Is your freezer stuffed to the gunnels? I never thought it would happen when we bought a side by side freezer/refrigerator. We are a two person household. Up to this time, we used it at less than half capacity. But the covid-19 pandemic has drastically changed our shopping habits. We live within city limits, with access to several supermarkets within a 2 mile radius. Typically, I’d run into the store after participating in all the various activities that are part of normal life. But now, I venture out once a week , masked and gloved. No, I haven’t exactly been hoarding. I ‘ve just been buying “a little bit ahead.” Which means enough frozen meat to last a month. But there’s a downside to all of this. Beware of loaded freezers & broken toes.
Have you ever broken your toe? If you’ve lived as long as I have, you probably have. Mine was the result of fumbling in a dark kitchen for a heavy glass tumbler. I missed my guess, and the tumbler hit my toe like a sledge hammer. Yikes, apart from the initial pain, was the aftermath. A broken toe is like a broken rib. You can tape them up, but they have to heal slowly, on their own. And they hurt like the devil when you walk. This goes on for what seems like forever.
Back to loaded freezers. Modern packaging does not lend itself well to freezer storage. If you’re into fruit smoothies, you probably have several bags of frozen fruits jumbled up on one of the shelves. Ditto for bags of frozen fish and seafood. About the only frozen foods that are consistently stackable are Lean Cuisines. Poultry is the worst. Rock hard chicken breasts and drumsticks pile up in a precarious jumble. As you dig through the mess with freezing fingers, it’s all too common for a lumpy package to slide off and onto your toes. Hopefully, you’ll just get a bruise. But if the package is large enough, and headed in exactly the right direction, it could be a toe buster.
The media has gotten us worried about meat and poultry shortages. So far, I’ve been able to find everything I need, and then some. Yes, you’re only able to buy two packages at a time, but that’s plenty for my husband and me. Now, I’m just hoping to get through this pandemic without a broken toe.
Beware of loaded freezers and broken toes.