Pickles pickles pickles

My friends and I used to have an incredibly nerdy joke. Whenever someone left their computer unattended, say when they went on a bathroom break, we would always find some essay they were working on and quietly add in the word ‘pickles’ at random points in the essay. “While the defection of Benedict Arnold to the British side pickles was a shocking loss for the colonists…”, you get the point. I suppose it forced all of us to pay extra attention to our essays before we handed them in to our teachers, but overall, these ‘pickle bombs’ as they became known were harmless dorky pranks.
So in my mind, pickles has always been a word that has made me chuckle. When a new deli opened up in town, fittingly named Pickles, I had to chuckle when I first walked by. The first day they were open for business, my roommate Nathan and I were walking home together and decided to pop in to check the place out.
Pickles prides itself on serving European-style sandwiches, which, as far as I can tell, means that they give you two pieces of delicious bread and pile toppings a mile high on each slice. The first time we were there, I asked them if they had any vegetarian options. The owner looked down at the glass display case, stuffed full with various meats and sausages, chuckled, and replied “Not in here!” They offered to make me a cheese sandwich; usually an unappetizing option. However, the cheese sandwich they presented me with was like no other that my mouth had ever experienced. Mountains of gouda and cheddar piled on my bread and the interplay of cheese, fruit, and special pickles sauce exploded all over my taste buds. It was glorious and I had to have more. Since that day, I’ve been back many times, always sticking with my faithful cheese sandwich (partially out of lack of other options, but also because it’s just so damn good.)
I went kind of out of my way today to grab a sandwich at Pickles. I was having kind of a bummer of a morning and needed a break from being pickles on campus. Immediately when I walked in, the owner greeted me by first name and chatted with me about my day, asking me what I was currently studying, and more of the general small talk you often here at neighborhood establishments like this one. He even noted that there were several new options for cheese that they had just gotten in and I happily chose two more options for my sandwich. (Both were delicious. I can barely finish the second slice of bread, but have you ever had that conflict where you are so full, but the food you’re eating is so good that you can’t stop eating? No? Just me? Moving on…)
When I left Pickles, I couldn’t help, but break out with a big ol’ grin my face. My not-so-good day had been turned on its head and my mood was exponentially lifted. So thank you Pickles.
(Did you catch the pickle bomb? Bet you didn’t!)
As for a song...here you go!