Food Stupid

So there we were, 7:42 at night, walking through the isles of Martin's Supermarket trying to decide what we needed for that night's dinner. It had already been a long day that was made longer with the realization that there was no food at home.

No food at home? I could have sworn that the refrigerator has something on every shelf; that the pantry is full top to bottom; that the freezer holds something edible. No food at home?

"Remember when we weren't 'food stupid' and made great meals?" I decided to throw out the question that had been plaguing me since the vegetable and fruits section.

"Food stupid? What do you mean by that?" Kim shot back as if both puzzled and defensive by my comment.

"I remember meals that we use to have which contained a main dish, a side vegetable, and even a carb or two. We use to plan our meals,... talk about our meals,... set out tableware for our meals. Now it's frozen pizza, fish sticks, spaghetti, or grilled cheese sandwiches with chips. We can't even think of what makes a decent meal now-a-days," there,... I had said it. I wasn't pointing blame, I was defining defeat.

And there we stood by the meat department - dumbfounded. The realization of life at light speed had hit us. The fact that it was now 7:54 and we hadn't even broached the checkout line with tonight's feast of 'I haven't a clue'.

"I never thought of it that way, but you're right," Kim had that look on her face like a child learning a factoid for the first time.

With a smile towards one another we walked on in happy stupidity for tonight would be no different from the night before. We could order out food like nobody's business, but when it came to down home cooking,... it would be left in the dark for another night. It was late,.. we were exhausted,... and grilled cheese sandwiches and chips sounded perfect by the time we hit the dairy products.