#410 Edam Up

Around the holidays certain “higher-ups” around the office receive gifts.  One year a guy received a live wreath and didn’t want it, so I took it home.  It smelled lovely.  I have seen people receive tins of popcorn, cookies and even a Virginia ham.  I have received a box of oranges and grapefruits for the past 10 years or so in December.  The person who kept me on the mailing list (I haven’t worked with that championship in five or six years now) passed away earlier this year.  He was so thoughtful to keep sending them to me and I will greatly miss him and the fruit. 

The latest gift to hit the office was a 3 lb. cannonball of Edam cheese from Mississippi State University.  A co-worker sent me a message to come and get some cheese this past Monday.  For three days days Kerstin and I have ventured to the other side of the building to have an afternoon snack of either cheese and crackers or cheese and bread. 

Today (Thursday) I sent my usual message to the keeper of the cheese asking if she had taken it out of the refrigerator.  I recently learned that cheese is best when it’s been out of the refrigerator for an hour or so.  The flavors are better.  I was aghast when my friend replied “It’s gone”.  What?  What do you mean, gone?  There was half a ball of cheese left yesterday!  Who ate all the cheese?  Who moved my cheese?  She forgot to put the cheese away when she left work last night and then called security to tell him to throw it away.  Pardon me?  Throw it away?!  Who does that?  Cheese is a hearty food and will definitely not go bad overnight.  You may have to cut some hardened cheese off the top, but it would still be good.  I was distraught. 

When I delivered the bad news to Kerstin she felt the same way.  My hope is that the security guy looked at half ball of beautiful Edam cheese and took it home with him and it’s not rotting in the back of a Ray’s trash truck. 

I was looking forward to several more days of our “cheese runs.”  (Which is a very ironic thing to call it, since cheese does the opposite of giving you the runs.)  Now I am back to peanut butter on bread for my afternoon snack.  So long, Edam.  It was nice to know you.  Parting is such sweet sorrow.