Since living with Gene, my habits have changed to suit his lifestyle. Here are just three examples of the old Gene and the new me:
1. Gene has long been a proponent of generic purchases; I still feel brand loyalty, but my loyalty is now exclusively reserved for Safeway Select products. I even purchase Safeway Select coffee, even though it’s fairly awful, because it’s something like $3 a can. (Gene’s parents, who maintain their brand loyalty to Chock Full o’Nuts, still compliment my coffee whenever they come over. Initially I typed that as “Chock Full o’Nits,” which I think would be a good monkey coffee name if you ever need one.)
2. I no longer fear sandwiches. My whole life, I’ve been a sandwich purist; hardly anything at all goes on my sandwiches, and usually it’s just cheese between bread slices. But now and then Gene — whose close friends once identified “sandwiches” as his number one character flaw — asks me to make him a sandwich on a weekend. Suddenly my own sandwiches are towering stacks of ingredients. We both get excited when it’s time for a sandwich, and sometimes I do a little dance.
3. I am more value-conscious, or “cheaper,” than I used to be. For example, my ten year high school reunion is happening in October and I’m trying to decide whether or not to attend. Not because I’m afraid of meeting old classmates, but because it’s sure to cost money. How much is this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity worth to me? Twenty dollars? Forty dollars? If there was a Safeway Select version of the reunion, I’d be a lot happier.
(Incidentally, if you haven’t yet gotten the reunion evite and you want to, contact me and I’ll forward it.)
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