When kitchen tools go bad

When I came home yesterday, I heard a beeping noise at my front door. I leaned in, it seemed louder; I took a few steps back and it was definitely quieter. A high-pitched non-stop beeping nose definitely coming from in my house. I look around - no smoke, no smell of smoke. But I better get in and find out what it is right away!

I struggled with the keys in the door and the cats, both near the door, looking crazy-eyed and trying to get out. All the time I am wondering what it is - battery on the fire alarm? Or maybe the CO2 alarm? Dave's old cell phone back from the dead? A neighbor's cell phone (yes, we can hear our neighbors cell phones ring fairly often)? The alarm clock? I check the thermometer that radios a detector outside to report the temp just outside the house and which has acted up in the past. It is fine, but the noise is louder. I hurry into the kitchen and find the source:


Yes, there it is! And it's beeping uncontrollably. I press stop. Still it flashes "66 66 66.66" and "time" and "up" and "down". Every symbol on it is flashing and beeping. I try to rip the batteries out, but I don't have a penny on me. I start hitting all the buttons. It stops after about a minute. The cats are crazed and dazed. The thing seems fine now. I remove the batteries anyway. Time for a new kitchen timer, I'd say.