For as long as I can remember, Andrew and I have had a can of store-brand peaches in our cupboard. These peaches were so old that they predated our relationship. So old that the grocery store they came from had since changed its name--twice. So old that "in heavy syrup" once had some appeal. If I had to guess, I'd say they were purchased around the same time that the Presidents of the United States of America were singing about the sweet orbs. In other words: these peaches had no right hanging out in our cupboard.
Growing up, I remember there being an ancient box of rice pudding in our pantry. "Nope, not that," my mother would say when my brother and I were trolling around for something dessert worthy. That box dated back to their newlywed days. It was a relic--and so too would be our can of peaches if I hadn't thrown them out this evening.
I had just finished watching Hoarders, a new show on A&E about people on the verge of crisis because of an inability to part with their belongings. One of the women featured had an inordinate amount of food in her home--most of it inproperly stored, forgotten about, and seriously spoiled. It turned my stomach just to watch. The whole time, I kept thinking about our peaches--envisioning the nastiness inside that can--and that they had to go. Now.
I pitched the peaches, can and all--my recycling feathers all a ruffle. To my suprise, I noticed a number of items in the cupboard that were past their prime. A can of tomato paste that was meant for a pasta fagioli recipe I last made in 2004. Three bags of slivered almonds best used by August 2008. More canned fruit. An imported can of Bachelors mushy peas. Raisins from our west coast road trip trail mix two years ago. One of my best friend's half-used bag of lentils from 2006. All of it now in the trash.
I knew that some of these items were in our cupboard; others were a complete surprise--even though I'm in there daily. Huh. Makes me wonder: What else is lurking in all those other blind spots in our home? And what ever happened to the Presidents of the United States of America?
_________________________________________________________________________ © 2009 Good Karma Housekeeping. Making the space--mentally and physically--to live happily ever after (and eat more peaches of the non-canned variety).
