Eating in the Fast Lane

The last few years now I've been playing bridge at least two nights a week and sometimes more. This routine has interfered with my eating habits and I can't seem to find the right balance. My dinner often consists of something "on the run" and I regret that fact. I miss my nightly meals and am therefore thinking of cutting back on bridge. Since reaching my goal of "life-master" (the equivalent of a black belt in judo) I've felt a little less driven about the game. In the meantime, I'm still playing a lot and need to find a better way to manage my meals. Being a food writer means I sometimes have weird stuff on hand at the wrong time of year. For example, right now I'm testing recipes for the Thanksgiving issue of a monthly publication. I'm roasting a huge turkey, making stuffing, boiling sweet potatoes, preparing cranberry relish and baking a spice cake. The weather today is very pleasant but right before this nice cool wave came along, I was preparing this hearty fare while sweltering in a thick layer of heat and humidity---not a great time to be dealing with a Thanksgiving Day feast. I could say I'm used to it, having done this sort of thing for over 20 years. I'm not sure that's true. I've been working on winter holiday recipes in the midst of summer for a long time and it still seems strange. Eggnog in July? Rum-soaked fruit cake in August? I guess I can't complain. There are worse ways to make a living but unluckily for me and my loved ones, I'm plain "done-in" by the time Christmas comes each year. I've spent my holiday cooking energy! And in December, what do I have to work on? A host of recipes that deal with summer fare! Corn, tomatoes, basil, melons, berries in December?...That's why I say I have some unusual things in my refrigerator at times. Helas, I digress. My dilemma of the moment is about eating better before going out to play bridge. What's a guy to do? The other problem is that after cooking and cleaning up after myself all day long, the last thing I want to do is prepare a meal that I'll have to eat early and have to clean up from before I leave. This is where looking for something easy comes to mind. My friend, Wes, was telling me the other day how his mother worked hard during the day yet managed to both send him off to school with lunch in hand and to come home in time to put dinner on the table. How do working women do this day after day? It's no wonder convenience has become so important in the lexicon of marketing prepared foods. Who wouldn't pop a ready-to-eat frozen entree into the microwave at the end of the work day when you're already pushed to the limit? Luckily I haven't stooped that low but I can understand why a well-meaning soul might take such a route. Having something hot and even vaguely satisfying is appealing when you're tired and hungry. Living in Manhattan makes meal-planning easier. Within five minutes of my apartment, there are places where you can order take-out food that's just about as good as what I can prepare on my own. Well, not really --- but almost! If there is nothing in my fridge that looks like it'd make a quick dinner, I should exercise better planning and buy decent take-out food that I can eat before I leave the house. Oh well, as my dear friend, Susy, says---"These are up-town problems." Eating at home means eating well and eating well means putting effort into planning, shopping, cooking and cleaning up. There's no way around it but it seems as if we're all looking for an easy solution. Working mothers and bridge players unite!!