mystery shopping

In the absence of your native language, sometimes the simplest tasks become the most difficult. A quick trip to the baking supply store to pick up a few cookie making essentials required a bit more guesswork than I'd otherwise like to put into food buying. Despite the store's plethora of imported goods, a number of the more basic essentials are packaged in clear bags or white boxes and containers with labels printed in only Chinese. On one or two prior occasions, I could have been spotted trying to feel the difference between cornstarch and cream of tartar through their plastic packaging. Some labels contain chemical formulas for their contents, which have proved surprisingly helpful. Who said chemistry wouldn't be useful in everyday life?

Today, however, I had to dabble in a bit of mystery shopping. All I needed was shortening and the store used to sell containers of imported stuff, but they were gone. Instead were clear tubs, white tubs, and double lined bags resembling what I was there for. The stuff in the white container was a far better deal, but do I trust what I cannot see? Short on time, I did not want to make another trip to the store and decided it would come down to the tub or bag. The packages had a few similar characters so I at least knew they had something in common, though their differences I was less sure of. I decided that when in doubt, buy both and call mom. What we deducted was that the tub was lard - ha ha - tub of lard. Sorry, I find myself easily amused today. The other item was vegetable shortening. So, the guesswork paid off and I'll be stocked for baking needs well into the new year and perhaps beyond.