Recently appeared in my comics feed, this One Big Happy strip from 2013, in which Ruthie and Joe consult with their dad about what snacks he should bring after their next Little League game:
We get the astounding 1st inning score — tied at 48! — just tossed off for free in the second panel
The kids present their father with a minefield of food allergies and aversions — meat, peanuts, caffeine, sugar — for him to negotiate through.
From real life: in our Ohio lives, Ann and I had lots of people for meals all the time, including random friends of our daughter’s, and we were often asking to bring snacks for social occasions, so this was a minefield we were familiar with. Occasionally, Ann would contemplate something like the situation above, with a long list of food allergies and aversions to work around. A much longer anti-shopping list than the one the kids’ dad gets above — with cilantro, brussels sprouts, celery, anchovies, cinnamon, tomatoes, gelatin, tofu, green salad, spicy food, cabbage, horseradish, nutmeg, kale, dairy mixed with meat, hot mustard, beans, olives, shellfish, pineapple, and more among the banned items. She would then devise menus that could accommodate (almost) everyone, with satisfying food.
In a communal house in Amherst in the summer of 1972, her abilities were tested by an especially picky eater among our number. Yes, she could do it. Most of the time.
I’m not sure it can be done without cheese. And sourdough bread. Let’s hear it for grilled cheese sandwiches. And pizza bianca. (But the picky eater in Amherst hated the pizza bianca, just because it wasn’t real pizza — which made him sick, but he craved it anyway.)
Leave a Reply