The Food Chronicles: Pt. 1--The Chinese Food Dilemma

This is probably just the first in many chapters dealing with our eating habits. They are going to have to be "chronicles" because there's too many stories to tell in just one post.

Part 1: "The Chinese Food Dilemma"

Chip is one of the most thoughtful men ever. The past couple of weeks, I've been working about 15 hour days, until maybe midnight or later even after a long day at the office. Chip, bless his soul, went down the street to a restaurant (Ben Wah) and picked up some Chinese food for dinner. But since he went during "lunch hour" he got two dishes, both with rice and an eggroll.

(Note: SF Chinese restaurants do not include rice with anything, it's extra. Unless if its a lunch special--then it's mostly rice and just a bit of the actual dish)

I arrive home to find our dinner: two take out "trays"--with some of the dish and a lot of brown rice, plus an egg roll in each and a large hot and sour. Not being too hungry, and short on time to actually sit down and eat a large meal, I heat up a bowl of the hot and sour and take a small helping from each of the dishes.

If you know me, you'll know that I DO NOT DO RICE. Not white, brown, multigrain, long grain, short grain, yellow, mexican, spanish, jasmine...wow. I know a lot of rices for not eating them. AnywayIcantdigestrice, I put the rest of the dishes and its accompanying two large heaping ice cream scoops of rice for each dish back in the fridge for Chip to eat when he comes home from school later that night.

He comes back, and heats up hot and sour. Five minutes later, takes some of the rice and puts some of the chicken dishes w/ sauce on it. Great. That means there's leftovers....

Another late night ahead. The next evening, I return home exhausted and full of disdain that I have another late night of work ahead. Having not planned dinner beforehand, I drag my feet into the kitchen and decide to start in the fridge to locate something quick and edible for dinner that wasn't a can of soup or a frozen meal.

OH MY SWEET HUSBAND! I opened the fridge to find 1/2 a serving (so what, he left me some) of hot and sour soup and both of the plastic trays from the previous night which had leftovers in them. Excited, I pull out all of the food and put it on the counter to make my dinner of leftover Chinese food.

I thought to myself, "There's a lot left... These containers are kind of heavy. What a great husband I have, he knew I'd want some leftovers so I wouldn't have to cook."

SHOCK.

AWE.

CONFUSION.

BITTER SADNESS.

My darling sweet husband, has decided to either pull a prank on me or he did the "expired (or empty) milk carton" trick like so many other men do.

Both cartons of food were opened and I found one thing inside. BROWN RICE. The boy ate all of the dish, and left just the brown rice. In both cartons. He didn't throw them away, knowing that I would not eat it and neither would he (he doesn't do much rice either, just a little bit now and then). I saw some of the leftover brown sauce and maybe one of the wok-fried onions and a sliver of chicken and just about 2 full scoops of brown rice. That's it. Nothing else. What good would the rice even be without something to eat it with?

He must have absent-mindedly just put the cartons back in the fridge for some (I don't know what, and I'm sure neither does he) reason.

Just like they do with expired milk. Or empty jars of pickles. More on that later.

I shook my head, looked up to the heavens and outloud thanked the higher powers for giving me a husband that even in his most aloof moments, especially when he's not around, can make me laugh and shake my head and mutter, "Oh, Chip...."

It's like a sitcom. But I think "The Cosby Show" can't be used as the title.