Have You Burped Lately?

Before you say, "gross" or think I've lost my mind, I'm talking about Tupperware for goodness sakes! (You had to "burp" the product for the air-tight seal.) Recently I had a nice visit with my friend Claudia and her husband Danny. They have blessed me with an abundance of peaches this summer and her cousin Ann allowed us to dive into her herb garden. The peaches are frozen and the I have dried lemon basil, basil, dill and lemon verbena. It smelled heavenly while the basil was drying. The fragrant herb made me want to start a pot of spaghetti sauce.

A storm had blown up on my drive out to Campbellsville giving us some time to visit before we went to work. Claudia and I sorted through some Glad food containers, which are my preference for sharing food but not hers, that she thought were mine. My dear friend has been affectionately dubbed the "Tupperware Queen". I swear that woman has every single piece that's ever been made since it was introduced in 1945. Tupperware is for storing; you don't loan that stuff out as it would never make its way back home.

Later that afternoon, she brought out a container, Tupperware of course, full of multiples of unusual items. You know I'm not a fan of pop quizzes, but this was one I totally enjoyed. While we were all stumped on several of the items, for the most part, I did pretty well on this quiz. I was amazed when I noticed I actually owned several of them. After reviewing, commenting on and handling an assortment of gadgets, knowing my love of Tennessee football, Claudia bestowed me with all the orange duplicates plus a lot of items I didn't have!!

So here is my pop quiz for you. Without googling or scrolling to the bottom, how many items can you identify?

How well did you do on the quiz?

Let me ramble for a few more minutes and I'll give you the answers. How did my Mother and I come to possess so many plastic gadgets? I can remember back in the 60s and especially during the 70s, Tupperware parties were all the rage. Remember Grandma making a fancy Jello mold for holiday dinners? Their products stand the test of time. When it comes to product parties, I'm not a huge fan. Give me a catalog and let me just order something. Please don't torture me with demonstrations and silly games. For decades, I felt obligated to go and buy something at parties for every product imaginable. I understand the party model and how it'll help your friends get free stuff. But by the time you pay for the food, drinks and putting on the dog, would it  not be cheaper to just buy the stuff? Maybe it's the hook that is the clincher. You can only get the "Hostess" gift if you have a party. If they're not giving away money or gold bars, I'm out.

Not too long ago I went on a search for salt and pepper shakers with a lid that closed properly. The humidity in the South can be awful and I wanted to be able to close the containers. I looked high and low and every single one had open holes! I thought of the the old-style Tupperware salt and pepper shakers and wondered if you could still get them. You know the ones...Grandma and Momma had them sitting near the stove for decades. They were hourglass shaped, had a gold S or P on them and possessed a snap tight lid. Andy and I knew there was a lady with a Tupperware booth at the flea market in Limestone County so off we went one Saturday. This lady had everything under the sun so I just knew I'd be walking out with my salt and pepper shakers that afternoon. When I got to her location, she was no longer set up there. I asked around and nobody knew anyone who sold it anymore.

After an internet search, I hit the mother lode! I really wanted the vintage look, but found they too had changed with time. The S and P was no longer stamped (well duh, salt is white, pepper is black and you can see through the plastic) and the cap color was now a light sort of teal. (What's wrong with plain??) The best ever was the fact I no longer had to go to a party! I was free to order them online and have them shipped to the house!

Ok, I'm rambling again, here are the answers to the quiz. I hoped you enjoyed the visit with my favorite Tupperware lady who has never required me to buy anything at any of her parties.

A. Double spoon rest
B. Biscuit cutter (note you can make two different sizes!)
C. Funnel
D. Cheese slicer
E. Lift hard boiled eggs out of a pan
F. Long handled tea spoons
G. Cake frosting decorator
H. Pastry sheet strap
I. Serving tongs
J. Lid Scraper
K. Soap dish/scouring pad holder
L. Scoop
M. Pie Server
N. Grapefruit knife
O. Strawberry huller
P. Melon baller