It looked like Mum and Dad were visiting from other parts, and Mum had taken charge of the kitchen for the duration.
Son went to put a small bag of chillies in the trolley. Mum looked at them with disdain and announced she never used them, too hot, bad for Dad etc. Back went the chillies. A little further around son grabbed a bag labelled "mild chillies" and put them in the trolley, announcing HE was having them - HE liked them in thin strips with cheese on crackers. Son won but Mum said she wouldn't be touching them.
Mum seized one of the vacuum packs of pickled pork for a "lovely boiled meal." Son said he didn't eat fat these days. He preferred chicken. Mum won.
Son said he already had carrots at home, but Mum took a bag anyway, saying they would be for The Whole Week. She wouldn't touch any of the fancy lettuce, just an iceberg one. And she thought the telegraph cucumbers were too dear at $1.50, grabbing a thick skinned one for 85 cents. Son said it was too soft and only a third the size of the telegraph one. Son won.
Tomatoes passed the test, and so did the celery. But Mum was adamant she wasn't having any of "that foreign stuff" - eggplants and courgettes.
A bit later I cast my eye across in their direction to see how the trolley was looking. Mum's jaw was clenched in stubborn, determined fashion and she was fondling a large swede.
Heaven help Son for the rest of the week. He's probably in the grip of a huge attack of indigestion. And Dad? Not a peep out of him. He just wheeled the trolley round and kept his mouth shut. He "knew his place" obviously.
It can be difficult when the generation gap manifests itself when it comes to food. Old habits die hard with some people and they just will not pull themselves out of a rut and try something new. Anything unfamiliar is treated with suspicion.
I wonder if Son tried to take his parents out for a meal during their visit? Or attempted to persuade them to have a glass of wine with their lovely boiled dinner, complete with swedes?
