Who's Got a Pickle?

In this world there are very few phrases or sayings or idioms or what-have-you that everybody knows. For example, if someone says, "beans, beans, the magical fruit...," without even thinking, everyone knows what follows. If I say, "I've got a pickle...," immediately, everyone around immediately chants, "he's got a pickle, he's got a pickle" and "hey, hey, hey."

It just so happens that today I had pickle.

I've never been a big pickle guy. I mean, as much as I love a good game of pickle, sweet pickles are the only pickles I really like. There's really not that much you can do with a sweet pickle, though. I've only ever had them diced up with tuna for a delicious tuna sandwich, or eaten plain - a pickle every now and then just makes a good snack.

Dill pickles are different. I have never, never liked dill pickles. For the most part they are disgusting. You couldn't have paid me to eat a dill pickle as a kid. As my tastebuds have matured - despite the fact that I maybe have not matured so much - I have come not to mind a good, cold, CRUNCHY dill pickle on a hamburger; but that's it, no chewy, soggy, fast food hamburger pickles - yuck.

Pickles are a big deal here in Latvia (I think it goes for Eastern Europe as a whole). They pickle EVERYTHING. I've written about pickled mushrooms. I've mentioned pickled pear. Seriously, they love to pickle. So much that they do pickle pretty much every fruit or vegetable they can from pumpkins to apples.

I noticed a while back that in the supermarkets, they had these bulk bins full of pickles. Instead of candy, like we have in the States, they have bulk pickles. Fresh pickles! How cool is that?

Today I was just feeling that urge to eat a pickle. When I was walking home from work and passed a supermarket, I went in, approached the pickle bins, reached in with the tongs, and got myself a pickle. There were three different types of pickles. I had no idea what would be what so I just got the cheapest of the three hoping it would be a good one. I paid for my pickle and as I left the store I took a bite out of it.

I was hoping it would be sweet and not dill because again, I don't even like dill pickles. I was taking a serious chance here but I thought even if it were dill, it probably wouldn't be too bad because it's fresh and not sick like those gross dill pickle slices that everyone likes - sick. So I took a bite and sure enough...I couldn't tell what it was.

A mild dill, maybe? A not very sweet sweet pickle, perhaps? humph. It's actually pretty tasty, not too bad at all. And so I ate my pickle as I strolled the rest of the way home.

The End.