Grocery Shopping Can be Fun!
Sure, moving away from home is liberating, but yet there are so many things we take for granted when we live with our parents or other family members. Kinda makes you feel a little grateful… But, along with independence comes the glorious feeling of knowing that you can now do these things on your own… sometimes with a little difficulty, but we always make it through.
The Apartments.com 2nd Annual Room to Move winner, Valerie Seimas, was kind enough to share with us some of her growing pains!
I have a sign hanging in my kitchen. “The four basic food groups are served here: Frozen, Canned, Take-Out, Microwave.” It’s funny and true. Not that I can’t cook. I can, and at times I am actually good at it (when I remember to turn the oven timer on and don’t get distracted by reruns of Friends). But it’s amazing what apartment living can teach you.
For instance, have you ever tried going to the grocery store alone? Not that I haven’t gone hundreds of times with my mother, who hates to bag her own groceries but refuses to go to a place that charges a cent more so someone can do it for you. But my mother was organized: she went every weekend and had the list. I thought, hey, there’s only one of me. I know what I want, who really needs a list. Guess what? I did. Sure I remembered the important stuff: cheese, soda, ice cream. But it’s kind of hard to make a sandwich without bread. Or chicken salad without chicken. Do you know for the first month of freedom, I still bought yogurt. I hate yogurt (you don’t want to get me started) but I still bought it, like my mother was going to peek into my grocery cart and give me one of those looks that says I should eat more vegetables. Well, I haven’t eaten spinach for 9 months, ha! I do keep buying the bags of lettuce and bunches of grapes that then spoil and I then throw away. I guess I just shouldn’t try to buy groceries for the healthy eater I want to be. I’ve also done a great job of spoiling things in my fridge by leaving the door wide open during the day. This whole living alone and cooking thing is hard work. Especially since I don’t like to eat leftovers (lasagna, again?). But, it’s all worth it since I don’t have to eat yogurt anymore. Just remember, what happens in the kitchen, stays in the kitchen . . . no one has to know about the burnt quiche, the undercooked hamburger, or the disappearing cartons of ice cream. That’s what NOT living at home is all about.
Here’s a couple shopping tips that might just help out with your grocery excursions.
- Don’t go shopping for food when you’re hungry. You’re more apt to pick up the Doritos and Milky Way bars and you’ll probably pick up much more than you’ll really need.
- Shop when the store is less crowded, usually in the morning or on Wednesdays. That way you can really take the time to think about what it is that you need versus what you want.
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