Plates, saucers and serving pieces are very attractive to homemakers. Even if you have a whole cabinet of dining ware in your home there will always be something that will catch your attention in the displays in the stores. My latest encounter was a dish for sidings. Three pretty containers in a longish ceramic dish. It is the perfect container for soy, ginger and chili that is needed for tonight’s hainanese chicken.

It takes a lot of discipline to put it back on the display table. Because it is really not expensive, it is so easy to just pick it up and include in the cart. But if you count to ten before doing that, you will realize the folly of your intention. You remember how you promised to think thrice before adding to your infrequently used dining ware. That will also be enough time for the image of an overflowing cabinet flash through your mind. By the time you get to number 8 you are preparing to walk away.