ruminations about architecture and design

Friday, April 25, 2014

failing to make a decision--food edition

Today's blog post will not break any new ground. Towers of ilium strives for nuance instead of originality.

I had a bad experience at Trader Joe's last night. I drove my car to the place, which made me feel slightly guilty--normally I shop at the Trader Joe's on Boylston Street and must adhere to the discipline of buying no more than I can carry on public transportation. So, the Trader Joe's as suburban shopping center experience was a definite betrayal of values. The experience inside the store was slightly different, but in a curious way. The aisles were wider but had the same items. I realized how the store caters exclusively to the "modern" shopper--a creature who is strapped for time because of a demanding white collar job. The food items are pre-made, conveniently packaged, reliably tasty, and cleverly set at price points that makes them feel cheaper than take-out from a restaurant.

I filled my cart with things I did not need, all the while telling myself the lie that I was making good decisions. I want to be well prepared and well nourished for the zombie apocalypse. I grabbed two boxes of brownie mix without meaning to. I bought ice cream because I had never tried ice cream from Trader Joe's. I bought a hundred dollar's worth of packaging, and I didn't plan a single meal.

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