I’ve been cooking on the same solid set of Farberware pots and pans for 34 years now. My mother-in-law gave them to me as a bridal shower gift, and they’ve seen heavy use over the years.

They’ve really served me well, and they’re finally, after countless meals, showing signs of their age (unlike myself, of course). So one day, when I have a thousand bucks just kicking around my wallet, I want these.

I have a limited amount of time in which to cook tonight because we have a class at 7:00. I have very little raw material in the house because I’m trying not to stockpile much since we’ll be on vacation next week. Therefore, I have no idea what we’re doing for dinner tonight and nothing from which to prepare… it.

Last night we had pizza at Sally’s, pretty much the only place we’ve eaten pizza for more than 30 years now. People who aren’t from the New Haven area don’t understand much about the politics of pizza in these parts, but it’s safe to say that discussing pizza around here is a little like discussing religion or politics.

The bottom line is that there are two (maybe three if you count Modern) pizza places around here that are legendary: Sally’s and Pepe’s. They’re both on Wooster Street, in what’s left of New Haven’s Little Italy. What people don’t get is that most folks around here who have a strongly held opinion on the matter either eat at one or the other. You don’t eat at both. You’re either Sally’s or Pepe’s.

We’re Sally’s people. I’m not sure how that came about (Jim’s father used to take the family for pizza when Jim was little, but we didn’t start the tradition as a couple until after we married). We’ve tried both, we stayed at Sally’s. An ancient (Sally’s was founded in 1938) coal-fired brick oven bakes the pies. Thin crust, excellent sauce, and just the right amount of mozzarella — it’s elemental. It’s very good. It’s a perfect food.

We have probably discussed every important decision we’ve made and every major event that has befallen us over a Sally’s pizza. I ate Sally’s pizza throughout my pregnancy, and Jim had a small pizza for dinner on the day Bryan was born (on the house as a thoughtful gesture from Sal and Flo). Bryan teethed on Sally’s crust as a baby, and grew up thinking that this is what pizza is supposed to taste like.

Perfect food? Yeah, pretty damn close.

This morning I started my day with a slice of toasted whole grain bread topped with some peanut butter. It went down pretty easily, and I felt good all morning long. If I can work some fresh fruit into this routine, that’ll be at least one fairly healthy breakfast menu in my weekday repertoire. The wonderful orzo salad I made to accompany last night’s grilled pork tenderloin made a fantastic lunch, so I don’t feel too badly that tonight’s dinner is take-out Jack Daniels chicken wings from the local sports bar.

I’m on the cusp of a no-cook weekend. Stay tuned.

Nutritional wisdom continues to promote the notion that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Unfortunately, I’m a breakfast skipper. I hate breakfast.

No, strike that. I love breakfast foods. I just don’t like eating at 6:30 in the morning, which is when I’d need to eat breakfast on a weekday. I even gave it a try for a couple of weeks, but more often than not, eating that early just leaves me feeling sick for a few hours. Not eating isn’t a better option — it’s good in the short term, but by 10 I’m famished and then having to resist the temptation to eat something less than healthful with my coffee.

According to the Mayo Clinic, people who eat breakfast are more likely to eat more vitamins and minerals, less fat and cholesterol, have better concentration and productivity throughout the morning, and experience better weight control and lower cholesterol. This all sounds good, but I need to think about how to incorporate this into my morning.

I don’t mind packing a breakfast (I’m not much of a cereal fan anyway, so the lack of milk and a cereal bowl isn’t too big of a deal at work), but I need to put a little thought into what to make. The Mayo Clinic goes on to suggest including whole grains, low-fat proteins, low-fat dairy, and fruits or vegetables into your healthy breakfast. I guess this weekend I’ll take out the cookbooks or peruse my favorite recipe sites and try to get a jump on Monday.