Stocking Up

(Originally posted in the Annapolis Captial: September 26, 11:56 am | (permalink) | (1 comments)

[photo: "Now where am I gonna put all this stuff?"]

Seems like every departure has one of these “provisioning up” pictures, so here’s mine. I have to rein in my culinary tendencies, though; I can spend $200 in the grocery store and not buy any, you know, food. I will come home with mango chutney and panko bread crumbs and a new herb blend and five kinds of sauces. But basics? Pasta or salmon or bread or green beans or cheese ... or sometimes even ramen noodles? Maybe, maybe not!

When we headed for the Bahamas two years ago, we had to figure out what to buy since we were not planning on seeing a grocery store for 6 months. I saved grocery lists for months to establish our use patterns for pantry items. After that, it was relatively straightforward to plan that we generally have pasta about once a week and get three meals from a 1-pound box, and do the math for 24 weeks (8 boxes). Then there were the oddball items. How long does a tube of toothpaste last your family? (Write the date you opened it on the end in magic marker, and see!) But provisioning for this trip? Easy-peasy! We just loaded up on those things we perhaps couldn’t find in some funky little town, or on things that would be heavy or awkward to carry in backpack or dinghy. For the rest, they do have grocery stores in Florida, I’m told.

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Like Life Afloat on Facebook! (If all goes well, we leave this week. Yikes.)

-Jaye Lunsford