Nostalgia

2 October, 13

The only difference between a rut and a grave is the two ends. That's why I am perpetually on the move, changing landscapes, foods, cultures, everything.

It is nice, however, to have some of those comforts that you left behind. Susan and my girls especially hearken back to "the good ole' days". Elizabeth pines for a milkshake from Cookout. Come to think of it, I wouldn't mind one myself.

We ate breakfast for dinner the other night and even made pancakes, which they don't have here. I went to Pepi's and got them to slice me up some nice, thick bacon. We also had scrambled eggs with cheese. I believe that's the All-American plate at Denny's.

A few days ago, our girls were pretty down in the mouth, so Susan and I wanted to give them a little shot of home. But where?

El Corte Inglés. That's where. Never heard of it? They are the 4th largest department store chain in the world. It's kind of like a smaller scale Harrods. They have everything, especially those things you can't find in a normal Spanish shop. The best part is they have a great grocery store, complete with meat and cheese markets. So we asked the girls what foods they missed, hoping to score some easy points.

Elizabeth, of course, gravitated toward chocolate. Layup. Katherine doesn't like chocolate, though, so I was a little worried about that. Evidently she had been ruminating. Imagine that. The first thing out of her mouth was JIF crunchy peanut butter. I was sure they would have that. Then she really surprised me.

"Daddy, I just need me some Red Dye #40." What the heck? Where does this stuff come from? Why, out of all the things in the WORLD to desire, would she land on Red Dye #40?

Katherine is my offspring. I must confess that we Askins have a history with Red Dye. When Mars, Inc. phased out red M&M's, my sister wrote a letter to the company asking about their mysterious disappearance. She got a response saying the colorant was dangerous. This was back in the 70's.

You can thank Becky Askins-Weaver, if you now enjoy red M&M's or vilify her if you think your kid has some mental issues from eating too many of the "reds" in the bag.

Evidently Red Dye #40 has addictive properties, because Katherine was jonesing for it. Her preferred method of intake is shootin' a line of red Twizzlers. I found the crunchy peanut butter, but alas, no Twizzlers were in the land. I got Oreo's instead, and she was happy. She is a twist off and lick kind of Oreo eater, by the way. I am a single bite guy. With milk.

I miss grits. Not even El Corte Inglés has grits. In general, corn is not a big item here. This will require some more research and investigation. I might even have a market for some of those grits trees my friend, Tom Bryant, has been selling to the Yankees back in Pinehurst, NC. El Corte Redneck is open for bidness.