Typed on October 2, 2011
It’s funny how important food was to me before I left America yet how much my standards have lowered and the kinds of foods I get excited about these days. For example, I want nothing more than to eat at a McDonalds while in New Zealand with my dad and Pam. The daily fantasies of tasting something familiar, some fast food, and Lord help me, Mexican food, makes my mouth water. Food is a subject that us volunteers cannot avoid. It’s not uncommon for every topic of conversation to somehow end up on food. After the inevitable food conversation, we all end up miserable and homesick and with a pretty good idea that we will all be temporarily obese upon returning to the Land of all things fried and processed.
I’ve been re-reading ‘Getting Stoned With the Savages’ (comic travel writing about J. Maarten Troost’s time in Vanuatu) and there is a part in the beginning where he is reflecting upon returning from his last stay in Kiribati. I can’t help but wonder if I’ll feel this way eventually as well. He writes-
Living in a state of denial, had a way of heightening one’s appreciation of the small things, like chocolate. But strangely, I didn’t appreciate chocolate anymore. Indeed, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d even had chocolate, and for some reason, this had begun to bother me, for what is life, a good life, but the accumulation of small pleasures? In Washington, we lived in a place where everything was available, for a price, and yet I couldn’t’ recall the last time I had really savored something- a book, a sunset, a fine meal. It was if the sensory overload that is American life had somehow led to sensory deprivation, a gilded weariness, where everything is permitted and nothing appreciated.
Right now I am in almost total deprivation as far as quality foods and drinks that would be available in America are concerned. I cannot even fathom what it will be like to return to having limitless products within a 5-10 minute drive. This afternoon I was eating chocolate sprinkles that were part of a “chocolate lovers” cookie-topping jar I got sent. They probably would have been really awesome baked on top of cookies. I, however, have used them as a lame excuse for a chocolate fix, devouring the “chocolate” candies, followed by the sprinkles, and will surely move on to the brown-colored corn starch called “cookie crumbles” if my next gift box does not arrive soon.
Currently I am on a self-inflicted “island cleanse” until my dad and Pam get here in November (the next chance I’ll have to post this). The last time I was in Port Vila for training I decided that I was not going to bring back any “American” style foods and limit myself to what comes in my care packages or what I can purchase in my village. I did let myself buy semi-quality ketchup (I have no idea how old the ‘tomato sauce’ in our village store is), sweet chili sauce, tabasco-ish sauce, and soy sauce. But I figure, what’s two months of island food? And cooking is a bitch anyhow since I use fire. Though I’ve got the fire making down (so long as the matches cooperate), I’ll always have to deal with the heat issue, the cleanup pains, and not having easy temperature control. Mostly I’m just lazy.
So I’ve been on the island food 3 meals a day- cabbage, cabbage, taro, cabbage, taro, tin tuna, fish, cabbage, taro. For the past week I’ve been craving carbs like it’s nobody’s business, spaghetti in particular. Today I get TWO plates of rice AND Nik sends me (via a young boy) two pieces of bread from his village!! Has it really come to this? Celebrations over white bread, and fried cabbage with tin tuna served over rice? I do believe it has.
A lot of volunteers get too much rice, but I am the opposite. I’ve always been a fan of rice and have access to plenty of spices and condiments to dress it up. But rice is hard to come by, and the gods must be smiling on me today.
I haven’t had bread in over a week, not since the cold fried bread I consumed in Lindsay’s village almost two weeks ago. I even topped tonight’s bread with some honey that a volunteer gave me along with my cinnamon sugar mixture. That’s some fancy outer island bread right there. I realize a couple weeks is not long to go without bread for some folk, and as I re-read that last bit I think some of you might be saying “oh, woe-was you” in a highly sarcastic voice. But yes yes, woe-was-me, indeed.
Try giving up dairy. Cold beverages. Colas. Baked goods. Bread and pasta. Quality cappuccinos. Cookies/Chocolate. Raw veggies. Most fruits. Pickles!!
All at the same time, mind you.
Do it, Let’s see how grumpy you get.
Let’s see how happy you are when your neighbor brings over a plate of lap-lap with a pile of cold canned mutton on top of it.
I bet you’ll thank her and gobble it right up. I did.
