I don’t know about you, but I am so sick of grocery stores. I never really minded grocery shopping. I liked wandering the aisles and thinking about meals and what I might make. But now, grocery shopping is no fun. I have stopped being creative with food, my poor family has eaten basically the same 4 meals for 3 months. UGH. 

We are on a mission when we go to the grocery store now. We try to be quick, not touch too much, and get outta there. Wipe down the cart, keep your mask on, stay socially distant in the aisles and lines…there are always lines.

Recently, I have been thinking about this lovely pasta salad Mary & I used to make with dressing from Lunds & Byerlys, I have tried over the years to find a substitute Parmesan dressing at different stores and it just never worked out. I decided I wanted to make the salad for a quarantine meet up with my Mother In Law and I knew I needed the real thing. So, I googled Lunds & Byerlys locations, and found one 35 minutes from me. Yes, I drove 35 minutes for a special dressing. 

I was 21 or so, when I first entered a Lunds & Byerlys grocery store. My co-worker Mary brought me to one when we were heading back to the office after a customer site visit. We got a few cold salads for lunch. I remember walking in and saying to her “Wait, this grocery store has carpet?” She looked at me like I was crazy, but it was such a different place. I hadn’t ever been in a grocery store like it. It was beautiful, the produce section was beautiful.  I know, weird thing to say about a grocery store. But I remember the moment. Up until then, I really didn’t think much about grocery stores. I grew up in North St. Paul, we were Cub and Rainbow shoppers!

On Sunday, I drove the 35 minutes to Lunds & Byerlys in White Bear Lake. I had a list, I masked up, I was ready to get in and out.  That all changed the second I stepped inside. The lighting was pleasant, not too harsh. The store wasn’t busting at the seams, it was relatively quiet. The vegetables were as beautifully displayed as I remembered. And the carpet. Oh man, that carpet! There is just something decadent about pushing your cart on carpet. Sounds crazy, but my shoulders relaxed. 

I wandered over to where I had hoped the Parmesan Dressing was still something they make and hooray it was there! I popped a few in my cart. I leisurely wandered the produce department with a few other very happily masked shoppers (I could see their happy eyes). I headed over to the butcher area and looked for a pork shoulder. None in the case, so I asked the butcher if they had any. “Well sure, I can make you one. It’ll be just a few minutes”. Look at me I thought. What a grown-up, I have a butcher making me a pork shoulder. Yes, I do see the absurdity of this, I am 48 after all. But I just felt so good to be on that carpet.

I wandered through every single aisle, sticking to my list, but enjoying the wander. In the bakery I stared for a few minutes at the amazingly decorated little cakes. I bought a lovely cheesecake (that wasn’t on the list:) I even wandered through the health and beauty section before I found my way to a checkout.

“Did you find everything you needed?” she asked, as she started emptying my cart. Why yes I did, I needed a visit to a grocery store with carpet. I just didn’t know I needed it:)