Decadent

Unique, absurd, funny and decadent are the best words to describe one of my birthday presents this year.

My son presented me with a tiny little rectangle. It was about the size of the bars of soap in hotel rooms. To be exact, the carefully wrapped gift measured 3 x 1 1/2 x 1/2 inches. I’m usually good at guessing gifts, but this one had me flummoxed.

“I bought this to make you laugh,” he said. And he was exactly right, the present was laughable. It was a block of cheese.

Our son had gone to his local Whole Foods Market (a.k.a. Whole Paycheck) in San Diego to get a bottle of wine. By chance, he came across a display consisting entirely of Lilliputian blocks of cheese. When he read the price per pound, he did a double-take. Wanting to share the sheer absurdity of this with me, he figured that, ironically, he should buy it. The reality of the minuscule cheese in my hand would be better than any description of it.

There’s a back story to this story. Every time he and many other of our friends visit, we go to our local dairy and cheese factory. From the hundred varieties of cheese they offer, our favorite is their 16 year aged cheddar. We have always thought it to be expensive, a true treat. Turns out we were wrong. It’s a fantastic bargain…and we get an extra year of aging.

The question that begs to be asked is, “Why would anyone pay $94.99 a pound for a sliver of cheese that couldn’t even make a grilled cheese sandwich?”

I can’t answer that one, but I do know that this country of ours is getting crazier by the moment.

P.S. – My big block of cheddar, when grated, was enough for two large quiches and two casseroles of Mac & cheese.

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