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Food For Thought.

It’s Day 5 of the Food Stamps Diet and last night I made a terrible decision. I watched the premiere of Top Chef: Just Desserts immediately followed by the season finale of Top Chef. I could feel my mouth watering and stomach growling throughout the two hour stretch. But, at least I couldn’t smell the delicacies depicted on the TV screen. I’ve discovered that my sense of smell is a major downfall. Aromas wafting out of cafes and onto the street are enough to make me crazy! – coffee brewing at my favorite fair trade coffee shop, pastries baking, and pizza fresh out of the oven! Can you imagine what it’s like to live in a world of fabulous food– and know that you can’t have it?

My mom, who is also participating in the SF Food Bank’s Hunger Challenge (although she lives in South Carolina) called me yesterday to ask what was for dinner. I told her it was brown rice and lentils (again). She responded with some bad news. She had spent her entire budget and all that remained was a cabbage. I told her it was probably time to raise the white flag and surrender. While one might say she “failed” the challenge –it’s a great lesson learned. One of the challenge’s goals is to reveal how difficult it is to feed oneself on food stamps. My mom – a college grad and smart, sensible woman – made a few wrong decisions at the grocery store and, as a result, her food didn’t last the full 7 days. What did she learn? It’s difficult to live off food stamps and it’s even more difficult to understand a lifestyle until you’ve tried it.

Today’s menu consisted of oatmeal and an apple for breakfast, brown rice and lentils for lunch, and then I SPLURGED! I ran into Walgreens to grab a few toiletries and my eyes gravitated to a 75 cent store brand bottle of diet cola. Feeling tired and un-caffeinated, I grabbed it. The bubbly effervescence was simply wonderful and the yawning magically subsided. Dinner will most likely be another serving of brown rice and brown lentils. Where’s the color in that?

Food for thought: The recent rise in the cost of food has left food stamp recipients in even worse shape. Today, one dollar buys approximately 40% less food than it did in previous years. How can we curtail these increases in food costs?