Grocery shopping gets harder

I love our walk-in pantry here. Pity it will soon
have to look as bare as this again.

Grocery shopping at this end of home assignment is tricky. I don't want to buy large refill bottles and only use a small portion of them. As it is we'll give a good amount of partly-used pantry and household items away in our last week. 

Shopping early on in our time in Australia, after I got over the re-entry culture shock, was fun. I could buy all sorts of things that I only dreamed about in Japan. We've enjoyed endless bread rolls, chutney, Mars Bars, BBQ sauce, Shapes, etc. Now it is trickier. 

More so, I think, than when we're leaving Japan. Japan specialises in small packets. That often drives me barmy as I'm catering for a hungry family of five. But when you only want a small amount of something because you're closing your kitchen down soon, it is great.

This morning I had to buy 50g of mustard power. That was the smallest amount I could buy. I doubt I'm going to use a quarter of that in under seven weeks.

The up side is that we can give this stuff away to people who will appreciate it. Our church family, several of whom live very close to the line each week.

In the meantime, I'm trying to be careful not to indulge. But it takes brainpower, and self-control. 

But grief also walks alongside me as I struggle to control my trolley in the long aisles. I'm going to have to walk away from these Australian delights soon. But it does help to remind myself that I was pretty happy in Japan without them (and a little thinner).