What my mother called “allergy testing.”

Basically, myself and my siblings were placed on a diet that consisted of rice cakes (the puffed-rice-compressed-discs-of-bland type) and margarine for a few days to “detox.” Then we were introduced to foods to see if we had an “allergic reaction.” Two things stand out in my memories.

1. I specifically recall the sensation of waking in the middle of the night to vomit my “dinner” all over myself: an entire plate of overcooked, boiled, green (string) beans. This meant, to my deluded mother, that I was allergic to string beans. I’m not. Unfortunately, though, I couldn’t stand the taste of string beans for about 30 years after that.

2. Going to birthday parties as an eight year old and bringing your own rice cakes (the puffed-rice-compressed-discs-of-bland type) and margarine and not being able to partake of the cakes and candy and soda and other sugary deliciousness was both soul cruising and humiliating.

Edit: punctuating

My mother currently has dirt floors.

Wow! These gender reveals are really getting out of hand!

I don’t own them, so I don’t know about storage. The handles are on the same side as the rods so carrying them should be easy enough.

I see these a lot in my city.

How do you pronounce “they’re”?

It depends.

• If you are dining, then place it on the far side of your plate.
• If you are sitting at a table, but not dining, then place it approximately halfway between the dining position and the table edge.
• If you are standing by the table, then I’d go with about 4"-6" from the table edge.
• If you are standing by the table in a high traffic area, then I’d go with 6"-8".
• If you notice someone nearby who is particularly animated when speaking, then I’d aim for the centre of the table.

This answer assumes the table in question is a dining table. Coffee tables are a whole different kettle of fish; and don’t even get me started on side tables, bureaus and credenzas!

Edit: formatting