youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:13 PM
Original message |
Po' Folks food stories-Post 'em here. |
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Let's have 'em. The cheap eats you lived off of when you were a kid, or starving student or starving adult. A mainstay in our house was what my mother called yap-yap. She'd cut up potatoes and onions and boil them in water and serve it like a soup with lots of salt and pepper. Sometimes (usually close to payday) she'd brown a pound of ground beef.
For a "snack" my brother and I would toast saltine crackers on the stove burner and put ketchup on them.
When I was in college there was the mandatory starving student ramen noodle marathon.
When my husband and I first got married we lived on what I called the "White Diet". Rice, potatoes, and macaroni. Combined with a dozen eggs and a block of Velveeta, it usually saw us through the better part of the week.
I am amazed (and ashamed) at the amount of food I throw away now. I try not to deliberately waste food, and I work hard to use up leftovers but it still seems as though we throw away so much.
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GOPisEvil
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:15 PM
Response to Original message |
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Mom would cut little slices so the bologna wouldn't curl as much. She'd serve it with some mustard, often with potatoes and a can of green beans or something to round out the meal. :D
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:18 PM
Response to Reply #1 |
3. Oh I remember fried bologna! |
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It was actually good when it got all crispy around the edges.
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GOPisEvil
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:19 PM
Response to Reply #3 |
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In fact, I want to try it with some "real" bologna or maybe mortadella. :9
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Roon
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:17 PM
Response to Original message |
2. Macaroni and ketchup for dinner |
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Hot chocolate and toast for breakfast.
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Blue-Jay
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:19 PM
Response to Reply #2 |
4. Damn. Did we grow up in the same house? |
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For a while, liver & onions was a once a week delicacy.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:21 PM
Response to Reply #4 |
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the dreaded Liver and Onions... I can still smell it.
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LTR
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:31 PM
Response to Reply #7 |
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My mom hated liver. Unfortunately, my dad loved the shit, and he even brought home fuckin' beef heart once. That was perhaps the most disgusting thing I ever attempted to eat.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:40 PM
Response to Reply #16 |
26. My dad was another liver-lover... |
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my mom didn't Love it, but she didn't hate it either, so since it was cheap we ate it a lot. My dad tried to feed us tripe once but mom took one look and said "hell no!"
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Redstone
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:38 PM
Response to Reply #7 |
23. The rule in our house was that if you didn't like dinner, you could go to bed hungry. |
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Many's the night I chose hunger over liver.
Redstone
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:40 PM
Response to Reply #23 |
44. We were a clean plate house. You ate it all, like it or not. |
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I gladly would have chosen hunger on liver nights.
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Blue-Jay
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:42 PM
Response to Reply #7 |
29. I kinda liked it, until I found out what a liver is. |
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Then I got a little disgusted.
Still, eating "on the cheap" made me a better person I think. We were poor, but in retrospect, we weren't dirt-poor. Mom still lives in the house where I grew up. It's a tiny little ranch on one acre that sold for 10K in 1964. Now, it's worth a *lot* more.
I'm starting to get a little nostalgic right now, so I'm gonna quit this thread and call my mom.
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Roon
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:27 PM
Response to Reply #4 |
13. It always ruined my day |
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When I came home from school and saw liver thawing in the sink.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:36 PM
Response to Reply #13 |
20. When you were called to dinner it was like a death march. |
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Ack.
I still won't eat it, even though people keep trying to convince me to try it again.
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Roon
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:42 PM
Original message |
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No matter how hungry I am.
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emmadoggy
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:30 PM
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42. I haven't had it in years now, but |
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I loved liver as a kid! :yoiks: I know this will sound insane, but (back then) I would actually prefer to have liver over steak or round steak (blech!) Honestly, even now that would probably be my preference.
I know I am in a very tiny minority! :P
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ruiner4u
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:38 PM
Response to Reply #13 |
43. Ive never had liver... But Im curious to try it... |
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then again, a few weeks ago I was curious what a turnip tasted like.. cooked it up and couldnt stand it...
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:20 PM
Response to Reply #2 |
6. Sort of like a goulash.. |
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we used to put ketchup on macaroni and cheese. In fact I still do sometimes.
