The first big challenge

Well, it's Jan. 2, and the first big challenge to my unscientific, caloric reduction known as "100,000 calories" (see earlier blog for explanation) is upon me. But that's OK. That's what this whole thing is, right? A challenge.

My pregnant wife, nearing the end of the first trimester, tells me pregnancy has given her food cravings that are different than regular food cravings. My wife has always been the type of person who when she gets hungry she needs to eat. She isn't going to go do five or six things, then eat. She wants to do what she needs to do on a full stomach.

But she says these cravings are different than before. She tells me she gets cravings for specific foods, not so much just to fill her belly with food. Today, that craving was specifically for a Burger King Whopper. We have a Burger King in our town and I can say in spite of my love of fast food (which is partially the reason I'm attempting to cut 100,000 calories from my diet) I have never been inside the Burger King building. Before they remodeled it was grimy and grungy. Since the remodel it looks nice and clean, but I've just never gone there. A couple hundred feet down the road is Taco John's and its #6 (Grilled Burrito), with chicken, medium Potato Oles and a Diet Mountain Dew. I may have been through the Burger King drive through once or twice, but the point is it's not my fast food joint of choice.

REAL QUICK BACKGROUND: At various times in my life I have been a regular customer of Burger King, just not at this time in my life. During those times in my life where I've visited that establishment more frequently, the most regular food item I have ordered was the Original Chicken Sandwich, which is one of the reasons I no longer regularly frequent this establishment. It is so yummy, but is among the most sinful fast food items available. According to www.fastfoodfacts.info the Original Chicken Sandwich has 460 calories if you put mayonnaise on it. I don't, but do include cheese. Not sure if they include that in calorie count. Add another 360 more calories for BK fries.

So my wife decides she's going to get a Whopper. I decide that my average yearly intake of Original Chicken Sandwiches over the past five years is three. I decide it's my goal to eliminate one of those sandwiches, meaning my 2011 allowance of Original Chicken Sandwiches is two.
I decide to have her get me and Original Chicken Sandwich.
I think to myself "Better enjoy it, because you only get one more the rest of the year."

About 15 minutes later my wife arrives home. I hear her come in through the door connected to the garage, say hello to one of our dogs, who generally likes to greet her at the doorway. She takes off her boots, hangs up her coat on the new coat rack, which is near the stairs and yells up to me "Hey, guess what. The chicken sandwiches were buy one, get one free."

This. Is. Terrible. News. Of course, she has no idea about my recently decided yearly allotment of BK Original Chicken Sandwiches. This is not her fault, nor is this the fault of the cravings caused by pregnancy. This is a predicament, but certainly one I can work through. Besides, it's not like I'm required to eat both sandwiches. I can just throw one away.

Fast forward to the end of the blog. I ate one Original Chicken Sandwich, then refused to look at the other … for awhile. Eventually, I caved, and ate half of the second sandwich before guilt overtook me.

So now I have one-half of a Burger King Original Chicken Sandwich allotted for the rest of the 2011.

Gee whiz.