Living Single, Shopping Single

By: Christina M. Rau

In the time that I have lived on my own, I have thrown out enough rotten bananas to fill a whole jungle of banana trees.  No, the monkey population is not too happy with me.  Any single eater knows the woes of rotten food, even if it’s not bananas—florescent eggs, moldy bread, fuzzy cheese, liquefied lettuce.  Here’s the dilemma: how do we buy food, healthy, fresh food, and not have to throw half of it (along with the money we wasted on it) away?  As Mama always says, “There are starving children in [insert the name of the current 3rd world nation in the news here], so you shouldn’t waste food.”  Even if it’s rotten.  Apparently, to keep Mama happy and to avoid the cruel act taking food out of the mouths of children, we need to find a trick to buying food so that we eat it, and don’t waste it.

1. Shop Often, Shop Small, Eat Quickly, Eat Lots: If you have the time to go to the supermarket every day and you enjoy eating much of the same food daily, then this solution is for you.  By buying only what you need for one or two days, you can be sure to keep a clear fridge and a full tummy.  Fresh food will be its freshest for you.  You won’t deal with messy leftovers that can be easily forgotten in the caverns of the deep freezer.

The Drawbacks: Frequent trips to the grocery store are inconvenient for any person who needs to think about things other than eating.  Plus, most food can’t be consumed within only two days, unless you want to eat a lot of roughage for three meals a day, two days in a row.  Sure, that will help with regularity but that’s another topic altogether.

2. Do the Can Can: Canned food lasts.  For years.  And years.  I still have a can of chick peas from five years ago sitting all dusty on my pantry shelf.  I think I stole it from my parents when I moved out.  And when I open it, I know it will be edible.  Any food that comes in a sealed box or a can lasts until you open it.  So make all your meals by whipping out the can opener and draining away.

The Drawbacks:  Canned food is not fresh food.  Sometimes you need a taste of sweetness without a metallic tinge.  Boxed food invites mites and worms if it stays too long on the shelf.  Boxes give the aura on non-perishable, but can still waste away.

3. Share and Share Alike:  Single people sometimes have single friends.  These friends face the same food dilemmas.  So, go shopping together and split the food, along with the bill.  Sharing is cost effective and you won’t be racked with guilt every week by having to trash excess leftovers.  It’s also tons of fun to play shopping-cart-gymnastics down the aisles of any twenty-four hour store during the graveyard shift.  You could play alone, but it’s more fun with a friend or two.

The Drawbacks:  Single friends sometimes have different tastes.  If you want to buy that three pound package of ground beef (I’m sure you have your reasons) and your single friend is a vegan (I’m sure your friend has his reasons, too), then sharing won’t work.  Plus, how do you split a jar of peanut butter?  Or a stick of beef jerky?  Some things you just can’t share.

4. The Gift of Giving: When you can get a two-for-one bargain but can’t eat two-for-one portions, bring the extras to a local soup kitchen or charity organization.  Food drives are constantly running and they always need a helping hand.  You’ll still be following Mama’s wishes—instead of cleaning your plate, you’ll put food on someone else’s.

The Drawbacks: Food drives depend on non-perishables.  Hence, canned food.  You can’t bring the extra bunch of grapes or the second stack of individually wrapped cheese slices to the charity counter. 

5. Fast Food Fiesta:  This solution is for those who fear the kitchen.  Don’t buy uncooked food.  Buy only ready-made meals from restaurants.  Don’t ever use your oven or your stove or your fridge.  Remain on a first name basis with the local drive-thru technician.

The Drawbacks:  Did you see that movie about that guy who ate only McDonald’s for a month?  No?  Well, let me fill you in.  He almost died!  Okay, while he didn’t exactly come close to death, he did suffer liver damage and gained about forty pounds.  And the money added up.  While you won’t waste food, you’ll spend double and triple the amount you would spend at the grocery store.  Fast food is not a long term solution for the single person, especially for the single person who is actively looking for a significant other.  People are not attracted to grease stains.

So what it all comes down to is figuring out your eating style, and even your friends’ eating styles, and mixing and matching solutions.  Until those scientists invent a way to keep cookies from going stale after three months, and until those supermarkets sell food in single portions, singles are on their own to not waste food and to prevent starvation in third world countries.  No one wants to find ants living on the forgotten food in the cupboards.  No one wants to chip out burned food from the freezer.  And no one wants to waste money.  So shop healthy, shop smart, and shop single.

-Back to Top

Interested in Moving to or from Studio City?

If so, make sure to check out the Real Estate section.

- Back to Shopping