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Roon
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:28 PM
Response to Reply #6 |
unsavedtrash
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:22 PM
Response to Original message |
8. shit on a shingle, ramon noodles, potted meat, pasta with butter stirred in, |
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Edited on Thu Jan-11-07 08:23 PM by unsavedtrash
and soup beans with cornbread. The only of those I still eat ---> soup beans and cornbread.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:24 PM
Response to Reply #8 |
10. Yes! Yes! I loved Shit on a shingle! |
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I haven't thought about that in ages. When we couldn't afford the "beef" for the S.O.S., my mom would use a can of peas, or asparagus instead.
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Nickster
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:53 PM
Response to Reply #10 |
33. You know how you eat so much of a certain food that you can't even think about it anymore? Well that |
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's how I feel about S.O.S. LoL.
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Catshrink
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:23 PM
Response to Original message |
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The best! Also, a lot of scrambled eggs.
An old boyfriend used to make "awful spaghetti" -- ramen noodles and ketchup. :puke:
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:25 PM
Response to Reply #9 |
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or just J. or just PB. You go with what you have.
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Catshrink
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:26 PM
Response to Reply #11 |
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I have a toasted PB&J for breakfast quite often -- and for supper if it's close to payday and I'm running a bit short. It's my dog's favorite food, too.
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LTR
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:28 PM
Response to Original message |
14. Hell, I could make a mean ramen soup! |
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Edited on Thu Jan-11-07 08:29 PM by Fighting Irish
Add Packet, water, and some kind of pepper sauce (preferably the big plastic bottle with the rooster on the front that you could steal from any Asian restaurant or find in any Asian food store). If I really felt fancy, I'd get scallions or chop up peppers. It's actually pretty damn good, particularly if you suffer from sinus issues.
Going back to the Asian food store thing, it's amazing the cheap stuff you can find if you're a starving college student. Nowadays, people have it easy with stores like Aldi around.
And if all else fails, the cheap mac-n-cheese is almost as good as Kraft, if you make it right.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:34 PM
Response to Reply #14 |
18. Cheap mac and cheese got DH and I through the lean years... |
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Occasionally we'd color our "white diet" orange and throw in a can of tuna or some chopped bologna.
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Strawman
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:33 PM
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17. I thought you meant the restaurant |
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Edited on Thu Jan-11-07 08:36 PM by Strawman
There was one on the east side of the Detroit area. Never went there. Think it was a regional or national chain.
As for cheap homemade eats, homemade pizza slices on toast was and is my favorite. Having it tonight in fact. Two peices of whole wheat toast, some turkey pepperoni, sauce, and cheese.
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GOPisEvil
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:35 PM
Response to Reply #17 |
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My parents took me there a few times. I liked that they had RC Cola in bottles that were kept on ice in barrels.
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Redstone
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:36 PM
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21. We had Government Surplus food for school lunch, and sometimes at home, too. |
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I like the cheese from those big blocks. Not so much the baloney. And good GOD, is there ANYTHING worse than powdered eggs?
And, beleieve it or not, I still like S.O.S. But with lots of white pepper nowadays.
Redstone
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:37 PM
Response to Reply #21 |
22. The government cheese was actually good.... |
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My brother and I used to love to just eat a huge hunk of it.
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Redstone
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:40 PM
Response to Reply #22 |
27. And like you said, the baloney wasn't so bad when fried. Neither is SPAM. |
GOPisEvil
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:39 PM
Response to Reply #21 |
24. The "government cheese" made the best grilled cheese sandwiches! |
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When I was a teenager, I worked for the Boy Scouts at a summer camp. We received USDA Commodity Foods to use in our dining facility. On our off days, we'd always make ourselves grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch. So good! Also the "government" peanut butter and grape jelly (in the #10 cans) were good, too.
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prole_for_peace
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:53 PM
Response to Reply #24 |
34. i LOVED government grilled cheese.. |
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i don't know what it was but that was the BEST GRILLED CHEESE EVER!!!
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Redstone
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:13 PM
Response to Reply #24 |
37. Let me guess. On white bread, grilled with lard instead of butter. |
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That's the way we had it.
Screw the Health Nazis, lard is THE substance to fry with!
Redstone
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GOPisEvil
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:16 PM
Response to Reply #37 |
38. Lard has less saturated fat than butter. |
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Plus, true Mexican refried beans are made with lard. I can tell the difference.
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Redstone
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:21 PM
Response to Reply #38 |
40. And it aint' REAL fried chicken unless it's fried in lard. Not to mention |
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what you need to use to make the best biscuits!
Redstone
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:43 PM
Response to Reply #37 |
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Edited on Thu Jan-11-07 09:43 PM by youthere
any other way would be blasphemy! Thou shalt not blaspheme the government grilled cheese!
