From Dragonfly: Can You Smell That?

There's a constant noise every morning at breakfast, "can you smell this for me?" Why? Because our milk comes in small, clear plastic pouches, that we use our teeth to open at a corner. Yes, it sounds weird, but it's a lot like a clear "Capri-sun" without the straw. The one problem, though, is that "often" the milk is spoiled.


We have to smell the milk to ensure that we are not about to drink spoiled milk. But, often, I have to have "back up" to ensure my smell is working well. Less frequently, the plastic of the pouch will actually have hardened milk on it - that's a sure sign that something is wrong!!! This happened to me with two pouches in a row this morning - ew!!! Then, the third pouch I received smelled rotten. Finally, on a fourth try, I got a nice, healthy pouch of unspoiled milk. I used more than half on my cereal and the little bit left in my cup. Most days, I try to have two pouches of milk (getting milk/dairy is the primary reason Freckles and I go to breakfast most mornings!), but with my bad-milk-luck this a.m., I didn't try to find another unspoiled milk.


Okay, I do admit that I am a bit compulsive about the freshness of my milk. There are many people who will drink milk well past the date on a carton back home. Not me, once the date hits, my milk is going down the drain, even if it doesn't smell bad. Now, after the experience of so much bad milk, here, I think I will be even more adamant to "smell" my milk before each use. That will probably be a bit "weird" at a restaurant or a friend's house (ha).


I can honestly say that I do not know why some of the milk is always bad and other milk is wonderfully fresh, here, when they seem to come out of the same batch from the kitchen. Perhaps the "pouches" are not as air tight as they need to be. Maybe the freshness date has long passed. Maybe it has sat outside the refrigerator for just a little too long. I don't know. But, I will always check my milk carefully, as drinking spoiled milk will not be a very good start to my day.