As I was reading McMillan's book she mentioned that she belongs to a food co-op, works from home and is able to spend leisurely days cooking if she so desires. She is single and can spend as much or as little on food as she wants; this is her food reality. She goes on to talk about how her food reality would be different if she had a family AND was in a different tax bracket.
This got me thinking about my current food reality; I previously shared my food reality growing up (read it here). Like McMillan, I'm single and although I work outside the house, I only work part time so most days I get home pretty early. What that means is that I can have 3-hour, 3-course meals on a weekday if I so desire. I don't have to worry about feeding a family (no picky or close-minded eaters) and I can experiment with different foods. I am a foodie who loves international cuisine and world flavors.
Most of the time I will sacrifice convenience to save money and get the best bang for my buck. I go to several different stores all over the city and buy only what's on sale at each location. I might add that my graduate research assistant salary is rather limited, but because I live to eat as opposed to eat to live, so I allocate a healthy (pun intended) budget for food. I took a survey somewhere online a few months ago that asked, "Do you spend more money on clothing and shoes or food?" I thought long and hard about the question (I answered the question quickly, but thought about it for some time after). All of my friends, Instagram and Pinterest followers know that I'm a shopaholic that loves shoes more than anything, but even with my bursting closet I know that I spend more money on food. I can go months without buying an article of clothing, while I have to eat everyday!
For the last 8 months I have been dedicated to staying away from processed foods. Making everything from bread, muffins, and granola bars to salsa, sauces, marinades, and condiments. But as I continued to think on my food reality, I realized that it was different when I worked and went to school full time. I had a very strict schedule, working from 8 to 5 Monday through Friday, then school from 6 to 9 Monday through Wednesday and then again Saturday morning. I tried to cook multiple meals on weekends for the following week, but that didn't always happen with other errands to run and other chores to do. Not to mention doing homework. I didn't have hours to do anything let alone cook. I ate what was available to me.
The only grocery store near me at the time was Sav-A-Lot. The prices are are great but the fresh produce section is limited. I bought mostly fresh fruit when it was acceptable and romaine or iceberg lettuce. They also have a pretty good selection of meat; mostly low priced cuts like assorted pork chops, chicken leg quarters, and 73/27 ground beef. To their credit, they do carry boneless skinless chicken breast, pork loin, and ground turkey on special so I would stock up during those times. Without the luxury of time (mainly to get to the grocery stores, but also to cook), I settled for what was around and made special trips to a Walmart Supercenter in Baltimore County. I'd stock up on things that were quick and easy to prepare. I bought ramen noodles, frozen fries and frozen vegetables, banquet dinners, canned soups, snack crackers, applesauce and fruit cups; all processed, all fairly unhealthy. I knew that my choices weren't the healthiest, but I felt trapped by my time restraints. That was my food reality and I'm so glad it has changed. Whats yours?
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