11 September 2007

best if used before

i have this memory - the visual is a bit hazy but the audio is clear - of my G'ma Jones and my Aunt Shirley cleaning out the fridge at my house. i was probably five or six, hence the haze, but the thing that is amazingly sharp is the phrase, 'when in doubt, throw out'.

certain things have a way of piling up in the fridge. for me it's little tubs of different kinds of cheese (feta, parmesan, etc.). at my family's cabin it's pickles, 2-liter sodas, mustard, jell-o cups, and containers of frosting (?).

while English, Ash and i were staying there for a few days we finally decided to clean out the fridge and make some space. it was a mix between spelunking and visiting the Medical Oddities Museum. as more and more and yet, more jars of pickles were stacked on the kitchen floor (all of which were open and partially gone) we realized the incredible nature of this event and we had to document.

that's ten, count 'em, ten jars of pickles.

each of these frosting containers had about half an inch of frosting in the bottom that was dried up and resembled an old clay river bed.

the oldest thing in the fridge... any guesses?

a jar of Nalley Horseradish Mustard (one of nine mustards). over twelve years old. and the second oldest thing... the same type and brand of mustard, just a few months younger. you don't believe me, i know - so here's the proof:


6 comments:

Janice said...

I can personally take credit for purchasing the jars of pickles. Every time I am assigned to bring pickles to Thanksgiving, I am never sure what kind people like, so I end up buying about 8 jars of different kinds. And, I am the guessing the mustards are from "Sockies."

cate said...

I think the mustard incident could have been slightly to obscenely worse if it had been miracle whip and mayonaise. The variation being dependent on whether or not you are a "more mayonaise" type - if you follow. I don't know, maybe not, but I ain't no mayonaise person and rancid is about as awful as it gets for me.

Mumsy said...

We are totally laughing right now. I made Fred come over and see. That is EXACTLY the same stuff we have in our fridge. The pickles have been moving out a little faster since we discovered how much Lilly likes pickles--and don't forget a slurp of pickle juice. (No sweet--just dill.)

Is this a genetic thing? The propensity to purchase numerous kinds of pickles and mustard?

ash said...

Over 12 year-old mustard, wow! I wonder what you'd find in the freezer if you cleaned that out. Lot's of old popsicles, meat, and frozen veggies. We could make some early nineties stew!

jo said...

wow, kel, that was an amazing thing you did. You know, I think half of my immune system came from pickles and mustard like that. And yeah, I think it's genetic... it's got to be. wait... that makes me doomed.

Matsby said...

Holy crap! That's gross!bvhp