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: