Virtual oranges

Right around the time we took the plunge into doing the Compact, I discovered that one of my favorite grocery stores has an online shopping feature and that they deliver. With two little kids, one of whom has until only recently been colicky as hell, and the other of whom is not entirely patient all the time, getting to the grocery store has been more than a little challenging...either I go and run the risk of the kids having meltdowns while I'm pushing a cartful of food, or I wait until the weekend and leave the kiddos with Dom while I shop. But who wants to spend the weekend hours at the grocery store? Although I generally love food, there are many, much more interesting things I'd rather do on the weekends. Especially on the rare occasion i get an hour or so to myself. So, the discovery of an online shopping feature was a bit exciting for me. Great, I thought. I'll just write up a list with the week's meals, go online and order it up, and kabam, we're done!

Each week, I've been navigating their (very difficult and not-at-all-user-friendly) website to fill my virtual shopping cart with food. This experience has been both good and bad for me. It's nice to be able to get the week's groceries purchased whenever the kids are finally asleep, not to mention having it all hand delivered and carried into my kitchen...but there are definitely trade offs. I have found that even with a meticulously planned list, it's really hard for me to do my grocery shopping online.I blame the website, partially. It's not well-organized and it's hard to get through. I can't seem to do this "shopping" without feeling a little overwhelmed and frustrated.

First, there is a loss of the sensory experience that is kind of weird.I don't know, buying oranges and onions online just feels wrong to me. I can't look at them, can't feel the weight of them in my hands, can't enjoy their glorious colors. I can't smell the fruit, or the herbs, or the potatoes for that matter. I tried getting everything BUT the produce, but then that just means I have to make a trip to the store anyway, so why put myself through the stress of the online experience if I'm just going to have to go shopping anyway? Then, there's the issue of the "virtual" grocery store. it sinply does not work for me. if I can't see it all in front of me, my brain can't track what I have in my cart ,what I need, and the random "whatever" that I happen to see in the store that might look enticing. Oddly enough, the online shopping experience is much more difficult and stressful than just making a trip to the store. For me, grocery shopping is a kinesthetic experience: walking down the aisles of breads and crackers and soups, looking at the packages, the boxes, the shapes and sizes and colors. Wandering up and down through rows of jams and jellies, peanut butter, barbeque sauce. Walking slowly through the coffee and tea aisle to savor the scents. Selecting this or that, trying a new kind of bread or pickle or rice. I can't believe I am saying this, but I kind of miss it!

We are in a food rut to the extreme. Our weekly menu is boring and redundant. If I eat one more veggie burger any time soon, I will scream. Lucy will not eat anything these days. I suspect she's as bored with her culinary horizons as I am. Maybe some in-person impulse buying at the grocery store would be good for the whole family. I'll let you know.