I headed to the grocery store to stock up on Easter supplies. Maybe your Easter menu is like mine? Ham, baked potatoes, asparagus, fresh fruit salad and cake make up my Easter dinner. The most important items on my list included malted milk Easter eggs and Brach’s maple cream eggs. I buy at least five bags of the malted milk eggs because this is the only time they are available. They freeze well and are even better eaten right from the freezer. Maple nut eggs covered in chocolate are a standby from my childhood days of hunting for my Easter basket. Jelly beans and peeps are not for me.
I headed to the produce department in the store first. Lacking willpower, I pick up the candy last. Buying lots of fresh produce assuages my guilt for buying all that candy. Approaching the squash bin, I noticed a woman in a motorized scooter and a tall man with a rutabaga in his hand. They were arguing over their grocery budget, and the woman announced that rutabagas were not on the list while the man countered that they should be! As I picked up an acorn squash they looked at me and asked my opinion. I wasn’t even wearing my referee uniform. Stuttering to give me time to get an opinion that would be diplomatic, I suggested that they should make the grocery list together. At that moment the woman zoomed away on her scooter and her husband picked up another rutabaga and smiled broadly. Not feeling very competent about my problem solving skills, I moved quickly to the paper products aisle.
As I was trying to find a healthy choice soup, the same woman motored up to me and in a hissy voice asked why I had not supported her about the budget and her list. Realizing that I couldn’t outrun the scooter, I put on my calm voice and suggested that maybe she should shop alone. With heavy duty sighing she informed me that she tried to sneak out of the house without him, but he had cut her off in the garage and hopped into the car. Trying to be agreeable I replied that taking a husband to the grocery store is like taking two children. She relaxed and laughed and coyly asked if my husband shopped with me. Truthfully I explained that my husband hated to shop. Sighing again, she replied that all the good men were taken as she motored away from me.
I usually enjoy grocery shopping but that day it had become stressful. Trying to calm my mind I noticed all the shoppers around me. A cute old couple were holding hands as they shopped. I realized that he was leaning heavily on the shopping cart and she was helping to keep him stable. Still they were smiling and not looking for a referee. In a another aisle I encountered a “SUPER SHOPPING COUPLE.” The kind that downloads coupons and compares prices in other stores on their phones. This was serious business for them as they estimated their savings on this trip. I don’t do that so I immediately felt like a spendthrift. Which put me in a bad mood again.
I cautiously approached the spice aisle looking for the scooter lady. She was not in the spice aisle, so I put on a happy face. Then a young man asked me if I knew where to find paprika. Good grief maybe I should get a job in this store. Not with good grace did I help him find it. He was so grateful that I felt ashamed of myself and asked if he was just learning to cook. He replied that his mother was teaching him but he had to learn quickly because he was going blind. I swear on a stack of Bibles I am not making this up.
I vowed to be a kinder and more helpful person. At least my eyes were ok. The rest of the shoppers I encountered were the grab-and-go type. They were on a mission where speed was essential so they asked me no questions. Who knew there were so many grocery shopping styles? Maybe I should have my groceries delivered.
Some people eat an Easter brunch so this is a recipe they could use.
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April 05, 2021 at 09:52PM
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A Little of This A Little Of That - Fillmore County Journal
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