5 Reasons Men Have Serious Grocery Shopping ‘Issues’

Last week, I sent my husband a grocery list that was explicit in its detail. I needed hamburger buns. The next night I went into the bread box to make the hamburgers and there, waiting for me, was a full pack of whole grain … hot dog buns. Really, honey?

My husband is a man with multiple higher degrees, a scientist who is at the top of his game professionally, and yet a simple trip to a grocery store leaves him utterly flummoxed. He comes home with zucchini instead of cucumbers and cumin instead of cinnamon and fat-free cheese instead of low fat.

The second he steps into Whole Foods, it's like he has a lobotomy or something. Sorry, honey. I love you and think you are incredibly capable in so many other arenas … but the grocery store? Not so much. I asked around and found that, while some lucky ladies have husbands who are all about the food and know the difference between grass fed beef and the regular kind, there are many, many other women in my boat. Why? Here are some ideas:

1.) He's blind: Sometimes I think this might be true, but then I remember that he somehow manages to do his job and lead a group of 40+ engineers. So then I have to assume he is merely TEMPORARILY blinded by all the fluorescent lights and sale banners.

2.) He's stupid: But it can't be! He managed to finish all the work toward his PhD and get a great job on a high level. He is a well respected scientist who has been published in journals. And yet … somehow … lettuce escapes him? Tell me how this works?

3.) He is immune to branding: This is his excuse. Why buy the BRAND I SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED when you can buy the cheap knock-off one (with the hole punched in the top where sour cream is leaking out) for 50 CENTS LESS?!

4.) He just doesn't care: This is the most likely culprit. In my hubby's case, he is just not a foodie. To him, low fat and reduced fat ARE the same.

5.) He is subtly rebelling: The hubs isn't the biggest fan of grocery shopping. This is kind of like that Shel Silverstein poem from back in the day when a girl wanted to stop doing the dishes, so she would — oops! — drop one on the floor. Yeah. Like that.

Why do you think so many men (not yours, I am sure) are terrible at grocery shopping?

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