“Cheese Food” and giving anything but my best
It’s a rare cheese I don’t enjoy. That rare cheese? Limburger. But all other cheeses are my favorite. Cheddar, gouda, feta…you name it, I love it.
But when it comes to “cheese food”…no. Just no.
I’m not a picky eater and there are few foods which are absolutely banned from my kitchen. But cheese slices are one of those “food” items. Why? Because they’re plastic. They are tasteless. They are not cheese or food. They are “cheese product” (note the quotation marks, they’re important here).
They are synthetic.
That’s why when I read about Kraft singles donning the official “health food” label from professional nutritionists, I thought I was reading something from a joke site. Sadly, it’s real. Not only was it given a stamp of approval, it’s the first in the “Kids Eat Right” campaign.
My first thought? Why not apples? Or spinach? Or….or….anything other than icky, fakey “cheese”?
Blech.
Why would I feed my kids something that was a poor substitute for the good stuff?*********
I was thinking about this on my way back from dropping the kids off at school. My thoughts of “cheese product” oozed into thoughts of my work like melty mozzarella (oh, mercy, I’m drooling).
I thought about my writing. I’ll admit, there are days I just want to slap a piece of pre-fabricated, formulaic, less-than-my-best writing on the novels. “Ah, who’ll even notice if I don’t rework this sentence 20 times?” or “Nobody pays attention to if my character is on the shore one moment and suddenly next to the antagonist on the dune the next…details, details…” or “I’ll just let the editor take care of this tangled scene…that’s their job!” (NOTE: NO NO NO NO NO!!!! That is not the editor’s job. NOT THE EDITOR’S JOB!)
Giving anything but my best (and consistently) weakens my work ethic. Just like plastic “cheese” gives dairy a bad name.
Today I have several projects to tackle. I have a novel to write, marketing for A Cup of Dust to plan, prep work for church stuff, a freelance project to attend to, a house to clean, food to cook (without “cheese product”), kids to snuggle, a hubby to smooch…And it all deserves the best I can offer. Not a cheap replacement.
What I have to give is not perfect, but it’s the best I can do.
********(Note: Kraft Singles aren’t even a money saver. Buying a real block of cheese is cheaper than a pack of the pre-sliced, individually wrapped, blech worthy “product”)
susiefinkbeiner.com 
Have you tried Edam cheese. It’s my favorite. Yummy!
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I think I have! Super yummy! Oh, I love cheese!
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Oh, Suzy! I LOVE Kraft singles slices! 🙂 So easy-peasy, slice the cheesy! 🙂 I’m glad they’re on the healthy food list. But, aside from that, thanks so much for reminding me to give my best. Sometimes I get tired; sometimes I get lazy; sometimes I think nobody is noticing, anyway. “That’s good enough” can become my motto. But that’s not what Jesus gave, and it’s not what he expects of His children. So thanks for the “poke in the badoobies” with your mental cattle prod! 🙂 Love you!
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Ew! Ew! Ew! Debra!!!!! Gross! Blech! 😉
I hear ya. But I didn’t mean to poke you in the badoobies! I was aiming for the buzzooonies. 😉
Love you too! So much!
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My attitude is you can put cheese on just about everything and it will taste better and the eating experience, more enjoyable – especially if it’s melted.
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I think you’ve got a great attitude.
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