A better analogy

The blog goes on.  In my last post, I referred to therapy, and this blog is therapy for me.  I want to revisit this period in my life and expand upon how it now applies to my resolve to live a healthier lifestyle.

My therapist, who you now know was a former student of mind, did have some interesting insights into why I was unhappy.  She used the analogy of Santa Claus' bag of toys.  She suggested that I was picking up other people's issues and problems, stuffing them in my Santa bag and carrying it around with me.  Since I had already insulted her by not recognizing her as a former student, I didn't feel that I should point out the false analogy that she had made.  She should have perhaps alluded to Krampus, the German counterpart to Saint Nick who carries lumps of coal around.  Santa would never put problems in his Christmas bag!!  He puts nice things in there.

This leads me to my analogy.  I was sort of like Santa, putting what I perceived to be nice things into the bag I was carrying around.  I would include among these "nice" things chocolate, cake, pie, cookies, wine, pizza and bar food.  By the time I was done loading the bag and ready to get into the sleigh---sleigh = retirement---I realized that I had 80 pounds of "nice" stuff packed up. 

It's time for me to unload!  I need a new definition of "nice" things.  Let's see what I've discovered.  Oatmeal with a banana actually tastes pretty good.  An orange can satisfy as much as a handful of chips.  Unsalted almonds don't taste as good as salted cashews, but they are crunchy.  Dill pickles are salty, crunchy and satisfying. Yes, they have lots of sodium, but so do chips.

So, I'm continuing my quest to unload my unwanted weight.  I can do this.

Tip of the day:  Redefine "nice"!