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Gormy Cuss
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:27 PM
Response to Reply #21 |
41. I have a surplus food cookbook |
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All kinds of nifty recipes for that cheese (and yes, it was good stuff) and powdered eggs and canned meat in gravy, the truly vile powdered eggs, peanut butter, rolled oats, rolled wheat flakes, oh the memories.
Contrary to my mother's assertion, even ice cold from the fridge the reconstituted powdered milk did not taste like milk. Ever.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:47 PM
Response to Reply #41 |
46. Oh my dad used to try that bullshit with us too.. |
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"You can't even tell the difference". Bull. He'd even try to mix the powdered stuff half and half with real milk to try to trick us into drinking it. It never worked.Bleh.
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GenDem
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:39 PM
Response to Original message |
25. Miracle whip on Wonder bread -- a favorite from childhood. |
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Favorites from the early family years --
-Frozen minced fish sticks and tater tots
-Boxed scalloped potatoes and spam
-Creamed tuna and peas on toast
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GOPisEvil
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:42 PM
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28. Lest we forget spaghetti and Ragu! |
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Spaghetti is REALLY cheap and a jar of sauce lasts a long time too. Sometimes even today I make a batch of pasta and just toss it with butter and herbs.
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Karenca
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:44 PM
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30. Mayonnaise sandwiches on toasted white bread, ketchup sandwiches |
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on plain white. Cucumber, tomaoto and mayo sandwiches on white. Spaghetti and ketchup. Sheets of home-made egg noodles, before they were sliced into noodles. Bologna potato chip sandwiches. Fried fish roe.
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Robb
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:45 PM
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31. Rice + beans + vitamins = nutrition! |
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Notably, my ex-wife had won the vitamins on The Price is Right. :rofl:
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Hugin
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:49 PM
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32. One of my all time favorite TV/Movie scenes is based on this topic... LOL! |
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I don't even remember what I saw it in... (Doesn't that always happen?)
Anyway, there were these two young men who were roommates. One comes into their apartment and sees his friend is kind of down and he asks why... The distressed roommate just mumbles, "Now, I've *got* to marry her." The first roommate presses even harder for an answer, thinking maybe his friend has 'gotten in trouble' with a girl. Finally the distressed roommate comes around somewhat and says, "I've *got* to marry her... Last night we were hungry and the only food in the apartment was a sandwich slice of chicken, a couple of bags of airline peanuts, and some bean sprouts and she made a terrific stir fry which could feed at least four people!" as he rushed out the door to find her.
I laughed about that one!
One of my favorite scenes.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:49 PM
Response to Reply #32 |
48. I remember that scene... |
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I can't remember the movie either.
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NNadir
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:56 PM
Response to Original message |
35. I lived on rice and mushrooms for about two years. |
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Occassionally I had vegetable soup from cans.
I had no car and lived on a bicycle, but my bicycle was stolen.
It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:57 PM
Response to Reply #35 |
51. Do you ever eat it anymore? |
NNadir
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:58 PM
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52. Yes. Luckily I love mushrooms and I love rice. |
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It was a great way to starve.
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SPKrazy
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Thu Jan-11-07 08:56 PM
Response to Original message |
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and ranch dressing on the pasta!
and some kind of veggie
yum
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Scout1071
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:19 PM
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39. Chef Boy-ar-dee pizzas |
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Fake mashed potatoes.
And ramen. Lots of ramen.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:53 PM
Response to Reply #39 |
50. Those pizzas weren't half bad. |
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and we used to love to make a bowl of potato buds and stir in a chunk of cheese.
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asthmaticeog
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:47 PM
Response to Original message |
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My college GF taught me this move, which apparently her parents ate when they were dead broke: saltine crackers dissolved in a pan of skim milk over low flame. Astonishingly tasty. Also filling enough. Predictably enough, though, it was pretty drowsymaking.
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youthere
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Thu Jan-11-07 09:52 PM
Response to Reply #47 |
49. Sounds a bit like rivel soup... |
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my mom used to make that when we were sick. It was a pan of hot milk, then she'd take some flour and work an egg into it until it was crumbly and then stir it into the milk until the egg was cooked. It would make the milk a little bit thick, and there would be these little dumpling-like things in it. She'd serve it with a little bit of butter and some sugar on top. It always tasted so good after you'd had the stomach flu and you were finally able to eat again.
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