Ten minutes to write. Less time to read.

I’d seen the commercials of busy women trying to eat right while carting children, loading groceries, or running errands. I’d heard the announcer swear that Campbell’s® Soup at Hand® Soup was better than fast food while still being fast to prepare. So I decided to give it a try.

I’m a point-of-purchase practitioner, which means that if the packaging doesn’t attract me sitting on the shelf in the supermarket, then the product isn’t going to end up on my shelf at home. But the Soup at Hand® smiled knowingly as I came down its aisle. Resting with the more traditional Campbell’s® soups, its size and shape beckoned me. The new-wave container fit nicely in my hand. The illustration of a woman sniffing the aroma of New England clam chowder made me amenable. The styrofoam container practically jumped into my cart.

At home things became a little testy. Recalling those warm, fuzzy commercials on television, I realized none of them demonstrated how the cold soup on the shelf became hot for the busy women and their chores. However, the directions on the label were simple enough: remove the plastic sipping lid; remove the protective inner foil covering; microwave for one minute; let soup rest for one minute; replace the plastic lid. Then go.

There were the usual disclaimers about all microwave ovens not being created equal and that one woman might have to zap her soup longer than another woman. I fell into that category, as the soup was barely tepid after sixty seconds. I hit the “Easy Minute” button on my micro again and waited. Within thirty seconds, the chowder began bubbling like witches’ brew, and before I could press “Cancel,” it had bubbled all over the inside of my microwave.

Instead of whipping out the door with the remaining contents of Soup at Hand®, I cleaned the microwave and decided the old fashioned way of making soup on the stovetop worked better for me. It was cheaper, hotter, and cleaner.