Trying organic

After a difficult last 24 hours I decided it was time for a treat.  For it, I went to Community Natural Foods.  I had never been there before, so wasn't sure what to expect.  Would it be something more like a mini supermarket?  Or more like a little community shop?  I felt a bit at a loss in a grocery store that isn't massive and doesn't offer shelves full of the same thing.  But, what I quickly came to love was the fact that most everything on their shelves is 'good' - good in the sense that it's not loaded with preservatives and other undesirable stuff.  Did you know that formaldehyde is used as a preservative in foods? 

One of the main reasons I went to Community was because I want to become more careful with what I eat.  I'm embarrassed to admit that throughout the last ten years (my grad school days, then interning, and now work) have made my eating habits go down the drain.  I've been eating way too much processed food, things that are quick, too much soda (diet Coke!), and too few fruits and vegetables.  It's time to take control of that. 

I had gone into the store craving a nice piece of meat, but have to admit that I cannot justify spending $15 for a portion for one person.  Yes, it's nice that they don't use antibiotics in their cows and they do get to roam through the fields, but everything has its limits.  Right after watching Food, Inc. a couple of weeks ago I vowed that I'd be willing to spend a bit more on better quality food.  I wasn't expecting double or more though.  One of the families featured in the movie illustrated many peoples' dilemma quite well; the woman noted that they can get a burger from a fast food place for $1, but cannot even buy one lettuce for that much at a grocery store.  With a fixed income and two children, they opt for the drive-through day after day.  Filler corn product are sold for a fraction of production, which is why it appears in almost everything you'll get at Safeway.  How, then, can we balance eating healthy with being able to maintain those eating habits?  But, I digress.

So, instead of buying a steak or whatever, I opted for bison sausage, potato wedges, sprouts, and mixed fruit for dessert.  It was the best dinner I've cooked in a while, and was very filling.  But I think my best buy of all was the milk - 2% organic from Avalon Dairy in BC.  I absolutely love it, love the smoothness and not feeling weird after a glass.  I had almost the entire litre with my dinner.  Maybe it's a bit of nostalgia as well, but having it come in a glass bottle is nice.  The last time I saw milk in a glass bottle was as I wandered through Bangor, Wales, about ten years ago and people had milk delivered to their doorsteps. I'll be going back for the milk for sure.