Sunday afternoon I baked a few dozen chocolate chip walnut cookies. Some people bring them into the office to share with co-workers, but not me. I bring in four a day and eat them with lunch, sharing with no one. Which is what I did Tuesday, when someone brought in a platter of sweets including fudge and chocolate-covered pretzels with peanut butter.
I ate those sweets throughout the morning, then ate my cookies with lunch. That night, at a Hanukkah party, I consumed coconut cream pie, chocolate cream pie, and a pear pastry – along with several fried potato latkes smothered in sour cream and applesauce. The holidays are killing me already.
The next day I swore off sweets, but someone brought in a bunch of pastries from Cere’s Bakery and I had to try a chocolate croissant, and a nibble of an almond one. The obligatory holiday tin filled with cheesy and caramel-covered popcorn appeared at some point as well, so I grab a handful every time I walk past. At home last night, my cookies called.
Today, a co-worker’s mother came in and dropped off a huge container of almond roca, a delightful dish consisting mainly of butter and almonds. And I’m attending a Christmas party tonight, where a 20-pound prime rib will be served. This weekend, we have our company Christmas party, beginning with dinner. I hardly expect the meal to consist of heated up Lean Cuisine.
I sincerely doubt that when I fly home in two weeks for the first time in a very long time, that my diet will become any leaner when confronted with the cooking of my parents –who are already asking me what dishes I want to eat when I get there.
For a few weeks now, I’ve felt as though I was getting down to fighting trim, and with ski season here, I expected to stay that way. But the blitz of free, rich, sweet, abundant food at every turn is beginning to make me feel like Jabba the Hutt. It’s a common situation, and one I’ve confronted before, but this year things are getting a bit out of hand. I’m really going to have to make an effort to lay off the heavy food, and I think I will … in January.