Things I bought last week that I had never purchased before in my life

the (typically) forbidden fruit 

Given the opportunity to buy canned corn or candy in preparation for the end of the world, few of us are going with corn. Most of the grocery hauls I've seen, slowly unpacked over FaceTime, included some form of mac and cheese, wine, angel hair pasta, fruit roll-ups, and Corona beer (power of suggestion). During my own last-ditch shop last week, I filled my cart with items I'd never bought before, including:

• Eggo cinnamon toast waffles
• Limited edition heart-shaped honey nut cheerios (for extra love) 
• Butter, because every place I lived just happened to have some already, which is a cryptic way of saying I've always borrowed from roommates. I bought the only kind my bodega carries, four sticks for $7, which seemed like a rip, but I guess I wouldn't know. 
• Frozen pierogis, loaded baked potato flavor 
• Skippy creamy peanut butter, which always seemed a little too gloriously processed, but special occasions call for special treats, and there's something sickly about scooping through an inch of oil to reach the actual meat in any organic version.

By day two of my self-imposed quarantine I was already restless so I walked one hour and fifteen minutes to Connor's. I live far enough uptown that the whole walk kept me at least one block's distance from anyone else, and the weather was so perfect, as if in apology, that it almost seemed like nothing was wrong. We purchased the last snacks we will ever have, at least for now, which consisted of hummus, chips, pre-popped chocolate drizzled popcorn, one yellow gatorade, and three packs of gushers (for me).

But then we got really nervous on the walk back from touching the snack packages and couldn't figure out how to eat them safely, so he opened all the doors while I held the snacks, then he washed his hands and got bowls, I opened all the snacks and poured them into the bowls (careful not to touch the sides of the bowl with the packaging), and finally threw away the packets and washed my hands so we could eat in peace. I still can't decide if we were overcautious or not cautious enough.