag a kitchen chair across the room to stand on when I need something from the top shelf. Also, whoever stuck the bathroom mirrors onto the walls must have been very tall as I can only see from my eyebrow up in them.
You should get one of these chopping boards to stand on.
DeleteWho thought very deep sinks were a good idea? Thankfully I have a dishwasher and don't have to hurt my back too often.
ReplyDeleteDeep sinks are another poorly conceived design problem. However, in our house the dishwasher is me.
DeleteMy Mum and Dad are/were relatively tall, too, and when they moved to the newly built flat in 1988, they had their kitchen counters built a little higher than usual. It wasn't a problem because the window is an attic one anyway. Your way of solving the problem (at least partially) is good, and I hope your wife's back pain soon eases off.
ReplyDeleteThank you. Much better. We would have had higher surfaces, too, if the room had allowed it, but the non-window wall has to be for cupboards, and the short walls have doors.
DeleteI have the opposite issue. I've lost inches with age, and needed to get a kitchen island on wheels which is low enough for me to work on. What a difference.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds a good solution. We will soon lose height, too, if we continue bending over like we are.
DeleteBrilliant!
ReplyDeleteShine a light on it.
DeleteWell, that turned out to be an easy fix!
ReplyDeleteFor once.
DeleteSo often the simplest of solutions are the most effective.
ReplyDeleteYes, but they can be difficult to think of.
DeleteWith a bit of thinking, one could find a solution to most issues. I do, and am sometimes proud of myself.
ReplyDeleteIt's very satisfying to do so. I think I psychology is set up to like solving problems.
DeleteMy oldest granddaughter has just begun her OT degree. I think she plans to work with special needs children, but maybe she'll have pointers for me someday.
ReplyDeleteOTs work in many different areas. It is possibly the most under-recognised health professions of all. Some people still think it is about keeping patients happy with activities like basket making; an idea that is decades out of date.
DeleteWhoot! There you go!
ReplyDeleteThere you go!
Delete'Make do and mend' is an old saying but somehow we have fallen slave to ultra smart kitchen furniture. Ikea is a magic factory of things that solve problems but of course it fills your drawers as well!
ReplyDeleteI don't really like the place. It is set up to make you buy loads of stuff you don't really want. "Got to grow the economy" say the politicians. Alternatively, we could all live simpler lives and make fewer demands on the world.
DeleteI have the opposite problem. I am 5 foot 2 inches and shrinking as I age. At this rate, the work surfaces will soon be at eye level!
ReplyDeleteIf only we did not age. Some seem to fair better than others.
Delete