Mardi Gras and Lent

So today is "Fat Tuesday" ... eh, whatev. Here in San Antonio, that day ranks up there in importance w/"National Night Out" and "Bring Your Pet to Work Day".

However, one of my friends has family from New Orleans and every year her grandma sends her what she has told me is called a "King Cake". It's essentially a really big cinnamon roll shaped like a large donut. But the tradition of these cakes is to bake a plastic naked baby inside, because whoever gets the piece w/the baby is supposed to have a year of good luck. Weeeeellll, I got the baby! YAHOO! One whole year of good luck. How nice! I'm just so excited. I think I just peed a little in my pants! ;)

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday - which for Christians marks the first day of the Season of Lent. And as someone who was raised Catholic, that means I must decide what I am ready to sacrifice for the next 40 days. I think in the olden days they would sacrifice animals or something else... but now we just give up sweets or other guilty pleasures. So all day I have been trying to decide what I am ready to sacrifice as a sign of my faith, just as Jesus sacrificed his life (and meat and stuff too, I think) for the rest of us.

I thought of some of the easy ones... like sex (er, at least intercourse). I mean, I'm not seeing anyone seriously right now, and it'll give me all that much more reason to NOT contact "the ex". But that's just too silly. Besides... I don't want to have to explain THAT one to my mom. So I am going w/the following:
- Pizza (ok, so I don't eat too much of this usually, but that's why it's not the ONLY thing on the list)
- Ice Cream (see above)
- Cigarettes (I officially quit a while ago, but I will indulge on that random occasion I'm out drinking w/the guys)
- And the true commitment - I vow to pay at least 1 compliment a day to someone. A true compliment. Something along the lines of "you look so nice today" or "I love your new hairstyle" or "I'm glad you're my friend" etc.. you get the drift.

Anyway - that's the plan.