I guess I could have gotten any ordinary zucchini but the ones that came in the three-pack looked like my best choice. These thick, elongated green pieces of produce, sources of innumerable jokes in almost culture, are ideal because they last so long. They can sit in your fridge for weeks before you finally decide what to do with them.
The produce section spread out before me had a great offer and I was ready to take on the challenge, but I had to contain myself, because these things are traditionally the heaviest in the store. Four-kilo (that’s about 10lbs.) bags of potatoes. 3 kilos of oranges. Another 7 pounds. Before I knew it I would be toting 17 pounds of food with my shopping basket nowhere in sight.
And that’s not to mention taking all the way back home, where using just the power of my arms threatened to leave me like a primate by the time I got home. I don’t have one of those carts that Spanish women have been using for generations. They are magnificent inventions that are increasingly used as people opt to reduce the use of plastic bags. In this sense, I have failed my brethren around the globe in the campaign to make the world a little less artificial. I remember that I should get one every time I’m back in the supermarket, and occasionally at one of those places where you’d buy one, but they are surprisingly pricey for what you get. I mean, it’s not as if they are Samsonite luggage or anything. So, they are still on my list of unclear priorities.
So I stuck to the original plan and picked up the pack of the zucchinis, and then raised my head and noticed the spice rack. Over the past few visits I have slowly recuperated the grandeur of my spice selection at home. Every kitchen should have them even if you use them sparsely. I tend to be generous with the products. I rambled over with nothing particularly in mind but spotted a bottle of curry. Curry was not the menu at all. But It occurred to me that if I didn’t have the powder readily available, my life would just not be the same. So, I grabbed it from the rack and departed.
I remembered to pick some onions, which was not something I was really supposed to remember. It wasn’t on my mental list at all in fact. I had thought about it days before while roaming around my kitchen and then stored memo deep in my brain for a future moment when I would actually lay eyes on the edible bulb again, which was just after picking up the zucchini. I gave it some thought and went it ahead. What the heck, you only live once. You only die once, if you think about.
With a light bulb, zucchini, onions and a bag of chips and bottle of curry, I decided to retreat to my basket and ump them there. It always crosses my mind that for some reason I will no longer be able to locate it, but naturally, most people are not inclined to just swipe some bacon from another in the spur of the moment. It could happen, mind you, but chances were slim. To my relief, the green basket lay untouched and unscathed next to the whole chicken tray. Life was good.
