I must admit that when I read something starting with “I was today years old” I’m left feeling smug. I‘m something of a pedant, so I know “today” isn’t a number (unless you’re measuring it relative to an epoch) and therefore the construction doesn‘t really make sense, but that’s not my complaint, because the phrase conveys a meaning rather neatly.
The issue is that my usual reaction is “well, yes,” but then I’m probably two or three times the age of most of the people reporting their experiences, so I’ve had a lot more time to learn about all sorts of things*.
However, ”I was today years old when I realised I’d been using my electric kettle wrong.”
To be clear, I’ve been using electric kettles since I was in primary school, so I‘ve had the basics off pat for a long time.
But we‘ve owned a particular model of kettle for about six years, and my main complaint was that the lid didn’t open very far (only to about 45 degrees) when you press the ”open” button. I’ve seen several reviews of this product that made the same point.
But I discovered by accident (literally, as the kettle slipped in my hand while filling) that after pressing the button you can push the lid open until it latches at around 90 degrees, making it much easier to fill.
No, it’s not mentioned in the instructions, and yes, you have to push harder than you might normally risk for fear of breaking the lid or its hinge.
Not life changing, but it does make life just a little bit easier, as well as reducing the risk of chipping the finish on the kettle’s rim.
*Yes, I did know that the word “footage” refers to the fact that motion picture film is measured in feet. No, whatever you think, the hole in a ring pull isn’t there to hold a drinking straw.
