I am giving up grocery shopping.
Why? you may ask.
Welllll... when you have a pantry that looks like this:
And you do the math of
1 adult with a sporadic appetite + a 2 year old who subsists on leftover Halloween candy and warm milk =
No one to eat the zillion cans of food that were "best by 2008".
Why else?
- Someday I might, just might move from this house and I don't want to bring 400 pounds of food with me [again].
- I'm saving every single penny for new photography equipment.
- Currently, grocery store trips = 85% junk food, and I'm trying to eat healthier. (I think the two flats of French green beans that were best by 09/2008 will help with that.)
- It's something to do. And I like a challenge.
SO! Do you want in on the fun? I know you do. Hazard a guess at when Alaina will give in and buy a real item of food at the store (exceptions are listed below in the details). The winner will receive a family/individual/couple photo shoot, or some other grand prize if you don't want a shoot/you're too far away/too ugly etc. Leave your date in the comments. I will compile them on March 10th (voting deadline) and then not look at them again until the day I give in, so as not to sway the preceise date of my cave-in. Closest date wins.
Details:
1. I am allowed to buy milk, eggs, cheese/sour cream, and bread (which I never buy, but might have to in order to make a dent in the 5 jars of peanut butter.)
2. I can buy meat (ground beef and chicken) ONLY for cooking with other ingredients already in my pantry. (read: no roast beef dinners, no grilled chicken alone, etc.)
3. I can buy fresh fruits & vegetables (which if you know me at all, you know these aren't ever something I crave.)
4. FYI: Mon-Thurs I eat lunch free at work. So I am gettin' some variety there. Just a heads up for your calculations.
5. My frequency of eating out will not increase - so maybe once a week I buy a chalupa or Wendy's chili, etc - I'm a cheapskate.
There's no real science to how this equation is going to pan out... it's a toss-up between my appetite boredom & how quickly I run out of the most edible ingredients :)
Lastly, for your entertainment, a shot of the 9 open boxes of cereal on my top shelf (with 10 unopened boxes hiding behind them)....
23 comments:
Oooh, what a fun challenge. Okay, I'm guessing one month from the day you start. So, if you start today then you'll go to the store on April 2nd. I've done this a several times for weeks at a time simply because I didn't want to take all my kids to the grocery store! :) But, I've never done it semi-long term. If I did it I would have to add pasta and brown rice to my exceptions list. The part about "too ugly" made me laugh. :) Good luck! Let us know what kind of meals your making!
I'm so in! Let's see, the fact that you've got lunches already lined up several days of the week... plus you've allowed yourself all sorts of fresh things to buy... makes me think you'll be able to last longer than I might originally guess. Unless you get really a serious craving or get really bored. Hmmmm... I'll say April 6th.
And for the record, I'm the cereal queen. I have 22 boxes in my pantry currently, and have occasionally gotten up to around 30. It's sort of an obsession.
Mmmmm! Those cereal boxes make me want to start buying cereal again! We've been eating oatmeal every morning for about two months...to save dinero and lose a few baby pounds. :) But man do we miss our Honey Nut Cheerios!
Anyway, thank you so much for the comment on my blog. Expressions like those really make me want to keep going. So thank you.
And now for my guess...I'm going to say April 4th, Lickey's birthday. (haha) Love you!
I'm guessing March 31st! It's not that I don't have faith that you can last longer, it's just that if you're anything like me, the junk will start calling you soon. I think you can resist it a whole month. Good luck!
Here's the lame thing about cooking only from your pantry-you'll get started, look at a recipe and go, yeah, I could do that if I had 1 can of diced tomatoes. Or, hm, yeah, I could just eat these plain beans that I had once intended to go with such and such a meal, but the rest of that meal is long gone, so suddenly the beans seem a little lame.
But since I'm game for a game, I'm going to go for March 18.
I'm tempted to pull a 'Price is Right" $1 bid and guess early, but I'm hoping that you're the queen of willpower.
(Also, there's a british website that will let you input the items in your pantry, and it will spit out recipes... I'll ask Joe what it is and get back to you).
April 3rd.
i have faith in you. april 10
You're a munchie girl (as am I)....so March 10th I'd say. You'll get a craving for something and won't be able to get it out of your head until you eat it. That's how it is with me at least.
I give you until next tuesday...that's 8 days until you realize that you need a fresh item of produce or else your insides will turn to mush and when all that warm milk will go sour. Next Tuesday. That's March 9. Good luck.
I hope I win.
hmm! i want in but this is difficult. i always think I can go longer without those things but then i just CAN'T resist.
SO. . . .
i'll say april 1st. good luck! you can do it! i REALLY hope i win.
Hmm, being a sugar addict I am going to say I have no faith in you and you will succumb to a craving of chocolate and run out to the store and buy a huge symphony bar. You know you want it! I say this Saturday, March 7th I think it is. You can't last the weekend!!!!
You slay me. I am not too ugly to wager a guess so I'm going to say march 26th. You will need something for a baking project, sprinkles or brown sugar..that you think you're out of but really it's way in the back but even though you started a list of what's in your pantry so that you can mark it off as you go and stop buying repeat items you will have marked it off without knowing you had some...sorry I'm projecting.
This is a great idea. I'd try it - if I weren't the most spoiled woman I know. - Tom does all the grocery shopping. I bet you can't resist getting SOMETHING special for your birthday... So I say March 27th. :)
I know how much you like camera equipment...I'll guess you have the discipline to last longer than anyone guesses. Let's say tax time. April 15? I'm a rooting for you and the camera supplies and lessons, and the pictures you promised to take for me! (when I win this contest!) can I take them with Adrie?
Man with the box of otter pops and top ramen you should be good for a while! I'd say March 30th. Good luck!
I am guessing April 11. I think you will run out of Lucky Charms and Adrie will beg for rainbow marshmallows. Unless all 10 hiding boxes are Lucky Charms. (They're Magically Delicious)
Okay better late than never but I had to guess because oh how I'd LOVE a photo shoot for my kiddos:):) I'm gonna say March 13th. I know I couldn't go that long...
Wow, that's a lot of food! I'm going to guess March 25th. I'm looking forward to hearing the results!
Hmm - I was going to say April 1st, but someone else already said that! So how about April 1st at about 6:35 pm?! Good luck to ya!
Ok, and if copying someone else isn't allowed then I'll say March 29th :)
HOLY COMMENTS. I think I'm too late to guess without cheating considering you've already gone this far, but Lain, I'M IMPRESSED!!!
Gosh, your willpower is much much stronger than mine.
And the Rice Krispies don't count as they clearly have a KW written on them. :D
I'm interested to see how long you can go. After the hurricane, we stocked up even more on canned goods, so my grocery list usually only has the items that you're "allowed" to buy for your game. Those also happen to be the foods my kids live off of (fruit, eggs, bread, cheese, etc.). So I'm betting you can go a long time. Good luck and have fun!
I may be too late to get in on the fun but I just saw the post! My guess is...March 22nd I'm impressed you've made it this long already though!
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