Elysia is in the United States for the week searching for good pizza and burritos. Also allegedly taking a class at the Army JAG school or at least that is what she told her command. At five months pregnant is homework or food her top priority? You be the judge.
Here in Singapore I am just another military spouse keeping the home fires burning, or the air conditioning running, until a lightning storm knocked out half of our electricity and two of our six air conditioners. (Oh, the humanity!)
But I have things to do even with the power out. Before she left for the States, my wife bought a package of Oreos at the Navy Exchange, 25 percent off. She did not realize that I, too, bought some, most likely because I forgot them in the trunk of the car for five days.
This may be the first time in our marriage we have purchased family-size packages. A milestone.
So she is in the States and I am left with Oreos and time to think about the important things in life. With a little bit of scientific analysis — a teaspoon — I have concluded that there is indeed at least double the stuf in a Double Stuf cookie. It is nice to see that some things in life do not change.
Another thing that does not change will be my wife coming home wondering what happened to the cookies with the same sense of incredulity that she had when discovering that the frozen sorbet purchased three weeks ago is no longer in the freezer.
After conducting the Oreo analysis, including a review of the literature, I now know that the wafer Oreos for sale on base are unique to Asia and Australia (See Oreo, China). As we say in the academe, more research is necessary.
Speaking of multinational dessert issues, I recently discovered that ice cream sprinkles in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, are called rice. They are also known as jimmies in the Mid-Atlantic United States or hundreds-and-thousands in Singapore and other places formerly ruled by the British.
I am not sure when this information will come in handy but I am prepared to teach the next generation.
