Jeff buys lentils and rice in bulk at the corner grocery, once a month or so. He’s become very good at boiling the rice just so, so it’s puffy and light in the pot, just as the lentils are that perfect al dente crush on the tongue. If you’re allowed to say that lentils are al dente. But he lives alone, in a rented attic room just off campus, so he calls them whatever he likes.
He only makes lentils and rice every couple of days, in big batches, while studying. Then, at dinner, he melts butter in a frying pan. He adds a little garlic, some cumin, a whole lot of coriander. He stirs until the whole room fills with the fragrance. Then he adds a scoop of lentils, a scoop of rice. When he’s feeling really poor, he eats it right out of the pan. When it’s warmer out and the heating bill isn’t so bad, he buys avocados or tomatoes and wraps the mess up into a delicious burrito. He eats it on the run, to class or to work. He puts aside a little money each month, not enough, but enough to keep going.
Daily Writings 