top loading refridgerator organization

[Wade]

Okay it may sound crazy but if you live with a ubiquitous top loader like an adler barbour you spend much of your day rooting for a jar of mayo or where the heck did that onion get to? My boat came with this and it works so that's what it's gonna be. It may be obvious but I finally found something that works. I tried plastic containers but that was almost as bad as nothing.
  Now I use the canvas shopping bags you can find everywhere. I use different colors, one for veggies, one for sandwiches, one for b-fast, you get the idea, grab the bag and pull and out everything I want comes. Well, sometimes. I keep butter in each bag, cause I cook with it unconditionally. To keep the canvas out of the funky water in the bottom I laid in some plastic 3/4 inch stuff for spacers and always keep a case or so of full water bottles, canvas stays dry, lift any one bag and there is the water.    I know this sounds stupid but it works great.  Wade

[jmpeltier]

Wade...that's brilliant.  I was just fighting my own top loader a few minutes ago looking for the peanut butter.  I'm headed out to look for some canvas bags.  Thanks!

[CharlieJ]

Good idea, but I'm curious-

Why would you have mayo, onions and peanut butter in a cooler?? All I ever keep in mine is drinks, cheese, and (rarely) leftovers.

The plastic grate in the bottom is a GREAT (Grate?) idea by the way.

[jmpeltier]

I have high standards when it comes to peanut butter.  Jif doesn't pass the test...gotta have the good stuff that says "refrigerate after opening" which is a caution I normally wouldn't heed, but not when it comes to my peanut butter!

[CharlieJ]

I have high standards when it comes to peanut butter.  Jif doesn't pass the test...gotta have the good stuff that says "refrigerate after opening" which is a caution I normally wouldn't heed, but not when it comes to my peanut butter!

;) Fair enough- but that's a matter of choice, not a real requirement.

[tomwatt]

Canvas bags sounds like a great fix. I've been thinking about making mesh bags for hanging things, and making a modified mesh 'hammock' for overhead cabin hanging... there is a kind of mesh that shows up in sports gear bags that's not too stretchy (like most of the gear hammocks for sale) that seems like it would be a good choice. Would certainly make for better ventilation within the cold compartment.

[Wade]

yea, one of my bags is a good mesh bag that had potatoes in it. I dont think it matters. Use whatever material or size you like. I guess the best thing is I can lift out three bags and the cooler is empty and I can root through the bags without crawling into the cooler. But I'm getting better about remembering what bag holds what. Like i said I have one with everything for b-fast, eggs, bacon,butter, sandwiches- ham,cheese,mayo, lettuce,tomato etc   so simple

[CharlieJ]

I have high standards when it comes to peanut butter.  Jif doesn't pass the test...gotta have the good stuff that says "refrigerate after opening" which is a caution I normally wouldn't heed, but not when it comes to my peanut butter!

Ran across this pic on my hard drive, and since we discussed peanut butter :D

This is what my inlaws gave me as a going away present just before our first cruise-note the size. They knew me well ;D except I really prefer crunchy.

[Sunset]

Does anyone remember the peanut butter that used to come in a real metal can? My great grandmother always had it around. This was about 50 years ago, it may have been some kind of welfare or government subsidy. She was really poor like most of southern Illinois back then. I cant remember her house very well but I still remember that she had the best peanut butter.  8)

[Tim]

I lived on that canned PB, Oatmeal and coffee for six months. Remember it well.

[tomwatt]

The canned peanut butter was indeed some kind of subsidy product... I remember that the storeroom of the Boy Scout camp I attended in the '60's had some... we all marveled that the racoons had tried to gnaw into the cans. And yes, it was very good peanut butter.
Since I cannot eat peanut butter anymore (allergies), I hereby relegate my share to my fellow Sailfarers.

[Sunset]

Back in 82 I was laid off for 10 months. When I got my unemployment check, I would pay my child support, then buy beer and PB. About every 3 months if you were laid off they would give you two blocks of government subsidy cheese about the size of a loaf of bread. The first time it was american. I gave most of that away. The next time I got the cheese I didn't know it was some of the best coby I had ever had. If I knew that I wouldn't have given most of that away! We all know that coby cheese and beer go great together. During those months I became well educated in what cheap beer was the best.

The bag idea sounds like it would work good. I've seen my brother dig through the top loading box on his Coronado 25 trying to find something.