Just one more thing to say in 2011

     I thought yesterday's note to you would be my last, but I just couldn't pass this one up.
     You know, there's going to be a lot of eating going on over the next couple of weeks.  Eating like it's going out of style.  Eating like there's no tomorrow.  Eating like you're never going to eat again.
     Now, with those thoughts in mind, I have to tell you that I found, today, right here at our library, something that will help you, if you pay attention.
     Yep!  I found this information right here at our library.
     There I was, pouring myself a cup of coffee in the break room and minding my own business, when I began to look for a spoon to stir the creamer in my cup.
     That's when I found the information about food that I'm going to share with you.
     It was on a shelf in the break room where we put our "stuff" and it surprised me so much that I brought it back to the office to tell you.
     It's a plate that talks about the portion size of food you SHOULD eat, not the size you WILL eat.  Have you ever seen one?  Every household needs one of these plates and I don't know where to get one.  But I want to share the information printed on this plate with all of you (like me) who plan to eat big-time for the holiday season.
     OK!  It says around the rim of the plate that half of your plate should be fruits and vegetables, 1/4th should be whole grains, and 1/4th or less should be lean meat or protein (that usually means peanut butter to me.  Sorry about that!).
     The top half of the plate says "fats, oils and sweets USE SPARINGLY!"  (The capitals are there!)  It shows the picture of a baseball and says "one cup of fruits or vegetables EQUALS the size of a baseball."  It also says "a medium potato EQUALS the size of a computer mouse" and shows a computer mouse.  The baseball and mouse are the exact size they should be.
     In the lower lefthand corner of the plate it says "the width of a pancake EQUALS the size of a CD.  A slice of bread EQUALS the size of an audio cassette."  Now, it doesn't show the exact size of those items, but you get the idea.
     In the lower righthand corner of the plate it says "one serving of meat EQUALS the size of a deck of cards," and there's an almost-exact-size card with a few behind it.
     So!  Are you getting the message?  This is one of the most busy "stuffing" times of the year, and I don't mean "stuffing the turkey," unless your siblings call you a turkey.  This is right before you NEED to make that new year's resolution that you will lose weight beginning in 2012.
     We are two weeks and a few days away from 2012.  What do you think?  Should we get a running start on the new year and take a better look at our plates over the next two weeks?  Should we consider how many pounds we can put on over the next seventeen days if we don't control what we put on our plates?  Are we going to take a baseball size portion of Grandma's fruit salad (the one with the marshmallows and coconut and whipped cream; that's the fruit, you see)?  Are we going to leave off the real butter and brown sugar that we usually put on our sweet potato (the one that should be the size of a computer mouse)?
     What are we going to do about those cloverleaf yeast rolls that Aunt Suzie brings?  Will four of them equal the size of an audio cassette?  And the meat...a piece of turkey the size of a deck of cards?
     Oh, geez, why did I have to find that plate?  I have laid a guilt trip on me that's bigger than my mama's fourteen-person dining room table.  Now, I know every time I go back for a refill I'll be thinking of that plate.
     Well, I just thought I'd share this information with you.  No guilt trip intended, honestly.
     Hope you enjoy all the good food coming your way during this holiday season.  But why not join me on January 1st and make the resolution to lose weight in 2012.  I honestly need a few friends to stand beside me and take the pledge to drop those pounds I added at the end of 2011.  You know the saying..."misery loves company."
     Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, y'all.  Enjoy!