Tricking the Treats

This Halloween was quite different from past Halloweens. In the past, we would buy a couple of the huge bags of candy sold by Sam's Club. Of course, we would choose the ones that had the candy we liked. I would hold off for a day or two before I would break into one. At first, I would have one or two a day. Soon, I would be grabbing hand fulls. My wife helped out too. We hoped that there would still be some left to hand out. Sometimes, we would buy an extra regular sized bag, just in case. Of course, we always overestimated how many little darlings would come begging, so we would have a bunch left over.

I am gagging, just thinking about it. It's a wonder that I never came down with diabetes (and yes, I have been tested).

This year, I bought one of the huge bags of candy from Sam's Club. However, I bought some nasty gummy candy. Half the bag went to the school where my kids attend. It's a small private school with about 60 kids preschool-8th grade. All the kids bring in enough for everyone in the school. Someone then takes all the candy and makes a bag for each student. The rest we handed out. Although, there was still some left over.

So buying the candy I wouldn't eat even if you paid me to was half the battle. The kids came home with a huge loot of candy. My wife took the opportunity to "inspect" the candy after the kids went to bed. I have no idea how much she "inspected," but I had no part of it.

Before, I took the kids out for some of the festivities, I made sure I had a filling snack and lots of water. In fact, I felt a little too full. I made sure I ate lots of salad at dinner and drank lots of water. When I took the kids door to door, some of the adults wanted to give me candy too (What is up with that?). I graciously refused.

So I filled up on nutritious food. I avoided many of the pitfalls. Yet, there was a tingling in my forearms as I thought about eating some chocolate. Certainly, one of my little ones would have gladly shared a bite sized Snickers or peanut butter cup. When the kids poured out their candy on the dining room table, there were mounds chocolate yummies.

I thought to myself, "You could eat one. It won't hurt you. A little treat is fine." All that of course is true...in the right circumstances. I realized this was not the right circumstance. I was like a shark who smelled blood. If I had one, I knew I would go into a frenzy.

Instead, I went to the store and bought some sugar free cocoa. I made a nice hot cup of cocoa and slowly sipped it. It was extra calories I would not normally have. It was after the time I normally eat. I am glad I did it. It satisfied that chocolate craving I was feeling. It made me feel full. Most of all, I took pride in not giving in to smell of blood. I showed that I respected myself.

That's how I dealt with a couple of hours Wednesday night. Since then, my wife has hidden the candy, not for my sake but so that the kids wouldn't have unlimited access to it. I am not sure how much candy she continues to "inspect," and I don't ask. I am afraid if I think about it too much, I might get sucked into the "inspection" thing. Then I will turn into a shark.

Anyhow, that's how I tricked myself to avoid the treats.


It does bring a question to mind. Why do I feel a tingling sensation in my arms when I get around the smell of chocolate? Is it a mental reaction? Is there something in the smell? It's kinda of weird. I don't recall having this reaction to any other kind of food. I wonder if there is something about chocolate. Do any of you have a physical reaction to the smell of chocolate?

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