I spent Saturday morning grocery shopping, hoping to complete the task before the craziness set in. I strolled down the aisles amazed at the empty shelves. No bread. No eggs. No potatoes. No peanut butter. No toilet paper. All the things that I needed - not things I was hoarding.
I was stocked and ready for our self-quarantine for several weeks. Or so I thought.
Sunday afternoon was the day to make spaghetti sauce. The fragrant onions and garlic sauteed in the pot while I mixed the spices of oregano, basil, salt, and pepper. I add the tomatoes and let it slowly simmer filling the house with its tangy aroma.
Monday I realized I had forgotten the "spaghetti bread" when I shopped on Saturday. I was faced with a dilemma: do I go back out to the store or do I stay home and eat the bread we have. My husband and I were just talking about the new announcements on closing restaurants in Indiana and staying home and the importance of taking social distancing seriously. I know I need to cut down on my frequent trips to the store, especially to get just one item.
But I just wanted spaghetti bread.
Our meal with homemade spaghetti sauce and cheese ravioli was complete...along with the spaghetti bread.
This is going to be so hard.
Please join Two Writing Teachers and the annual Slice of Life March Challenge.
If there’s something I need, I’m going to the store. There’s only so much home time I can handle. I’m not hoarding. Today I need to venture to the mall and pay a bill. I don’t think I’ll encounter many people. In a couple days I need to fill my thyroid meds. I won’t be hanging out in bars and restaurants or taking vacations or going to concerts. But dang I’m not giving up bread!
ReplyDeleteI, too, am a frequent grocery store visitor. I like to buy what a need for the next few days. This will be hard for me. I'm going to make the effort to make due with what I have and not go out unnecessarily. Your spaghetti sauce sounds delicious. I'm hoping to do some more cooking and baking during our 2 weeks of elearning. My daughter is home indefinitely from college. I will take this time to teach her some things about the kitchen!
ReplyDeleteSince I have been cleaning my attic again this morning, I am not hungry after reading your post, Leigh Anne. I love bread and try not to have it in the house too much. I broke down and bought an Irish soda bread because I do not make it. Yum, I am ready to eat. Social distancing is difficult but staying in the house is very hard. I peeked outside. It stopped raining. Time to take a walk.
DeleteI had to buy regular milk, no Soy, no Organic, just good old fashioned milk in a jug. We can adapt, but I'm not good at planning meals too far ahead. I'm making a stock pot soup today. I forgot one ingredient, but I wasn't going back. We'll see if it's missed.
ReplyDeleteThis. This is also me.
ReplyDeleteIt’s the equivalent of touching my face.
I’m ridiculous. And spoiled. (And currently really darn appreciative of how blessed I actually am.)
Food is comforting. I made mashed potatoes today. In a long run we need to become creative in cooking and adapt to using what we have. And when we eventually go back to normal, we hopefully appreciate the little thing even more than now.
ReplyDeleteYou captured the struggle that many of us are facing day-to-day. Love your description of your usual routine being interrupted. What I think makes this time much more challenging is finding compromises with the freedom that we're accustomed to having. Life, day to day, right now is more stressful and having those creature comforts are needed even more than ever. And sometimes, we need to have our needs met because spaghetti bread will give you exactly the tlc you need in that moment.
ReplyDeleteWe have developed such automatic responses (run to the store for this or that, etc.) that it is hard to stop doing them! I suppose we will get there, though. Perhaps this thing will be short-lived and we can get back to our normal lives.
ReplyDelete