good intentions

English: Vegetables. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I just threw out my good intentions. Something like throwing the baby out with the bath water. (Doesn’t that turn of phase seem so wrong?)

One of my many jobs around the house is taking out the garbage—and I do not really mind because no one else can really purge the house of the unwanted like I can. But today I purged my fridge and had to throw out some fresh green beans (okay they were fresh about two weeks ago), a red pepper hiding at the back of the fridge on the bottom shelf instead of in the crisper (where I hide my wine which is why there was no room for it), some cucumbers, mouldy cheddar cheese (ouch!), two lonely meatballs, something mysterious wrapped in tin foil, and a couple of potatoes that got lost in the shuffle. I also went through the cupboards and found some mouldy bread and a container of something that used to be something else (don’t ask).

I really hate throwing out food, and find that when I am busy with other things my grocery buying skills are skewed. I buy too much, thinking I am going to make healthy wonderful meals, then get too busy to really fix anything other than the easy.

The lesson I learned today is to use what I have and not allow myself to go to the grocery store until the supplies are wanting. One of the things that I find I do when I am a bit stressed is fill the larder—it is a kind of security in an insecure world.

The good news? My fridge is cleaner and I can actually see what I have. The even better news? I found my jar of blackberry jam I have been looking for in the last couple of weeks. Toasted English muffin and jam, with a spot of tea here I come!

They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Mine is paved with rotten vegetables.