Grocery shopping has
never been a chore for me, and in recent years it has become a rather pleasant
task, one that I look forward to doing.
Over the years I’ve fallen into somewhat of a routine, doing most of my
shopping at one of our local Krogers super markets, as well as our seasonal
famer’s market. I suppose I
averaged 2 to 3 visits a week to either one.
During our “year of
pasta”, the shopping became somewhat predictable; there were the usual staples that
I kept on hand, fresh, frozen, or canned, often in excess of our actual
need. My reasoning was, it would
eventually all get used.
Everything changed this summer.
Two things were
responsible for the change: first was our decision to go to a plant based diet,
and second was the opening of the Midtown Market, about 29 blocks from our
home.
Our new eating habits,
motivated by not so desirable cholesterol numbers, is basically vegetarian,
with limited seafood, no red meat, and limited dairy and fats. We are even developing a taste for whole-wheat
pasta…at least for selected brands.
Since we are eating so much fresh produce that has limited shelf life,
it is necessary to buy only what will be used in the next 2 days, especially
for the greens. The root veggies allow
us more time. I suspect I could
make the shopping more efficient if I planned a careful weekly menu…and followed
it. But that is something I’ve
never been able to do, thus the frequent trips to the market.
For a long time I’ve
harbored a fantasy of walking to a market in our neighborhood every day to buy
the fresh foods for our evening meal, something not very practical in our
circumstances. Driving the 2 or 3
miles to Krogers would not be the same.
Then, in the spring of this year, a young man opened a new food market,
featuring fresh produce, meats, and a variety of organic and non-organic gourmet
staples and specialty items.
The locally owned
Midtown Market is a short 22 blocks from our home, and the quick, easy drive
there brings me one step closer to my fantasy. I love shopping there, and I do just that, at least 5 times
a week, getting only what I need for the evening dinner…OK…some times I buy
impulsively, but that only supports a local enterprise, right?