Toy story: The kitchen edition

So many of my gadgets now live in the attic, but each has brought me joy. Do I overdo it sometimes? Well, we must live a little, I say

- Swetha Sivakumar

'm Swetha, and I'm an appliance junkie... It feels good to finally say it. Some people have secret bank accounts. Others lie about how much they spent on concert tickets. I find myself defending my desire to buy a new kitchen appliance, every few months. It's a heated topic of debate in our household.

I feel real joy unboxing a new item and discovering what it can do. As an engineer, I also appreciate the thought and design that goes into these machines.

The thing is, most are only built to do one job really well. So it can all kind of add up. I have a cast-iron pan for eggs and toast. But I also truly believe I need my panini-maker. It is excellent at quickly and consistently compressing and browning bread.

I also love my rice cooker, which knows when the water has evaporated, and switches off automatically when a certain temperature threshold is breached.