Some mornings just seem to be perfect. Today’s is one of them. The sun is bright. A breeze is coming in through the back door, from the south. My den is cool and dark, a pleasant place to be. My neighborhood is quiet. I can hear only birds greeting the day. The coffee was delicious. I lingered while I read both papers.

I have no plans for today. I’ll just wait and see what unfolds.

When I was a kid, I had a bit of a boring palate. My mother served us what she knew we’d eat. She went heavy on the potatoes and ground beef, and for dinner, we always had a vegetable. Corn was the hands down favorite, niblets, not creamed corn. I loved peas. I found them versatile. Sometimes I’d mix them into the potatoes. It wasn’t a pretty sight, but it was tasty. They were perfect in pasta salads. Even now, peas are among my favorites. Chinese food was the most exotic we ate. When I was little, my parents told us Chinese food was only for adults. I believed them. Who would have thought parents lied?

I remember my first introduction to Ghanaian food. It was at dinner. I didn’t eat it. It was a glob of mushy green something or other. I asked and found out it was kontomire stew, a stew made from cocoyam leaves. I did try it and didn’t like it, but over time, I ate and enjoyed many Ghanaian foods, just not kontomire.

My palate expanded wider and wider. In every country where I traveled, I tried the food. I ate reindeer in Finnish Lapland. I remember sitting in the hotel dining room watching Thomas Eagleton withdraw as McGovern’s vice presidential nominee 18 days after he had been named.

Ordering food in Europe was easy, but in Africa and South American, my language skills being limited, I just pointed at what I wanted to eat. I seldom asked what the food was. I didn’t want to know. I let my eyes and my taste buds. I was seldom disappointed.

As for now, I don’t cook for myself too much. I am into easy, but now and again I make a meal. If I make a meal like a meatloaf, I eat it a few days in a row. It becomes dinner and sandwiches for lunch. Last night it was spaghetti and meatballs. It will be the same tonight and maybe tomorrow night.