Menu Plan Monday Mystery

You know, every Monday I read on all the other blogs about what everyone's having to eat for the entire week. And although everyone else gets inspired by the menu ideas, I just find myself sitting back both impressed and intrigued.

First of all, because I am not a planner. For anything. I'd much rather take life as it comes and decide what to do when it gets here. The thought of planning out what I want to eat for the rest of the week... well, is just simply not me. Who knows what I'll be in the mood for by Thursday or Friday?

Secondly, I only buy at the grocery store what I can carry in a basket. It really tends to keep my budget in tact - especially when I need potatoes or Orange Juice - you know, things that already weigh half of what I weigh! So, although some really gifted short order cooks could probably whip up something from nothing... (and I have improved in this area) there's only so much you can do with bread, cheese, pasta and potatoes.

Thirdly, I only visit my lovely Publix up the road about once every two or three weeks. Basically, only when I have to. I avoid it like the plague. I don't mind it too bad once I get there, but it's just not very high on my priority list. So, I try to eat off of the little bit I have for as long as possible. By this point, I pretty much eat like a field mouse. I've trained my body to store what food I do take in. I make a little something from nothing from the little food I've accumulated and stored. And many days, I consume food that most would label "iffy" at best. But, I figure, "what doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger!"

Lastly, is the fact that it's Monday. And although I always have great hopes and intentions for my beautiful day off, by the time it rolls around, I'm generally quite lazy. I might pick some things up. Do a little laundry. Pay a few bills. But, then I watch a little tv. Listen to a little music. Dilly-dally on the computer. Get a little side-tracked. Basically, I am the queen of procrastination.

But, because of all of my inpiring menu planning sisters out there... I did take the initiative today to take a look at what I had in my fridge and actually clean it up! (That's a start, right?) And, as you can tell by the before and after pictures, that was a bit long over-due. And just out of curiosity, I tried to determine what exactly was the most out-dated item lurking in there? It was a tight race between the strawberry gel filling that was out-dated in October of '04 and some honey mustard sauce that had April '04 on it!

I just wish I could say that now that I'm all cleaned up and ready to go that I am now all inspired to actually restock and cook to my little heart's content, but you know what? I just don't see that happenin'. After all, I still have enough in there to at least throw together a quick omelet!

Besides, I did already clean out the fridge and all and now I'm missing "Gilmore Girls"!

Maybe I'll join up with y'all should I ever actually have someone else depending on me to feed them! :)

(In the meantime, I will try to at least get some ketchup should the Yorks ever stop back by again.)