i just wanted an apple

You know how it is when you go to wipe a fingerprint off the fridge and two hours later you've cleaned the whole darn thing? We use that expression around here to mean we started something that should have been simple, but then got all involved in a way bigger job than we meant to get into...

Oops! I wiped a fingerprint off the refrigerator! Literally this time. I was looking around for something gentle-on-the-tummy to eat this morning, and reached for an apple, wondering why we keep apples in the fridge anyway, because I don't like them cold, and always have to set them out and wait two hours before they get to room temperature. So I took all four apples out and put them in a nice bowl on the counter. But while I was doing that, I noticed something was very stinky in that refrigerator, and decided to investigate. That's where the trouble started. I opened and sniffed every last thing in there... except the obviously nasty bits that went straight into the trash can. There is no tupperware container in existence worth cleaning month-old black beans out of. If you even open that lid the teensiest smidge, the house will stink for days. So the moving to Oregon process becomes a little easier as I toss out perfectly good kitchen items. I did learn one interesting thing. Old pineapple does not turn blue or green or black like most moldy oldy foods. It turns pink! A very pretty color combination, that pink and yellow.

Soon I realized that it wasn't any one thing in the fridge that was stinking, but the fridge itself. And so, in keeping with the tradition of fingerprint wiping, I removed every bit of food, every little condiment (why do we have so many?), and every removable shelf and drawer, and proceeded to wash and wipe and scrub. Two hours later, we have a sparkling clean, sweet smelling, basically empty refrigerator. The empty part is OK. I still don't feel like eating much. And besides, I do still have four nice apples, which are now at just the right temperature to eat.