Last night, my wife and I concluded our three day commitment to the Do the Math Challenge. In the end, it went a lot like I expected – the volume of food we had was sufficient, but there was little enjoyment to be had. As with most things, you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone. Eating is not only one of life’s necessities, but for many a source of joy. The last three days have brought little enjoyment. I normally look forward to mealtime, but this week it was merely a task that needed to be completed.
Remaining Food
We managed our food supply reasonably well, being careful to get the most out of each ingredient – like our one onion which turned up in dinner all three nights. While we could have squeezed out another day or two from our remaining food, I’m very happy to be moving on and welcoming back things like fresh fruit and vegetables and meat. It feels like sweet freedom.
If you have interest in the way we tackle poverty and hunger in Kingston, there’s a wrap-up event happening next Thursday night at 6 at St. Vincent dePaul on Stephen Street.
When I agreed to try the Do the Math Challenge, I said there were two reasons: I wanted to see if I could actually do it and I wanted to get a better appreciation of what it was like to have to have to live this way. An unexpected lesson I’ve learned is that I don’t need to eat as much as I normally do. Having to budget a limited food supply has made me realize I can get by quite nicely with less. Not the main lesson to be drawn from this exercise, I understand, but an interesting eye-opener for me.
The other realization I came to on the second day was that breakfast is your best friend. Not the meal itself, since I’m not a huge eater in the morning, but rather the use of cereal and toast to fill the gaps in the rest of the day. With few resources available, a piece of toast with peanut butter or some cereal is the best and quickest way to keep hunger at bay.
So onto our final day. My wife and I have done a pretty good job of stretching our food supply, doing things like using a bit of our can of tomato soup to add some flavour in the roasted potatoes we made last night. But there’s still enough soup left that we each can have a small bowl for lunch today. Rice and eggs are the main items left that we have not used yet, so they will be the focus of tonight’s dinner.
I can’t wait for tomorrow.
So we survived day one of the Do the Math Challenge, and it actually wasn’t too bad. My lunchtime can of beans with dry toast was not the most appetizing thing I’ve ever eaten, but it did the job. 
My wife and I made a tuna casserole last night, using most of the pasta, our can of tuna, a can of cream of chicken soup, a bit of our onion, some canned peas and corn, plus we toasted the crusts from our loaf of bread and crumbled that on top. It wouldn’t win any culinary competitions, but it was edible.
I definitely ate less yesterday than I normally would. Part of it is making sure you conserve enough food to last and part of it is the sheer blandness and lack of options. I still felt hungry, but none of the available choices was appealing. I refuse to “cheat” and eat something that is not a part of the challenge.
Now on to day two. Breakfast is the same (cereal and milk, granola bar, juice box), lunch will feature the first leftovers of the week (some beans and tuna casserole from yesterday), but dinner will be more difficult since we’ve used the one easy obvious choice.
We’re already looking forward to dinner on Thursday night (the first night after the challenge) – it will feel so decadent.
Starting this morning, I am joining other Kingstonians in trying the Do the Math Challenge. Basically my wife and I will find out what it’s like to live off the contents of a typical food hamper.
Our food supply for the Do the Math Challenge
Yesterday we gathered the meager supplies we will use for at least the next three days and attempted to come up with a meal plan. On the menu today: cereal with milk, a granola bar and juice box for breakfast. Lunch will be a can of beans and some dry toast. For dinner we’re going to come up with a tuna casserole. Options are few given the limited amount of food choices and the fact that you have no access to things like spices or condiments (oil, flour and salt are the only pantry items we are allowed). Bland will definitely be the word of the week.
Looking at the available ingredients last night made me think it would be a good premise for a Food Network show. Find me some chefs that could take these items and turn them into something tasty. I’m thinking it would be a tough assignment.
Since I’m not a big breakfast eater, the full impact of this challenge won’t hit until lunch and dinner today. I have a feeling I’ll be pretty grumpy by 7:00 tonight.
