After holding off going grocery shopping for two weeks (and eating roman noodles and mac & cheese for the last two days) I finally pushed myself to go. I got out of class a little early so I thought I could quickly run to the store, pick up the items we needed then be home by the time I usually get out of class....oh what a JOKE! I drove all the way to Buy Low to realize that I didn't have my wallet with me so I had to drive clear across town and back to my apartment to get it. By 6:30pm I was headed back to the store. A quick trip to the store turned into two hours of my night devoted to grocery shopping! Now maybe I'm just a slow shopper, but between marking out the sale items we needed from two different grocery stores, to the time I spent wandering through them both, somehow it became almost 8:30pm by the time I got back to our apartment-- dinner uncooked, laundry unfolded, and the apartment in some need of cleaning.
As I was driving home from the second store I past several fast food restaurants and it got me to thinking. Being a Public Health student we always discuss how our country's obesity epidemic is partially due to people not eating the way they should, eating to much of the unhealthy foods, and lack of physical exercise. Many families don't have the time or the money to prepare a home-cooked meal every night of the week so they often resort to fast food. I could finally understand why this option is so often chosen and for a moment it became very tempting. Just think! No spending your whole evening grocery shopping. No cooking. It is quick and can be relatively cheap (if you order from dollar menus). And the biggest perk of all-- there are NO dishes to wash afterwards!
Unfortunately, I have learned too much of what that kind of food can do to your body/health if eaten on a regular basis. All in all, even though I truly do hate grocery shopping and washing dishes, I would still choose to make the healthier choice. Although it may take a little bit more time and maybe some more money, living a healthy lifestyle can end up saving you hundreds, even thousands, in your later years (However, I'm still trying to convince Collin of this healthy lifestyle/eating thing. I'm certain that he would be satisfied eating only Popsicles, brownies, and Mac & Cheese for the rest of his life!). I ended up making pork chops, oven-baked potatoes, and cooked squash from my parent's garden. It was very tasty and just happened to be done by the time Collin got off work at 9:30 (yes, we are still working on eating at a decent hour). I even found time to pick up our apartment and also watched my cute little niece, Sophia, for couple of hours....I will have to get to the laundry tomorrow.
