Beans and Rice

As a runner, I try to eat healthy. I don’t really deny myself the occasional indulgence unless I can't afford it, financially and with regards to feeling okay after the fact. Living on Martha’s Vineyard can put quite a dent in one’s budget for just the basics, however. A quick trip down the produce aisle can quickly tally up to a day’s earnings for most island families. Living alone, as a bachelor, I tend to be able to "get by" on more meager consumption and expenses.

My time living in Gainesville, Florida taught me how to live on $25 worth of food each month. Yes, an entire month based on the local produce stand’s rotten rack, a sack of rice, and a small herb garden at my apartment allowed me to live quite comfortably. Then again, that was the South, where everything tends to be a bit cheaper that New England.

When I was living in the tool shed, I had a microwave that I used to cook rice while I took my dog out to the dog park. By the time we were done, the rice was also done. I emptied a can of beans into the pot and called it dinner. Every night, for weeks on end, with the only variation being a dollop of barbeque sauce or crackers crumbled on top. Carrots were the only vegetable in the fridge. Clif bars were for lunch and I lived on yerba mate the rest of the day. My buddy teased me my dog ate better than I did and I agreed. “My choice, not his,” I declared.

After so many years on the island I have upgraded my life in so many ways. That is until the past few years that have become difficult financially once more. The jokes about my frugality run rampant: "Do you open the windows in winter to let the heat in?"; "Is your fridge plugged in or do you use it to keep water from freezing?"; and finally, "Let me guess what’s for dinner – beans and rice?" Well, I might still be eating beans and rice, but I get the feeling I am not alone, especially here on Martha’s Vineyard.

I could list the increasing numbers of families leaving the island due to lack of affordable housing, the food pantry struggling to remain stocked, or the number of people looking for year round gainful employment, but I think that remains the theme throughout the news stories in the local media outlets. Instead, I have to tell you that I see nothing wrong with “downgrading” to my previous level of consumption, should that be necessary. I must also admit that I have alternatives.

Eating on the cheap usually starts off island, either at BJ’s or the like, where food can be bought in bulk. Frozen, canned or dry, food must be able to keep for weeks or months, as you cannot cheaply or easily commute to and from the island at any time of the year anymore. Then next trick is to cook up a huge one pot batch of whatever, freeze servings of it in smaller containers for a quick re-heat, and live off the rest for as long as you can stomach it. Indian dahl curry is perfect for this, by the way. Whatever it is you cook up, just make sure it goes with rice.