Then I went to book club. Beforehand, I'd wondered if Dawn would there because she's the most tremendous baker and I knew she'd bring the most delectable of treats..... wait! I don't eat sugar; what could I be thinking? I secretly hoped Dawn wouldn't find a babysitter. But I like Dawn for more than just her cooking, so instead, I just hoped she'd have run out of time and not been able to make anything. You see, I have little trouble passing up store bought goods and things like chips and dip, but homemade delights are my downfall. I arrived at the hosts beautiful home to be greeted with a glass of wine, which I took, of course, because the wine is actually the real reason we have a book club. Duh! How much sugar is in a glass of wine, I wondered. We all congregated around the kitchen island. This is our standard arrangement as it provides the best access to everyone's conversations and of course we are cozied right up to the wine and food. The island was filled with a dizzying display of the most tempting of treats. Chocolate covered strawberries, bruschetta, cookies off all shapes and sizes, pita bread with hummus, cheeses, and salami. Oh my! It was a dazzling sight. I didn't dare ask Dawn what she brought.
I sipped my glass of wine and had a terrific laugh with the girls. About an hour into the evening (and we had yet to discuss the book), I couldn't keep my eyes off of the chocolate covered strawberries. It was all I could do to focus on Stacy and Kristina on the other side of the island rather than the beautiful combination of strawberries and chocolate that seemed to be in my direct line of vision. They were calling to me and they were louder than the group of 15 tipsy girls surrounding me.
I took one and savored its juicy sweetness. It was a good choice because of the strawberry and it provided at least some nutritional value. Right? I had another. Keleigh gave me the finger to eye gesture meaning, "I'm watching you". I thought I'd give her a finger gesture in return, but I refrained. How could I be touting the dangers of sugar and then eat it so unabashedly?
After discussing the book for about two minutes, we moved to the living room and continued our girl fun, every now and then saying good-bye to a girl that couldn't "hang". When about six of us were left, we moved back into the kitchen where the feeding frenzy began. The six of us devoured more food in a matter of minutes than the whole group of 16 ate in the first two hours! As I was the designated driver (hence the one glass of wine) I dropped off two friends, then went into my house with a plate of leftover cookies and chocolates, for the kids, of course, and took two aspirin to alleviate my annoying sugar headache. I wouldn't berate myself for falling off the wagon. After all, the devil was back and he was the one that made me do it.
So, was it the glass of wine that set off a series of chemical reactions in my body leading me down a sugary path? Was it the dazzling display of delicious deserts that lead to my destructive behavior? Regardless of the reason, it confirmed in me that my sugar addiction still has a powerful hold on me.
My good friend, Julie, is going sugar-free starting Monday, January 12th. She's going to track her progress and let me know what she experiences. She'll share her progress on this blog. I'm excited and hopeful that she will see the benefits of a sugar-free diet just as I did. I'm sure she'll struggle but maybe with the two of us doing it together we'll be able to push each other along. Wouldn't it be great to go longer than two weeks without sugar? I've heard somewhere that it takes 21 days to change a habit. Well, Julie, I'll be right there with you! I know we can do it... at least until next book club.
Other sugar related topics I'd like to blog are: how much sugar we eat without realizing it; sugar substitutes; kids and sugar; how sugar actually hurts us. Do you have any suggestions for future blogs I should consider writing? Tell me!
