an education in groceries

Addie and I went all by ourselves to a real American grocery store this morning. It's sad how excited I was for this. We went down every isle and Addie helped me pick some yummy things out (Addie had to have the rainbow colored Goldfish crackers). I was walking around exclaiming every few minutes about the immense amount of selection for every single item. I'm sure the lady next to us thought I was crazy when I exclaimed "look at all the choices!". Americans really do have too many choices. There are literally gazillions types of cereal now. Cheerios come in chocolate and banana nut flavors? Crazy! I also can't believe there is only two brand choices of soy sauce but an entire section for salad dressings. We picked out some very expensive but beautiful produce. I was very excited for the yogurt (we got yummy organic vanilla). The cheese section overwhelmed me beyond words. There is every type of cheese in every shape and size.

I am a little disgusted by how much convenience and prepackaged food is on the market. It's probably always been there but I'm only now noticing. I didn't even buy any cheese because it all kind of freaked me out. I mean how lazy can we all be that there is this big of a market for pre-grated cheese? I definitely used to buy the "Italian blend cheese" grated in a bag. It was much faster, I recall, but grating it is not that big of a deal. Maybe I've forgotten how Americans really want things fast and now! The faster the better and I guess those few extra minutes it takes to grate a cup of cheese just can't be spared.

I've been thinking about big Cheez-its for a few months now so I had to pick up a box. I have fond memories of munching on these during our last R&R with Joe and Elyse when I was pregnant with Arabella. In my head they taste so good. When I munched one at lunch I was totally grossed out. They taste oily and fake cheesy and just plain gross. Living in SE Asia has changed my eating habits so significantly that I really just want a plate of fish and rice, maybe some stir fry. I know I've been living in the Philippines too long when I'm not even longing for a Chipotle burrito-and I could drive to Chipotle right now! I'm a little weirded out by it all.

I have been indulging in Oregon strawberries (the best in the world) and bagels with cream cheese. Yum! There are no good bagels in the P.I. The shopping trip was definitely a re-education for me. You forget so easily! Addie was loving it.