Out of all of the crappy articles that MSN produces to keep their content "fresh", I think that this has got to be one of the worst. It tears into the fact that many of our fellow Americans think that it's less expensive to eat out then simply go to the supermarket, especially when they factor in their "hourly" rate. Apparently we're so obsessed with work that we make it known loud and clear to our families that when we pause to prepare and enjoy a meal that we are in fact on the clock. Nothing like rubbing in how busy and important you are to make your kids feel like overhead I suppose.

I had the pleasure of waiting tables in college. When it was slow, I used to like to watch the chefs prepare and cook the meals. I did learn a lot about cooking, including how horrifying the ingredients are that go into your restaurant food. As Paula Dean put it to Oprah "darling, I'm your chef, not your doctor". Aside from eating a plain garden salad, there isn't a single meal that you can order at any of the one million restaurants that dot the American landscape that is even remotely healthy for you - trust me. Even things that seem innocent are likely loaded with butter, cream, or oil.

Aside from walking off my shifts feeling ill from the smell of the fry-o-later, I learned that there are very few meals that you can get a restaurant that you can't cook for yourself. If you're a good shopper and spend 15 minutes a week planning out your weekly menu and shopping list, I guarantee that you eat better, spend less money, and appreciate your meals a lot more. The key here is planning and doing your best to stick with it. It's not easy, especially if you don't generally roll through your front door until 7 o'clock at night, but in the end it's at least worth a shot.

So try it for a bit, see if you like it. If not, you can always go back to your take-out ways. Should cooking become habit, you'll save beaucoup bucks (the average meal mark-up is 40%), feel healthier, AND have enough cash saved up to get your friend pahkcah02 a bottle of scotch as a show of gratitude. Better start DVRing the Food Network, dear readers.