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My American Life — Stories of Generosity
Sharing stories of generosity during a time of distress
Post # 4: I can pay for that
Weekday evenings were hard. After a tiring day in the lab, I had a long commute from Baltimore to Bethesda. Our suburban neighborhood was a stone’s throw from the prestigious NIH but it wasn’t very practical to eat often at the fancy restaurants in the vicinity.
Like all Americans, we were on the lookout for cheap fast food. But being vegetarian made it difficult.
It was the era in which McDonald’s had just switched to using oil for french fries instead of beef tallow. Long before the vegan revolution, a veggie burger meant a bun with limp lettuce and lots of ketchup. Burger King and KFC were out of the question. Subway and Taco Bell were the only outlets that listed fresh vegetables on their menus which could be customised into sandwiches or tacos, and therefore, ideal for us.
One evening, we decided to grab some nachos and burritos at the Taco Bell down the street. Since we didn’t need to drive, we walked in and placed our orders. The bill was about $8 but we had no money with us, having left our wallets and car keys behind. We looked sheepishly at each other and at the cashier while…
