GASTRONOMIC NOSTALGIA

You are happy with what you can have and do.

It was more than 20 years ago that most of our first floor was under construction… new ceilings, walls, etc. And dust and more dust. It was almost impossible to cook anything, so I found ways to not cook for quite a while. One of my strategies was to eat out, particularly breakfast. At that time I was working in Syracuse and would stop every morning at the McDonalds next to Wegmans in Fairmont to buy a cup of coffee and a bacon, egg and cheese biscuit, the equivalent of a Weight Watchers mortal sin.

Yes, I knew that my choice was not the best, probably was the worst, but it tasted so good and I didn’t have to cook it. Two pluses against all of the negatives of fat, salt and carbs. I also got to know the woman who took my money, a senior lady who worked the early shift for what she laughingly called “pin money.” I remember when the work downstairs was finished, I made one last run to McD’s to say “goodbye.” It was a thing. When the construction was over and the kitchen was again open, I didn’t have any excuse to partake of this forbidden food. I rearranged my think- ing and put the luscious biscuit on the poison list. Didn’t have one again, until…

It was an ordinary Wednesday. The cats had awakened us early. Nothing like embracing the day before 7 a.m. When I finally got downstairs to prepare breakfast, I noticed a large advertisement for Wendy’s sitting on the counter.

It spoke to me. Loudly, “Hey, Ann!”

The ad contained a plethora (upscale word in a less-than-upscale piece) of coupons that promised an inexpensive breakfast for two. Of course, the fact that someone else was cooking the food added to the seductiveness of the ad. Hmmm. Buy one breakfast biscuit, get one free added to any breakfast biscuit for two dollars equaled a field trip, breakfast out for two people who don’t go many places of late.

So, I convinced my spouse that we needed to buy paper for my printer … which was true. In fact, my printer had been flashing the sign, “Add printer paper” on and off for two days. This constituted a minor emergency because I couldn’t print out all of the recipes that I would never make. Walmart had printer paper and fortunately, in a kind of voila moment, there was a Wendy’s nearby. Two for the price of one road