You know it’s great when you have friends who think about you when they’ve received a windfall or a gift and they turn around and present you with a gift. That’s what happened to Crystal and me recently. We have some friends in Waldport that got a new small Rotisserie cooker from the woman’s father. They already had one and know we like to cook and BBQ so they asked if we’d like their old Rotisserie. The Farberware Open Hearth Electric Boiler Rotisserie would be a perfect addition to our household especially as the weather turns to Oregon Coast wet and BBQing gets harder to do.
Our friends are big believers in giving something useful to someone who would appreciate and knew we would use it. After I went and picked up the little beauty I stopped at the market and grabbed a Cornish game head and headed back to Yachats to fire it up and try a style of Rotisserie cooking which I’d never done. After lining the drip pan with tinfoil for easy cleanup I placed the game hen in position and plugged in the Rotisserie motor which began turning the game hen. Next I plugged in the cord leading to the heating element and bam; smoke and sparks started flying. I quickly unplugged both cords and stood back. After a couple of minutes I decided to try the heading element again and this time there were no sparks but the element didn’t heat up! So at this moment the project was a flop but we’d been in Salem earlier in the week and at the Value Village Thrift Center they had a similar Rotisserie without the Rotisserie motor. They were selling the heating element minus the cord for two dollars so the next day when we had to return to Salem for another appointment we picked up the heating element. Once back in Yachats armed with another Cornish game hen I plugged in the new element and nothing. Turns out it wasn’t the element that was messed up it was the cord. Little sparks were jumping around in the head of the cord so that was quickly pulled. Now I began a trek to find a new cord. I searched online and they were available for a price plus shipping so I started off to the local hardware stores and they all had cords but they were all the wrong size. At our last stop I was about to give up when a woman overheard us talking about not being able to find the right size cord and asked to see the one I had. I showed it to here and she said; “I have a cord like this. My husband and I have the same kind of unit you have but our Rotisserie motor is burned out. You can have the cord.” When I went to pick up the cord she also game another heating element. It was amazing, the kindness of a total stranger who basically said “you can make a complete deal out of this and I’m glad to be able to help.”
So today we have three heating elements, two Rotisserie bases and one cord. Thus I’m heading to the market for another game hen and tonight I’ll put it on the Rotisserie. It should work, the cord works, the heating element works and the motor does! All of this and all the goodness of friends should make this a special meal and if anyone out there needs a heating element; email me!!
To reach Rick Schultze: email yarick@pioneer.net.
