A Quarter Well Spent

Ah, a breather! I just returned home from a task I am generally loathe to do. Grocery shopping. I love to smell, see and taste food, but I don't really like the process of writing my list, scanning the aisles, waiting in the slowest moving check-out line, lugging groceries into the house and finally putting them away. Grocery shopping is a task I put off for as long as I can - my record is almost 2 months for a major trip. Of course I make runs to the store for milk, eggs, chocolate, etc., during my shopping hiatuses (hiati?).

I naturally have my system worked out for the usually once-a-month major trips that include purchasing everything from bananas to bathroom cleaner. (Hey - you have to have a plan if you want to get enough stuff so that you don't have to do this again for another 4 weeks.) And the first stop is Aldi (the one on Shawnee Mission Parkway.)


I love that place! It's small, there's not much of a selection, produce can be iffy, you have to bring your own bags if you don't want to pay extra for paper or plastic, etc., but to get the basics, Aldi is a great place. And what makes Aldi so great (besides the fact that my dollar stretches pretty far there) is the section in the middle of the store where they just have....stuff. Indiscriminate stuff. Clothing, electronics, sporting equipment.... Nothing is ever in large supply, but it's there it sits(or hangs.) There might be three jackets and one Huffy bicycle and four DVD players, but the prices on those items are as remarkable as the prices on the foodstuffs.

The most arbitrary item I've ever spotted is a multi-lingual electronic dictionary - you know, the kind where you type in a word and it spits out the translation in whatever language you want. And this must be why I think Aldi is a fun place. See, I went on my mission (to Japan) over 14 years ago, and japanese/english electronic dictionaries were the thing (among the elders - I have to clarify that part. Sister missionaries, I think, were not really competitive with who knew the most words or the most obscure kanji (japanese character.) Ryan says that's because we were all too busy baking cookies! Yeah? Well, Ryan, who taught you mannenhistu?)

Okay, I diverge. But the point is, I like the randomness of Aldi. My friend Miss L's husband (we'll call him by the moniker she gave him - Super J) says that even in Europe, Aldi stores are like that - canned goods and contingent goods. I guess Aldi recognizes the importance of consistent inconsistency in today's topsy-turvey world.

So, today, I must:

1. Reiterate my thankfulness for Aldi.
2. State my thankfulness that I am able physically as well as fiscally to grocery shop.
3. Give gratitude for the abundance that fills my pantry.