Coming off of a long holiday weekend celebrating the freedoms we enjoy in this great country of America, my chest is still a little puffed up with pride to call myself an American (the extra serving(s) of deviled eggs may have helped the puff). An unexpected occurrence of the weekend was my introduction to the quinoa chip. Quinoa chips, really?

The holiday weekend started innocently enough with a visit to a small-ish science and space museum not too far from home that was promoting an exhibit of the science of hockey. Thinking this would be fun because a) Spaceman is Finnish and it is a national requirement to love all things hockey, and b) Spaceman loves science and discovery hence his profession as an astronomer, we set off.

Even though the exhibit was just so-so, all was proceeding fine until my hunger set in. I needed food and I wanted it now! Suddenly the pulsating crowd of kids and parents combined with the heat and humidity of the day was no longer fun.

   (the mom with the stroller looks dazed and confused, perhaps she just ate quinoa chips)

While Spaceman took a bathroom break, I surveyed the food court. This is where I was introduced to the quinoa chip. The food buyers here are obviously woefully unaware of the delicacies that should fill a food court. Quinoa is meant for salads and veggie bowls, not my bag of chips. However, seeing there were no alternative chip choices, I grabbed a bag.

                                        ($2.16 for a bag of quinoa chips, really?)

As I munched the chips, I longed to taste something other than bites of cardboard air puffs (sounds impossible, but quinoa chips have nailed that taste). Luckily I new the next day was 4th of July and I would dive into a fresh bowl of salty, slightly greasy delicious potato chips.

As anticipated, the 4th was a great day of celebrating many things not the least of which was my freedom to eat real potato chips and watch my crazy family’s firework show and celebrate the joys of being American.