Celebrations Don't Need to Be Naughty

This is the night I've been awaiting for four months ... the end of the semester! The class has been extremely interesting, but it's also been phenomenally challenging. Seriously tough. I've read 44 academic journal articles, written 12 response papers, completed three projects, led a class discussion, and suffered through the most difficult midterm ever. Whew! And now ... it's over. I still have the final exam, but I suspect that it'll be a piece of cake after all I've endured.

Class let out early tonight, so I stopped at Trader Joe's for some celebratory treats. As I wandered through the aisles, I surveyed all of the delectable tempations that only Trader Joe's can concoct. It was exciting to let my eyes wander, knowing that one of these delicious treats would land in my basket. I walked the aisles with a bag of my all-time fav, chocolate toffee popcorn, in hand. It's been a solid three weeks since a kernel of that tastiness has passed my lips. Just the thought of it sent shivers down my spine. I LOVE TJ's chocolate toffee popcorn. I'm telling you L-O-V-E! I must have devoured at least a couple cases of that stuff over the holidays, and probably another case or two after. I joke with the TJ staff that it's so addictive that I'm fairly certain that it has crack in it. Might as well. It's one of those treats that you grab a handful of only to discover minutes later that the bag is empty.

So, I'm walking around the store with my chocolate toffee popcorn firmly grasped in one hand. And then it hits me. I don't know if it was the blog or just good common sense, but I couldn't keep hold of it. I simply couldn't do it. I gave the bag a fond look, let out a whimper, and gently, oh so gently, put the bag back with its siblings.

That chocolate toffee popcorn was sort of like a bad relationship. You know the kind where you know it's bad for you, but you can't resist? Well, I resisted tonight. I told it to go back home and stop harrassing me. It was a sad moment; I won't deny it. That chocolate toffee popcorn has gotten me through some rough times. It was always there for me, you know. It was my old friend, my stand-by. If I'd brought it home though, I knew where it'd end. I knew that it wouldn't be around to see me in the morning. There'd be nothing but an empty bag and lots of guilt. Instead, I opted for some sensible chips with nothing but potatoes and oil. They're low-fat and will definitely still be around when I wake up. So, they're not as fun and tantalizing as the chocolate toffee popcorn, but at least I won't hate myself in the morning.