I am not sure why I hoard food...I am not terrible about it, but I do do it. I fit right in when I lived in Utah. Mormons are well known for food storage. I am also a very good food shopper...cashing in on great deals combined with coupons and store loyalty programs. I have frequently saved more than 50% on my grocery tab by clipping coupons and shopping with the sales. Many a time I have held the checkout line as a captive audience while my overflowing cart of food gets cheaper and cheaper, leaving them in awe at the savings, even drawing applause on one occasion. As our eating habits have morphed toward more healthful (i.e. less processed) choices, my coupon savings have dwindled. I imagine that I will no longer be able to stock up on specials like my most recent purchase of 30 bell peppers at $0.64 per pepper which were sliced up and frozen, in an RV. My larder size will decrease by 80% or more!! I certainly wont have a pantry
and a baking cabinet!
Oh my, will I even bake while on the road? Surely, I will find a way to do that! But my habit of buying a cart load every time I visit the store will have to end. I will no longer have a chest freezer and a 22 cu ft freezer fridge combo!
Yesterday I went to the store and in my mind I had already had this discussion, but I still came home with nearly $200 worth of weekly groceries that were promptly added to my larder...most of it will not be used this week. Today, as I looked through it all I had to vocalize to the family that
I MUST stop doing this. I must learn to live with less storage and that means less food. The thought of it causes me some stress. I am so accustomed to having plenty that I don't even see that it is actually excess! This is the story of our lives anymore and it really hits home today that I do not want my kids to be raised this way. Recently a friend of mine posted this
link on his facebook. My children definitely enjoy chocolate less than I did as a kid...they get it too often! Living a simple life is going to help us to take pleasure in the pleasures in life again! I can't wait.
Until then, we set about killing old habits and forming new ones...we will keep you posted!
With teenage boys, you'll have to find a way to store food-you don't want to go to the supermarket every other day! And that was you holding up the checkout line? I'm envious of your savings, but they need to have a special queue for people like you.
ReplyDeleteI agree. I get embarrassed when people are impatient behind me. I also use so many coupons that the registers require an override from a manager. It would be nice if there was a queue that didn't do that!
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