刚从美国买来的吸尘器被烧掉了。

What did I learn from today’s vacuum cleaner experience?

I followed every procedure to assemble the cleaner, and was proud of myself by conducting a thorough research of checking Amazon’s vacuum cleaner page( BISSEL 9995A is the highest reviewed one).

I bought it from Amazon, and waited for half a month for its delivery, and finally when it arrived in a Hugh rectangular-shaped cupboard box, I was excited and can’t wait to use it. “ Days of  mopping floor with hard labor are over,” I told myself as if the vacuum cleaner somehow is a magician, and can solve all my life’s tough problems! 

It took almost 5 minutes to open the box, and the moment I saw the cleaner, my heart sunk – it’s too heavy and bulky! Standing right in the tiny kitchen, the robot-like cleaner took 1/5 of the precious space. It also smelled cheap – the smell of the toxic and low quality plastic. Worst of all, I saw no Storing space anywhere from the machine to hold the 2-meter-long electric cord ( the cord can be automatically stored in my last Panasonic cleaner)  Still, I was hopeful at the moment that its powerful cleaning power would compensate for all its flaws.

It didn’t.

After 30 minutes of watching You-tube self-help videos, I happily assembled the cleaner ( yes, it has to be assembled, and reading the instruction wouldn’t help). I knew I need a Voltage Transformer for the machine, and it should meet the US standard (220 V).

when planning for a South American trip last year, I bought a “universal” standard Voltage Transform for emergency cases. "It should fit." After all, it's "universal." Buying one now would take days for its delivery. 

One careless decision can change one's life instantly,and this is the worst mistake I have ever made…

I plugged in the machine with the transformer on,and the moment I turned the cleaner on, the thunder-like noise shocked me to the core！ When reading its review, I expected of its louder noise compared with other models due to its size and cleaning power, but not this!!!

One minute later,the more dramatic scene appeared! A wave of toxic smell of burning plastic hovered my whole living room. At the time, I was still trying to ease my anger from its noise. And then, the machine just paralyzed, and die while a new wave of suffocating black smoke emitted out of it.

I started to experience some headaches and slight nausea, and immediately poured water on it!

The living room was a mess; The machine could have exploded!

The “evil” transformer burnt my 1500RMB+ vacuum cleaner!

I left my room with a huge surge of anger and frustration. It was too much too handle; it’s unfair, and my life is dramatic enough for this to happen.

30 minutes after, in a café, after a coffee, and a few cakes, I was feeling a bit better. Looking back, I was too confident about my assembling ability, and too confident that my “ universal transformer could fit gadgets from any country. I should have bought a 220 V transformer.

I was just too impulsive and impatient. I wanted to clean my room too desperately!

I wanted a quick fix for my room, and my life!

Unfortunately, one of my life biggest lessons is to slow down, and be patient!

"心急吃不了热豆腐"

The best birthday gift ever is this big life lesson.