Our steam iron quit working the other day. While it still irons, it no longer steams. So, I was instructed to purchase a new one.

When I arrived at Meijer’s (regional grocery chain), I thought that I could just swing by the household section and grab one. But a quick check of the small appliance section was fruitless. Humm, maybe with the vacuum cleaners. Nope. TVs? Not likely. Maybe they no longer carry steam irons.

Certain that the irons had to be in the household section , I began cruising the isles. If I could find the ironing boards, the irons would probably be next to them. Suddenly, as I rounded the corner, there they were, the steam irons.

Now, while they had about a dozen steam irons to choose from, they were all crammed together on a shelf maybe 5 feet long. It certainly was not a tidy display like the toaster ovens in the appliance section, but they were, none the less, the steam irons.

They had some that came in neon designer colors. They were interesting but I couldn’t find any in stock. Besides, no one is going to see it any way.

Some models had digital controls for precise heat. Precise heat? I use two setting, cotton and polyester so digital controls would be a waste for me.

One model in particular had digital controls and came with its own carrying case. I guess the case was so that you could transport it to ironing contests. It was in stock for $29.95. Great! No wait, that was $129.95. I guess that is why it was in stock.

Since it was becoming impossible to match the display models with what was in stock, I decided to use a different approach. Instead of looking at the displays first, I started looking at what was in stock and then looking for the display model.

Finally, I found one for $24.95. No designer colors, no digital display, just a plain ordinary steam iron. Mission accomplished.