When I was a kid, the milkman of human kindness came to our house every week. We had a metal box outside our front door and once a week, in the morning, it would be magically filled with milk — even, sometimes, with chocolate milk. I know, this sounds too good to be true, but it was the 1970s, and I did grow up in Wisconsin.
And now, thanks to the pandemic, I am once again having milk delivered to my home every Saturday morning. And not just milk, but fresh produce, eggs, yogurt, bread — organic, locally produced. Just as in my childhood, Farm Fresh to You magically leaves boxes of goodies at my door during the night. In fact, I’m looking for a vintage metal milk box so I can truly relive my past.
At first, shopping during coronavirus completely stressed me out. Like many of us, I have become used to being able to stop by the market and pick up whatever I want, whenever I want. I do not buy groceries like my mother did: Visiting the big supermarket once a week and picking everything up in one fell swoop. I’m not good at planning like that. And I don’t like it. I prefer the Parisian/New York way, stopping by multiple specialty shops, buying cheese at the fromagerie, a baguette at the bakery, steak at the meat shop, etc. The food is always fresh, never frozen. And the experience of having the butcher cut the chops for you is exquisite, the kind of personal exchange you don’t get at, say, Ralph’s.
When our “leaders” told us we should stay home as much as possible, I tried to obey. I spent days on the websites of various food emporiums, trying to schedule deliveries or pickups. I never managed the former, but I did successfully complete one Von’s pickup. Of course, by the time we finally got our order — a week after I had made it — there was a whole new list of things we needed. So I dutifully spent two days scheduling another pickup, and waited patiently another week to pick up those supplies. Only this time, after waiting two hours for the anticipated notice that my “being assembled” order was ready, when I went to Von’s, the computer had crashed and lost my, and who knows how many other, shopping lists.
I’m done with big-box food capitalism. Now, I get my groceries the way I love: delivered fresh from the farm. And what I can’t get there, I buy only from local mom-and-pop stores. Small businesses need our support, especially since the government has failed them. And yes, Herr Garcetti, I go shopping multiple times a week. One day, I get pasta and pizza dough from Pirozzi‘s. Another, cappucinos and local bread and chips from The Corner Store. Point Fermin Market is good for just about everything, including alcohol, and I love to ask Singh how his grandson is doing. Acacia Bakery makes the best tortillas and other amazing galletas and confections. And the pandemic hasn’t diminished South Shores Meat Shop’s amazing selection of meat butchered on the premises including, of course, the best cevapcici this side of Croatia. If I want meat and Italian goods, I’ll head to A1.
And on Saturdays, the eggs, carrots, apples, and kale appear on my doorstep. They aren’t cheap, but they’re good. This week, I think I’ll order chocolate milk.
Populism 