Clipping Coupons

I've been through both lean and fat times, wallet-wise, and early on I learned to cut grocery coupons out of the Sunday paper. Sometimes they went unused, and then there were supermarket trips, like Saturday, where I handed in $6.00 worth. I used to work with a guy with 6 kids and his best coupon day ever was $53.60.

I am not a whole foods fanatic, (love fried spam!) but I do cook mostly from scratch and buy lots of produce and unprocessed meats. Bake from scratch, too, not a package mix. Call me a food dinosaur.

When we moved to a smaller place we kissed the cleaning help goodbye (sadly) and discovered that generations of cleaning products had evolved since we had stopped noticing. Wipes! Swiffers! Even robots. A product existed for everyone household problem except I haven't found anything yet to get the waterspots off the shower door, but that's another topic.

It's getting harder and harded to find coupons to clip. No need for slim-fast, or Fresh-Pouch Chunk Light Tuna. What 's the problem with the can? I buy my spices from Penzey's (www.Penzeys.com) not Salad Supreme or Montreal Steak from McCormicks. Do not intend to enter Brigham's "Fluffernutter" jingle contest. Never did try Weetabix although they (it?) has been around for a while. Don't need Pink Eye Relief, at least not this week. DeliShaved Honey Turkey makes me say "eeeeww" and "yech" and "gross." Miracle therapy gloves? The Calming, Soothing,m Inspiration of Air Wick? Air Wick?

Every Sunday the task of weeding thru the chaf to clip the wheat is becoming more onerous.
What's a committed cook to do?

The other side of weird is always the New York Times Style magazine. Now Grapeshot considers herself reasonably stylish for someone living in Boston who will never see thirtysomething again, but a glance thru the NYTSM educates her about how totally out of style she really is, from her kitchen to her furniture, clothes and even what she cooks. Her bank balance is also hopelessly out of date to afford any true Style. Is there an alternate universe out there? What lies between the cheap and tacky yuck of the coupons and Style? Something authentic, I hope, something far removed from Cinnamon Swirl or Hazelnut Decaf and $4000. dresses and $800 shoes.

Onward,

Grapeshot