The Pantry Chronicles

As my summer is coming to a close, I've mostly filled my final days of freedom with ignoring the chores at my house, watching television and sleeping 'til noon. Not to worry, I have found some things to be a contribution to society in the last couple of weeks.

My grandparents decided to take out their carpet and put down Pergo laminate flooring in their house for health reasons. It looks amazing, but that's not what I'm writing about. Since it was for health reasons, my mom and brother have devoted a lot, (and I mean a lot) of time giving the house a deep cleaning...probably a deeper cleaning than what the house has seen in many years. Yesterday I decided to lend a helping hand and ended up cleaning out their pantry.

My grandfather, (aka Poppaw) has a deep love for Sam's Club. Sam's is the equivalent to Costco, for those who may not know. Anyway, with this love for buying in bulk, his pantry is full. Poppaw is also a laid back guy that doesn't pay much attention to small details.

For ONE SHELF of the pantry, I filled an entire grocery bag with expired products. It's not like they're hoarders, but they're old and just don't pay attention, I guess. I told my mom I was going to create the Pantry Chronicles to have record of the insanely old foods. Luckily, nothing was gross. It was like, old canned goods, tea, cake mix, etc. It wasn't moldy bread or anything unidentifiable.

Things I found?

16 cans of Rotel, all expired.
1 bottle of Apple Cider Vinegar from a store that our city hasn't had in years and expired around 1998.
Cake Mix that expired in 2006
Popcorn that expired in 2006
At least 20 packages of assorted mixes and seasonings, all fresh.
Countless cans of soups that were all at least a year expired
1 tin of nutmeg, expiring in 1988.

That's right. I said 1988.

A portable television & charger, circa 1980.
3 giant recipe collections, all appearing to be from the 80's and untouched.
A box of greetings cards that were intended for soldiers commemorating, (that's a weird use of that word) the 3rd anniversary of the war in Iraq.
An endless supply of paper goods, (plates, napkins, plasticware, etc)

Did I mention this was all on only 2 shelves? And I didn't actually finish the second one. I'm going back tomorrow, so we'll see what else I can find.

Maybe I'll find a secret stash of cash?

I guess I'd have to give that back.