Beef, It’s So Not What’s For Dinner

Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent - forty-six days of reflection (interspersed with some fasting) before the most important holy day in the Catholic Church, Easter.

After years of giving up candy (which has always been tough because it meant giving up late-season conversation hearts and pre-Easter jelly beans) I let the missus and kids pick something for me to abstain from for Lent this year.

They picked: Beer.

Yeah, right. Try again.

Second pick: Hot chocolate.

Lately I have gotten into the very bad habit of ending every day with a big mug of hot chocolate (made with milk, of course), a huge handful of mini-marshmallows, and a couple cookies for dunking if we’ve got them around (and we’ve almost always got them around). Then I quickly go to bed to allow all that stuff to turn to fat overnight before I have a chance to actually burn any of it off.

So I’m giving up my hot chocolate, the missus is giving up her Snapple diet ice tea, and the seven-year-old is giving up the Pringles he gets in his lunchbox everyday. He’s not particularly fond of Pringles but, in the black market that is the grade school cafeteria, Pringles are worth their weight in gold. Especially Pringles with writing on them.

At our big Fat Tuesday pig-out dinner last night, I told the seven-year-old that it was Easter, not Christmas, that was the biggest holy day (in my “bet you didn’t know that” voice). The two-year-old says, “Yeah, and, and, and, the Easter Bunny comes!” Damn Lutheran nursery school. You can’t trust those Lutherans with nothing.

And speaking of Lutherans, the seven-year-old also informed me that his best friend/arch-nemesis isn’t Roman Catholic like us, but Lutheran. “Oh, so he doesn't have to go to CCD like you do.” “Daaaad, he doesn’t even go to church.”

What’s the point of claiming a denomination for your child if you don’t have them actually participate? It reminded me of the old Woody Allen joke:

I did not marry the first girl I fell in love with, because there was a tremendous religious conflict at the time. She was an atheist and I was an agnostic. We didn't know which religion not to bring the children up in.

Comments

[Donna]

I gave snacks between meals. My Snyders Old Tyme pretzel addiction, in other words. Hubby gave up the kids. The little one gave up chips. The other two are apparently giving up eternal life because they aren't planning on giving up anything. Although they did try to give up school or CCD. Like I'd fall for that again.

[Janie]

Recent studies have shown that hot cocoa is exceptionally good for you... on par with green and black tea. I have no evidence to back this up as I heard it as part of a sweeps week 'important new discovery' TV news item.