
We went to the 24 hour grocery store Saturday night and it was CLOSED — like completely empty and Oh noes! But there was a sign directing us to the new location. We’d forgotten they’d been working on a big fancy Market District store, so I guess my preferred G’iggle was no longer needed. I was skeptical! What had they done? Was this going to be a nightmare? Change! Differentness! Good things usually, but not when it comes to chores that are already tedious and typically annoying, and I was not in the mood for a scavenger hunt. AND And and … lots of breathless statements of indignation!
It was surprisingly crowded for it being near-midnight on a Saturday, and as D commented, everyone looked so irritated that other people were there. Like we’d all invented Late Night Weekend Grocery Shopping and owned that shit and how dare these assholes ruin our shopping experience with their breathing and their pushing of carts! Indeed.
The store is so ridiculously huge that this grumpitude is total BS, and we all ought to be ashamed of ourselves. We were in a magical wonderland of CHEESE AND BEER. The carts have cup holders. It is fucking magical. I can’t even tell you!
So right, I started to get bummed because in true My Relationship With Pittsburgh style, just as I’m leaving, cool new things start popping up and going on. Like I make a few new friends or find a fun new local band or suddenly there is a place where one can easily procure the integral parts of one’s favorite noodle dish and –it’s a month before I’m outta the joint. And THEN I remembered that I’m going back HOME where delicious things have always been available and you can even get a god damned salad without having to specify that you do NOT want french fries in it. What am I bummed about? I’ve been paddling upstream on Styx with Cerebus snapping from the shore for what seems like forever and finally there is a light ahead. It’s a neon sign that reads “Reading Terminal Market.” Are you kidding me? Snap out of it, lady.
For my friends who are at peace with pretend salads and doughy white bread cut extra thick for maximum tastelessness and are here for the long haul, here is the most important, relevant link: The Market District Beer List. Also their handy Cheese Pairing list.
Does that not make you hungry for fancy crap and feel sort of posh and something like a grown-up, or what?
Notes:
(Another) fresh start
There simply was too much cell phone coverage and not enough snow in my life so I moved to Vermont almost two weeks ago.
No joke, really. Small town New England –maple flavored everything, ski reports on the news, people leaving their cars unlocked and running in the grocery store parking lot. There’s been snow or freezing drizzle every day since I got here and I suspect that will be the case until sometime in August maybe, when a moose sees her shadow or something? And yet somehow there’s still enough green to make it postcard perfect and clearly better than Pennsylvania. Also? The grocery store sells beer and wine. No contest.
Plus, six of my top seven favorite relatives live here. AND! And! and! I’m right down the street from a library and not stuck in an office during its hours of operation. In fact I’m not stuck in an office AT ALL. Well, I have a fake office that is also known as my bedroom. (It’s got a window –a thrilling dream come true.) I knew my job was making me miserable but I didn’t realize the extent to which it kept me immobilized by depression. Four and a half years of wasted time.
Well that’s old business. I’ve got some new things in the works; getting serious about freelance writing, opening an online store, and a fun project with Jen of deliberatepixel is about to begin. More details on that later!
Here’s that January mix I promised last post: (Maybe NSFW, unless you work in a cuss-friendly environment like me.)
A tad more upbeat, eh?