My apartment is outrageously close to a grocery store. Being the fat kid that I am, this is definitely a selling point for me. My last apartment in Pittsburgh was also within easy walking distance of a grocery store. Being so close definitely makes my life as a single lady much easier. I can effortlessly shop multiple times a week and so it’s easier to buy/consume fresh fruits and veggies without them going bad. Although, I still have a tough time with the bananas. You can’t just buy two bananas. You have to buy seven. Shopping a lot is also good for procrastinating.
Anyway, my Winn Dixie is called the Crack Dixie by locals. Since I am now a local, I obviously refer to it as such as well. It used to be really crappy apparently before it was remodeled and also attracts sketchy people. Both for the fact that it used to be crappy and also because midtown Mobile is much like New Orleans, in that it has lots of dicey streets and nice streets within a few blocks of each other so you’re never really safe and in a crime-free area. In fact, a police officer was shot at the Crack Dixie earlier this month.
I like it though because this mix of what would be separate neighborhoods all in one neighborhood means that shopping at the Crack Dixie causes you to run into the most diverse group of people. It’s basically like being at the South Side Giant Eagle. People of all ages, races, and income levels. I kind of love it. It’s a good people watching spot so I’m always entertained while walking around to get all the stuff on my list.
Every time I have to get peanut butter, however, it irritates me that I can’t get natural peanut butter in the bigger jar. I eat a lot of peanut butter so I always have to buy more peanut butter and I would have to buy it less often and it would cost me less money if they just packaged natural peanut butter in the family size container. FYI, don’t eat regular peanut butter. So much trans fat. They hydrogenate the shit out of it so it lasts forever. They take peanut butter, which is a relatively healthy food, and turn it into a terribly unhealthy food. Natural peanut butter tastes exactly the same and it’s just a little bit more expensive. Not even a lot more expensive. Like barely more expensive.
I’ve also recently gotten addicted to french bread pizzas. They’re so horrible for you, I know. And I honestly hadn’t had one for years. But I bought a box on a whim and considered it my junk food for the week. But then they gave me a coupon at the check out. 75 cents off if you buy two boxes. Well, damn. That’s a deal. So, next time, I got two boxes and used my coupon. But then they gave me another coupon. This has happened 3 times now and there’s no end in sight, apparently. This is a cry for help. Someone break into my apartment, take the coupon, and rip it up. Break the cycle. I’m powerless here because it combines the addictive power of french bread pizzas and my inability to ignore a money saving opportunity. Eating french bread pizzas regularly makes me feel unhealthier and makes me like myself less. It’s lowering my self-esteem and that’s a problem but I can’t stop. And I can’t even avoid that aisle because that’s where the Mexican and Italian food stuff is. And, as a poor nursing student, what do I eat more than Mexican and Italian food? Nothing. I absolutely NEED to get pasta sauce and tortillas. Maybe I’ll light a candle and burn the coupon tonight. I think I have enough willpower for that.
Being able to buy alcohol in the grocery store at any hour of the day is also bad news. Countless bottles of wine. I really only crave wine during the hours when liquor stores in PA are closed. So, in the old days, I just had to ride out the craving and deal with it. But now, I can just walk on down to the Crack Dixie and get some. I’m really good at not overindulging all at once for the purposes of making it last since my budget doesn’t include much room for non-essential purchases. For some people, poverty leads to alcoholism. But in my case, it prevents it. Maybe my self-control skills aren’t as bad as I thought. Time to take advantage of this power realization and burn the french bread pizza coupon for real!
I wish there were coupons for wine.
But it’s probably good that there aren’t because my life would quickly become me in my PJs with some wine and the dog and HGTV every night. No thank you. This Bridget Jones scene is forever burned into my brain.
That movie is pretty freaking hilarious though.
Also, speaking of dogs, Mary is puppysitting this one right now:
I WANT IT. So cute!! I just need a little buddy. This apartment is too quiet and empty sometimes.
And thank the merciful Lord that Kansas won. My bracket is still in contention for winning the class pool. I could win $25. That’s one month of water/sewage use!
Also, tomorrow Rachel’s picking me up and we’re going to her parents’ house on the river for a BBQ and fishing. This is everything I want a Sunday to be. They’re basically my adopted family at this point. I like having an Alabama family. Southern hospitality is everything you think it will be and more. Her mom’s gonna force some leftovers on me. And I’m more than ok with that.
In Between A Rock And The Back Wall 