Food Expiration Dates Poll Results!

It is about time I get around to talking about the Expiration Date Poll, huh?

Well, the consensus was that they are not to be taken as hard and fast rules. No one who responded regularly threw away food because today is or yesterday was the printed expiration date.

Some said that how much they relied on printed dates depended on the product. For things like dairy and meat, expiration dates are taken more seriously. But for things like crackers, there's some wiggle room.

In general, I'd say that I have to agree.

Very profound, huh?

In other expiration date news:
Crunchy Chicken also commented on the same Slate article that I did. (Great minds? Anyone? Oh well, I can hope.) She highlights that the food scientist explained that those dates on our food packages refer more to optimum freshness, not safety, and are very conservative estimates. They have to account for people who leave the milk on the counter for a few hours before putting it away, or who accidentally leave the block of cheese in the car overnight in the summer, or generally don't follow safe food handling guidelines. (I like her line about taking "food on a tour of the city." It just makes me smile to think of a carton of milk with a touristy hat on, snapping photos of the town.)

While I am no food scientist or food safety expert, it seems to me that if you follow common sense, and try to follow food safety guidelines, you can get a few extra days out of most products. That is, assuming it was fresh to begin with. (You know, there's always one store in the area that might have cheaper prices, but every time you buy produce or milk or meat there, it either spoils days before the printed date, or is spoiled when you get it home.)

Poll 3 Results: Thermostats beware!

Thanks for taking part in the Thermostat poll, and feeding my general curiosity about the subject. The majority of you are keeping your home in the 70 (21.11C) to 75 (23.89C) range. There are also those of you that adjust the temperature based on whether or not you are home, which is a great way to go about it. There are even those of you who have opted to turn off your heat, completely. To you, I say, "Brr; kudos!" Doing that will definitely reduce your heating bill, and help conserve resources. I will go ahead and say that if you choose to go this route, take to follow the instructions of your landlord/home/plumbing system to ensure that your pipes don't freeze, as that could create an even bigger and more costly mess in the long run.

Really, though, I'm shivering just thinking about the heat being completely off.

Despite Punxsutawney Phil seeing his shadow on February 2nd, I have felt a slight lessening of the cold here. This could also be due to the fact that I just spent several days farther south, were it is warmer. I can almost end of winter, which means that we'll be able to lay off of our HVAC system for a bit, and take advantage of natural light for more hours of the day. Exciting!

But, I just turned to my office window, and noticed that there is a very light snow coming down. I guess throwing open the windows for light and a breeze will have to wait.

Poll 2 Results, and a Big Thank You!

So, for my second poll, I asked a "What would you do?" about business trips. After a few rounds of questions, I updated my original poll, with additional options. A small majority were in favor of renting a car, with driving your own, and other each receiving votes.

Honestly, when planning the trip, I didn't consider flying because to me a 3-6 hour car trip isn't all that long. I think that after driving to the airport, going through security, and paying for the ticket and parking/or getting to the airport, trips via airplanes within that radius are about as long and more expensive than just going by car.

The bus option was also one that I had not considered. I know that interstate bus lines do run in the US, but they've never really been among the first things that come to mind when I'm planning a trip. Thanks for the reminder, guys.

Also, I shared my concern about healthy, yet inexpensive eating options while traveling, and you all gave me some good feedback. Remembering back to high school, after the first overnight speech team trip, I started taking a small cooler of veggies to snack on. Why? Because, thanks to my parents, I was used to a healthy and varied diet, and on the first overnight trip, our only food options were fast food, and I felt sick. Don't know why I didn't consider this. Thank you for the reminder!

Thermostat Poll Post

Did I miss the range of your thermostat in the options I gave? Feel like telling me why you have your thermostat set to  a certain temperature? I'd love to hear all about it!

To be fair, our thermostat is set at around 65F (18.33C), which means that it is reading about 60F (15.56C). When my husband was sick, we had it set as high as 70F (21.11C). But then we got our electric bill, and decided that putting on socks and an extra sweater were better ideas.

Poll Results! Plus, The Repercussions of Going Out of Town

My first poll was asking you, my illustrious readers, about what you would like to learn/have me prattle on. The winner was: Cooking! As a result, I will try to orient more posts towards cooking and various kitchen tips.

You may have noticed that this week's posts have been dominated by that theme. That occurred by a happy accident that left me with a relatively free weekend, desire to cook, and poll results that matched!

I still have a lot to learn about cooking, and about cooking frugally. Up to now, mainly what I've been doing is slightly more complex than the open container, dump, and heat method. I like having something ready quickly, but I don't like eating too many of these convenience foods. Plus, there is something more fulfilling, to me, about actually making something. From scratch. I really like making those biscuits for that reason, and I've been getting better each time! Last night, they were almost tender and flaky. I've started formulating a plan of attack for making them even flakier. I'm excited to see if it will work.

As you may have guessed by my current poll, I am going out of town shortly, on a business trip. While I'm not overly concerned with the cost of this trip, I am concerned with what the traveling will do to eating habits.
1 - why am I not concerned with the cost? Because I will get reimbursed for all costs associated with it. And, I am travelling on the cheap anyway. Since I am going places with which I am familiar, I have free lodging for most of th nights.
2 - eating habits? Yes. I'll be on the road, or speaking to groups of college kids for the majority of about 3 or 4 days. Short of packing up my own sandwiches and such, I know that my options will be limited by time and proximity. When I've been away, I find myself missing a kitchen or fridge or just the ability to go and make something simple, like a PB&J sandwich, to tide myself over till the next meal.

While I'm away, I know that I'll try to make the best choices I can, but do you have any tips for eating well and frugally on the road?