Evening star., 1945-08-09
Report to the Housewife

Usually, at this time of the year
] take my vacation. selecting thi
particular period because 1t Is on,
when local markets fall into tn,
summertime doldrums, and there /,
little, If anything, startling to re.
port. Because I've been asked tc
stay home as my little part in the
war effort this summer, I'm still
poking my nose into the local food
situation. And I find the usual
dreamy state Of doldrums right
there as it's always been!
There is little or no change from
last week as far as the meat pic
ture is concerned. Thereu be bet
ter supplies of beef than we saw
in July, a bit more veal, some lamb,
and very little pork of any kind.
Some markets have a bit of Cana
dian-type bacon on hand, but the
regular" kind is hard to come by.
Luncheon meats are not too plenti-
full, and there is small choice
usually you have to take bologna
and like it. The oldest thing that
crops up this week is the scarcity
Of sundries, such as liver, kidneys,
brains and so on-one would think
they would follow the easier trend
in beef and veal, but apparently
things don't work that way.
A very few shipments of chickens
come dribbling in from time to time,
mostly live birds, or occasionally
some dressed fowl from nonre-
stricted areas, or Army rejects.
Eggs show little change.
Cheese is still plentiful, and so
is butter. other fats, however, are
definitely on the short side, and
such items as salad dressings prac-
tically nonexistent. Soap and soap
flakes and powders continue hard
to get in many stores, but some
markets are actually advertising
certain brands. Purchases are lin
tied, however.
Fish supplies are better than they
were last week, with porgies, croak-
erS, butterflsh, trout, Boston mack
erel, sea bass and rockfish among
the most plentiful. There are fairly
adequate quantities of perch, whit
ing, founder, haddock and cod fl
let, fresh founder and bluefish.
Crabmeat continues plentiful, but
high. Very little shrimp or lobster
Is expected.
Fruits and vegetables still suffer
from weather and transportation
conditions. A few larger oranges
are coming in from California, but
grapefruit are hitting their seasonal
low. Lemons and lines are in good
supply, as are bananas, pineapples,
Black Diamond blackberries, blue
berries, red and green gauge plums,
Thompson seedless and red Malaga
grapes, nectarines, peaches, new
apples, Bing cherries and honey
dew melons. Cts been one of the
best honeydew years seen for long
tlme0 Cantaloupe from North Caro-
tina and the Eastern Shore have
been damaged by the weather, but
some dealers are hoping for ship
ments Of good Western melons by
the end of the week. There are
quite a few watermelons about, but
quality is doubtful in most in
stances. Fine Bartlett pears are ar
irving from California.
There1l be more of those good
peas this week-coming from .Ari-
zona; snap beans, carrots, beets, po-
tatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, egg
plant, tomatoes and cabbage are
plentiful. Greens, broccoli, cauli-
flower, lima beans, okra and celery
are scarce. There should be nice
cabbage and green peppers on hand,
as well as all ingredients for the
salad bowl.
X X X X
Here and There: Reports are !
that some of the household items
that have been completely out of
the picture for many moons will be