I usually work entirely from home, which is great for many reasons. Besides the obvious ones like not having to dress up or fight traffic every day, I love the cost savings of being able to make all my meals at home. Today, I had to go to the office for a planning meeting. We ended the meeting at about lunch time, and a couple colleagues invited me to order lunch with them from a restaurant down the street. It was a nice offer, but the online menu gave me sticker shock. $16 for a salad?! That motherfucker better have magic mushrooms or something in it for $16. I can buy salad mix, frozen grilled chicken, lactose free shredded cheese and the Original Olive Garden Italian dressing (yes, they bottle it and sell it in stores!) and make several salads for that price. It doesn’t surprise me because this is Chapel Hill we’re talking about here, one of the most needlessly expensive cities in North Carolina. To someone who can afford to live in Chapel Hill area, $16 is pocket change and spending more than you have to on everything is a hobby. I’m not nearly that loaded and we’re on a budget so we can save money for the house we intend to buy in a few months.
Needless to say, I opted out and came back home to make my own salad and finish my workday in my comfy home office.
The discovery of Olive Garden dressing in grocery stores (and my innate sense of fiscal responsibility) has completely negated my desire to order salad out, while also encouraging me to eat more salads and less carbs. Thanks Olive Garden!! I’d visit you in person more often if there were more than two entrees on the menu that I can actually eat. Maybe consider some lactose-free substitutes next so that lactose intolerant folks have real options besides spaghetti with marinara (which I can make for $3)? There’s an idea for you.
Musings of a Dog Mom 