Jeff led Maggie into the kitchen ‘Happy Birthday,’ he said, handing her a box. Maggie’s heart sank, and she struggled to form a response that didn’t sound accusing or mean. ‘A Nutribullet?’

‘This will revolutionise our diet’ he said, removing the chrome blender from its box, a shower of polystyrene falling onto the floor. ‘I saw in on TV, and thought, my Maggie will love one of those.’

Maggie squinted at the box. ‘Isn't it just a blender? Like the one you bought me last Christmas?’

Jeff stood back and gazed at the Nutribullet before turning to Maggie with a grin. ‘This is much more than a blender. Oh yes, much more.’ He started to read from the back of the box. ‘It has a powerful 800 watt motor. We’ll get all of our five a day in one delicious smoothie.’

Smoothie, Maggie thought, I've managed the first fifty six years of my life without a smoothie, I'll be damned if I'm starting now. She turned to Jeff and forced a smile. ‘Thanks love.’

Jeff’s obsession with buying the latest household gadgets had led to a revolution of sorts. These labour saving devices might have saved Maggie hours in the kitchen, but the drain on their bank account meant that she now had to work those extra hours for Nancy at the wool shop.

New washing machines, the latest Dyson, a state of the art American fridge freezer. Sandwich toasters, slow cookers, spiralisers. None of those came cheap, and Jeff’s salary as a stationary salesman barely covered the monthly repayments. ‘Don’t worry, love,’ he’d said whenever she raised an eyebrow at the credit card statement at the end of the month ‘Kids will always need pencil cases.’ But she did worry. It frustrated her that Jeff frittered away all of their money on this junk, items they didn’t need, each accompanied by the promise that it would revolutionise some aspect of their life.

And yet they had lived in the same house their whole married life. Jeff had been with the same firm in the same role the entire time. They had holidayed in the same caravan park on the Dorset coast every year for thirty four years. The ever changing landscape of electrical devices was the only sign of progress in Maggie’s life. If a revolution was coming, she thought grimly, it wouldn't be the result of something Jeff bought at Currys.

Two men from the house clearance company turned up that afternoon. One loaded the kitchen appliances into the back of a van whilst the other counted out ten pound notes into Maggie's hand. ‘That too?’ he said, pointing at the Nutribullet but Maggie shook her head. Whatever she thought of Jeff, she wouldn’t deprive him of his five a day. She slipped off her wedding ring and dropped it into the envelope alongside the letter for Jeff. Taking one last look around the empty kitchen, she headed outside to where Nancy was waiting.