Fridge Series Post 1:A Source of My Shame

This post is going to be a part of a series in which I’m going to tackle one of my studio’s sources of shame. This series for the Humble Fridge will contain 5 posts because I wasn’t kidding when I said it was a source of shame.

On multiple levels. But since I know me, and I know how I operate, I’m going to take this massive task that will not be done in a day and break it down over five weeks.

So let’s dive in.

Confession #1: I struggle with meal planning and food waste. I hate saying it. But I’m going to admit that to you. I have my veggies and non-perishables delivered weekly so I can meal-plan and for the most part, I stick to it.

But then when the depression kicks in and the malaise that accompanies it, I tend to reach for the food that’s the easiest to grab.

Which is typically cheese and crackers. Anything past that that isn’t already prepared usually goes ignored until it’s far too late.

Confession #2: I struggle with leftovers. I do. I try to eat them, I’m great when it comes to soups and other things that can be heated up. But anything beyond that or things that I could easily pop into a microwave - I struggle.

Mainly because I don’t have a microwave. I hate the idea of them. I despise how much counter space they take up. And I know just how gross those suckers can be, especially when I try to keep limited dishes.

So this blog, and you my readers are going to be my unintentional accountability buddies during this series.

Confession #3: Cleaning fridge shelves is a pain in the ass.

Well, it is!

If you hear a whine in there, you were meant to.

Some shelves let you lift up the glass to clean around the edges for spills and others do not. In the case of this lovely appliance

None of the glass lifts.

This makes the chimichurri sauce that spilled months ago a complete bastard to clean up.

So Why Did This Get So Bad?

1. I forget what’s in there.

2. I try to be adventurous and fail miserably.

3. See #1.

4. Add in brain chemistry and things just fall by the wayside. A lot. Since it’s just me and I don’t have others in the fridge, it’s easier for me to let it get gross and I just get used to it. I know that was awful to type, but it’s true. Which is why I’m posting about it here.

5. In my defense, I did not expect the goat’s milk to explode.

To tackle this monster (image of inside) - I’m going to work from the bottom up. Starting with the freezer and produce drawer which isn’t nearly as bad as it was.

…If you think I’m adding images here…. not for a 2019 post rehash. Check the 2023 posts for that particular mess. sigh

Steps:

1. Dump the frozen stuff (⅓ of it so I can throw it in the trash over the next few weeks- the frozen stuff is hard to remove from packaging for composting).

2. Remove bad veggies from the produce drawer

3. Wipe the produce drawer with food-safe cleanser.

Final Result

Next Steps: Inventory what goes into that drawer on my phone. My phone seldom leaves my side and I’m always checking my notes/calendar. So to combat #1 and #4, I’m going to use what I have on hand.

To combat #5, I just buy shelf-safe almond milk. I’m not a goat milk girl and the crowds at the farmer’s market while it’s cold just make me want to run back home and hide. It was fun for the first few months of living here, but doing it alone each weekend got old super quick.

Next Week: The rest of the drawers and a ⅓ of the freezer.

2023 Update: 2019 Nat had high hopes - that’s okay, I’m on Fridge 3 and I’ve learned a few lessons since then.