6. Cheese and Carrots
Today is 34 days from the first anniversary of Dad’s passing. I’ve committed to writing 40 stories about him as that day approaches. Forty Steady Stories.
As many of us are preparing for Thanksgiving turkey tomorrow, the food train my brain is riding makes me think of a couple of stories about Dad and his favorite foods. Part of what I loved about Dad is that when he found something he liked in a restaurant he didn’t need the menu too much after that. Lunch during the work week was often the same turkey and cheese sub at the Steak & Hoagie near the corner of Graham and 9th streets. Sunday lunches were a club sandwich and a pecan ball at Quail.
For dessert — which could happen anywhere between 7:00 AM and midnight on any day ending in ‘y’ — Coca-Colas and Chocolate Chip cookies were the staple. As my brother said at his funeral, Dad made a single word out of Coca-Cola and Chocolate Chip Cookie: “cocolachoccitchipcoogie.”
In fact, I think that word occupied an entire row in his food pyramid. He never met a cookie he didn’t like. If he got one somewhere that had mediocre cookies, he’d just get a second one and eat that to make sure. Of course, he’d come back another time and give that place another shot. Besides, anything tastes better with a Coca-Cola. And he was also one of the people that really and truly put peanuts in Coke before drinking it.
But the food that always reminds me of Dad is carrots, because the way he ate them was so unique and quirky. He would get several carrots and lay them out on a plate. Then he’d take 3-4 slices of Kraft American cheese and unwrap each slice. Then he’d break the slice of cheese in half, wrap it around the carrot and start chomping. I loved to watch him eat that and loved it even more when I got invited to share.
Then came Cheez-Whiz. Dip the carrots and eat. ‘Nuff said.
And then came Easy Cheese in a can. BOOM! Squirt and eat — with a shelf life of 137 years. Could life get any better than that!?!
Cheese and Carrots — three different ways, that is until Mom got on a health food kick in the mid-1970s. Then we’d go to The Mill health food store on Kings Drive. Dad and I went from Cheez-whiz to Cottage cheese and organic carrots. Besides the fact that cottage cheese didn’t stay on the carrot, it just didn’t taste the same. So, I think Mom caved on the Kraft slices for a while. (At least, that’s what Dad told me every time he’d sneak them out of the hidden drawer he made in the den.)
I was on a plane heading back from a conference a week ago, and I found two baby carrots in the salad. I smiled, took my sandwich apart, wrapped the cheese around the carrots, ate, and thanked the Lord for such a timely memory of Dad.
It’s amazing how the littlest things like that can trigger my memory of him since he went Home last December. I’m grateful for those moments —SO grateful. Right now, I am typing while wearing his shirt, sweater, and socks. And I’ve taken to wearing his hat while creating these blog posts. I’m pretty comfortable in my own skin these days, but it’s nice to put on clothes that remind me of the man who loved to share life and quirky foodie moments with people.
This Thanksgiving let’s all pick just one dish at the table and explain to someone in your world why that dish means something to you. Maybe it’s your version of “cocolachoccitchipcoogie.” Just please don’t pick Lima Beans. You can search for an earlier blogpost of mine for the reason why. Coming tomorrow: My all-time favorite foodie moment with my dad. I can’t wait to share that one.
