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The Joy of Pizza

So, the boyfriend announces that he is going out to dinner with a few co-workers tonight, and the first thought that runs through my mind is 'great, I don't have to cook tonight!' I was immediately disturbed by my reaction, simply because I count myself among the dwindling group of people who really LOVE to cook. And now I'm starting to wonder if I actually do love it anymore.

Back in my youthful and carefree days, I would often cook for fun, even for adventure. I remember peeling my first tomatillo as fondly as some people remember their first kiss. Cooking used to be a pleasure, a form of relaxation and most importantly, something I almost never had to do. Back then, I could exist on a diet of greasy take-out food without any fear that my waistline would expand, or my cholesterol skyrocket. But that was many years, and quite a few dress-sizes ago, and my culinary focus has turned to healthful, tasty, well-prepared foods that are pretty hard to come by in take-out form.

Back then, I think I would have jumped at the chance to be able to cook for a living. In hindsight, I'm glad I never got that chance. Over the years, I've come to realise that just the thought that I have to do something automatically makes it much less fun to do. Occasionally, cooking a meal is still a pleasant experience, when I don't have to watch the clock, or when I'm trying something new. But I really do appreciate having the choice, on some nights, between making bolognese and making a phone call.

So, unless I win the Lotto and can hire a full-time chef, or my metabolism retuns to that of a 20 year old, or my boyfriend suddenly becomes capable of handling a razor-sharp chef's knife in a way that doesn't make me want to rush for the first-aid kit, I will toil away in a kitchen, at least a few nights a week, for the rest of my active life. And every now and then, I suspect, I might just catch myself smiling.

That's all for now. There's a pepperoni slice on the kitchen counter, and it's getting cold.

Comments

dougla_1 said…
Well, squeezle, your conclusion is great. Cooking good healthy hearty foods is an expression of love. The best times I can recall in my family revolved around home cooked foods.

Right now, I am eating out way too much more than I really want to. I have doing my own apartment kitchen remodeling, and that is taking longer that I imagined when I started the project. When it's finished (soon) there will be much more home cooking for me. On the other hand, I still like the idea of an early morning breakfast out, especially on a Sunday mornings (spring and summer are good seasons for me to do this, though not as much post completed kitchen).
Test said…
That's so great to be able to customize your own kitchen. I have a few friends who have gone through that process, and it ALWAYS ends up being more expensive and time-consuming than planned. But they all agree it was more than worth it!

I am a renter, with an impossibly tiny kitchen, so there's not much I can do in the way of home-improvement. But I take some pride in the fact that I've churned out some very impressive meals in that little space.
Atasha said…
Oh how I remember those days when I would eat whatever I please and not a pound would come on. what in the world happened? Since I had kids, even if I eat nothing I gain weight. it sucks.

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