Grocery Grumbling

Pity.....party of 1.

I feel like grumbling.  I don't do a lot of it on this blog or in life in general because it seems pointless to me to complain about things you can't change.  But today, I am making a small exception.  The source of my ranting this fine (well, gray, cold, and rainy) day?  Our commissary.

For those unfamiliar with military terms, the commissary is our grocery store.  In the US, commissaries are mostly filled with retirees looking for good, tax-free deals.  But when you live in a remote part of Turkey, the commissary is the ONLY gig in town.  It services our entire base (some 2500 people, including civilians) and is still the size of a small grocery store in the States.  And because of our location, we don't get many items that are readily available to most of you.  Produce is horrendous.  We have had multiple milk and meat shortages in my almost 1.5 years here because some plane was delayed with our shipment.  Haven't seen my almonds that I like for breakfast in several months.  The variety of what we do have is seriously lacking...or, maybe I an used to too much variety in the States. I don't know.

Today, I loaded up W for our biweekly trip.  We go a lot because, let's face it, there isn't much else to do.  The commissary is closed on Mondays, so Tuesday is very busy.  Today, it was more lacking than usual.  I managed to get about 25% of what was on my list.  Frustrating to say the least.  I work hard to plan healthy meals for my family only to have a big door slammed in my face when I go to buy it.

Okay, enough of that.  There are many people out there with real problems and daily struggles.  I know this pales in comparison.  I get that.  But sometimes, you just have to get things off your chest.  Thanks for listening.

**Update (grrrrr.......): I had to stand in the post office for 30 minutes today with a melting down 3 year old because it was on lock down.  I am glad the base practices these safety measures, but that being said, it was very irritating.  Here's hoping tomorrow is a grumble-free day in Turkey!!