C is for Cookie

It’s that time of year when you’re forced to rethink your habits and vices, test your willpower, and (for you Catholics) forego meat on Fridays. That's right, the Lenten season is upon us. I’ll be honest, I haven’t been to church in a very long time, so when Kurt asked me on Tuesday what I was giving up this year, I was surprised to learn Ash Wednesday had arrived so quickly. As I’ve mentioned before, I give up something for Lent every year. I’m no longer as religious as I once was, but as the saying goes, old habits die hard. Plus, it’s a way to test my willpower (of which I have very little when it comes to food). This year I racked my brain for something good to give up. Last year it was chocolate, the year before I vowed to only use one sugar in my coffee or tea (I usually use 2-3). I’ve also given up elevators, chips and dip, all sweets (never, ever again will I do this one. It’s too all encompassing). I try to give up something I’ve been indulging in a bit too much, but at the same time, it needs to be something that I CAN give up for 40 days.

I narrowed down my options to pizza, cookies, and buying lunch. Giving up pizza is next to impossible for me. We live within walking distance of a pizza place, so I indulge at least once a week, sometimes more. It’s the cheapest option around and at least a little healthier than fast food. Giving up bought lunches would be silly since I rarely eat out anymore for lunch, so that left cookies. Good. Cookies. I can do that. I’ll eat cookies if they’re there, but I’m not a huge indulger (unlike my former roommate who used to wake up in the middle of the night with a cookie craving and would eat almost an entire bag in a sleepy stupor). Ok, so I’m a huge indulger if they’re Girl Scout Cookies – Samoas to be precise, but I can say no to just about any other cookie. And then I realized on Tuesday, one day before this ridiculous test of willpower was set to begin, that we still had almost an entire bag of double stuff Oreos in the pantry. That just would not do. Since Kurt has agreed (against his will) to join me in my Lenten fast, we had to figure out what to do about those cookies. We couldn’t have them sitting in the house for 40 days getting stale and throwing them out and wasting them was just out of the question. So, we did what any two people our position would:  we finished the bag on Tuesday night. It was a tough job, but someone had to do it. Now, our pantry is wonderfully free of temptation. I understand we probably could have given them away, or fed them to the ducks on the lake, but this really was much more fun. Plus, I've found the best way to get rid of a craving for awhile is to overindulge to the point of being sick. Now, just thinking of Oreos makes me queasy.


Beautiful Thing, Day 23:
While browsing Apartment Therapy, I stumbled across a blog called Little Green Notebook  by an amazing interior designer. So, for your beautiful thing of the day, you get a whole blog's worth of beautiful things. I love her style. So. Much. Color! I cannot wait to buy a house so I can steal her ideas use her designs as inspiration.