Monday, February 27, 2006

40 Days

Ash Wednesday is coming up on, well, Wednesday, and that means that us Catholics start thinking about our Lenten Sacrifice. I have given up different things in the past, with varying amounts of success. For three years in college, I gave up all meat (except fish), and I was a rock star at it. One year, I gave up potatoes. Not so rock star on that one.

This year, I am giving up fast food. By fast food, I mean the following restaurants: McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, Arby's, KFC, Long John Silver, Taco Bell, DQ Grill and Chill, and Hamburger Stand. I do NOT mean Boston Market. Just sayin'.

Anyhoo, I have a HUGE problem with fast food. One might have gathered that I am often On the Go. It's true. I spend a lot of time on my way to somewhere...be it school, work, other work, Bill's house (sorry...OUR house - still getting used to that). And now that many of the aforementioned fast food restaurants are happy to take my debit card, it is SO easy to just answer the call of the drive-thru and, well, drive through.

It's gotten so bad lately that I have stopped at McDonald's to get fries for a "snack." Does anyone remember that I have a wedding coming up? And it's mine? And I will be wearing a white dress? And white is not as slimming as, say, black?

Apparently, I have been blocking this out of my mind. Not the wedding...but the potentially unflattering effect the whole fast food thing could have on the whole white dress thing.

Therefore, after tomorrow, I will not be eating fast food until after Easter. I know I can do this...and it represents both a true sacrifice, which is the whole idea, and an all-around Good Idea, which is a great bonus in both the healthier eating arena of life and the saving money arena of life.

In other news, my mom and I have an appointment at Curves for Wednesday morning. Further ammunition in the whole white dress arena of life. Anyone noticing that my life is full of arenas right now?

Also, I have three addictions to confess. My name is Mary, and I am a combination ChickLit-, Sudoku-, and Yarn-aholic. I would share more, but it is time for me to install myself onto the couch and read a book while knitting a scarf for my best friend Amy and solving a Sudoku puzzle. Why can't I just relax on a night off, like normal people?

8 comments:

hazel said...

so you can knit and read at the same time? holy shit. you really are a rock star.

I was under the impression that giving up meat was implied in lent. oh wait, that's just fridays. good for you for giving up fast food. maybe after easter the urge to go will be gone.

Froggylady said...

Way to go on the giving up Fast food! I know you can do it, because you're a rock star - to the bone. I'm sure that by Easter, you're not even going to care about those places and avoiding them won't even be an issue because you won't want to eat there.

Um, reading, knitting and sudoku are total relaxation - don't let anyone tell you different. I feel so much better after a night of doing one or all of them than I do after a night of turning into a channel surfing blob.

Steph said...

Yay on giving up fast food! I did that and now I can't even eat there anymore. After my "fast" of fast food, I ate there and my stomach surely paid for it, it was horrible!!! It just showed me they don't put nice stuff in that food! Have fun at Curves!!

Gunngirl said...

I like Chicklit too! And you can give up fast food! I know you can. I once decided to give up fried food. I hadn't eaten fried chicken in so long I lost a taste for it.

Note I said "once" I'm now back on fried food. LOL

Guinness_Girl said...

Go you!! I have the same denial problem going on - feeling like I can eat whatever I want and still be beautiful and fit into my wedding dress. Egad. But mmm, McD's fries? Yum.

Good luck at Curves today!

NME said...

I once ate alot more fast food than I do now - which is SUPER RARE. What helped me was to just keep reminding myself how gross it was. Not just unhealthy but GROSS. If you watch Supersize me and do some research then maybe the gross out factor would help you too.

Good luck.

Wendy, R.N. said...

I am not Catholic, however, I have given up chocolate for lent in solidarity of my good friend who is giving up chips (and thinks of a bag of chips as dinner).

Being that I am surrounded by chocolate, and PMS'ing, this will be hard. If I can, you can. Good on you.

Kellee said...

Good for you for giving up fast food. I did that one year for lent & lost so much weight. It was amazing! Beware though when (& if) you go back to it. After being off of it for so long, it isn't too friendly to your tummy when you go back.

Good luck!