I got a microwave from the generosity of my neighbor, which is great because now I can just nuke things for 2 minutes without having to heat it on the stovetop. BUT, now I have absolutely no counter space. This wouldn't be a problem if I ate out each meal or didn't like to cook, but neither scenario is true. So now I feel like I need to redesign the layout of my kitchen, even though there's not much I can switch around, or if I am staying in Balt for another 2 years, find a new apt with a better kitchen. Doesn't really seem worth it just for a bigger kitchen, but I have no room to even cut a vegetable at this point. I'm thinking about getting something like this butcher block that I can place ontop of my stove when I'm preparing food. Now the challenge is getting out to Ikea.