peanut butter!

When I was a student in Clermont-Ferrand all those years ago, peanut butter was virtually non-existent. What we found was like the old health food kind - very thick and salt-free. My stepdad took pity on me and sent me what we affectionately call the "sixteen dollar jar of peanut butter." Sending a one pound jar of anything via air mail isn't cheap.

I can remember the day I got it. I had been on a 7-countries in 3 weeks whirlwind tour of Europe with Sarah. We had spent the last night in a freezing train station in Lyon, where I actually saw a woman eating cat food. We hadn't slept and I'm fairly certain we hadn't showered in a few days. It was a Sunday morning, and I got back to my dorm room at 11:30am. On my bed was all the mail that had accumulated in my absence, including the $16 peanut butter. I looked at my watch. Less than half an hour to make it to the grocery store to find sliced bread and jam. Did I make it? You bet your Peter Pan I did. And it was the most delicious sandwich I'd ever had.

In recent years, I've made the switch to healthier peanut butter, and I eat it much less frequently. Nowadays, I would probably like the kind that they sold in Clermont. But the other night, while trying to decide what to make for dinner, I had a strong craving for peanut butter. It's always a good backup meal when there's nothing else to eat, and I realized it's been several months since I've had any. Sadly, I had to settle for a bowl of soup.

Today, I had lunch in Amiens with Mélanie, Virginie and Emmanuelle. We planned to go to the Maison Jules Verne, but we spent so much time talking at lunch that it was quite late when we finally decided to leave Mélanie's house. Instead of a museum visit, we decided on a different kind of cultural outing: shopping. We went to Géant, another hypermarché. It's in a shopping mall, so we first drooled over the clothes - especially the sweaters, scarves and coats since it's freezing today. Finally, we made it to the grocery store. Virginie wanted kleenex and honey - she's a bit under the weather. I decided to complete a mission I set out on last weekend - to find baking soda and peanut butter. Success! We found both. The girls were fascinated with the many uses of baking soda - from brushing your teeth to absorbing odors in the frigo to taking a soothing bath. The peanut butter is a brand I've never heard of - "Old Mississippi," but it's made in the USA, so I figure it's probably close to what I'm used to.

When I got home, I resisted eating it on a spoon like I did when I was a kid, and made no-bake cookies instead. The teachers have been dropping hints about American cookies, so I plan to take them tomorrow night when we have a meeting from 5-8pm. I hope they're a hit - they are quite different from French desserts. I've promised chocolate chip cookies after vacation, and pecan pies after Christmas. Mind you, I've never made a pecan pie in my life, but then again I'd never made an apple tarte before coming here, and that was a success on the first try!