Day: December 23, 2004

I am feeling a little awkward, posting about olestra & the catastrophic results it had on me. So here’s a quick knitting update to balance things – inside & out. :)

I have started the fronts for the Folly cardigan, and in the endless stockinette stage again. One thing I do for cardigan pieces, as well as sleeves, is to knit both at once, with two separate balls of yarn going. For the first time, yesterday, I actually switched halfway & turned around, resulting in two extra rows on one cardigan piece, and two rows behind on the other. THAT, my friends, is annoying cubed. But quick to fix, and now I’m sure to not set it down before both pieces have been done. I already want to make the Crystal Palace Merino Frappe Kimono that I have the yarn for, and I don’t know why I’m itching to get going on that project, because that is just big squares of endless stockinette! I may need an in-between, highly-gratifying project. I shall pick from Scribble Lace, or perhaps a pair of socks, or perhaps – BOTH!

So, on my day off, I did some shopping at the WM Supercenter, and decided to get a couple bags of chips. I’d tried the Light Doritos from the vending machine, and was impressed. So I grabbed a bag of those, and a bag of Ruffles Light. I have always loved Ruffles Light. Especially compared to Lays, the ridges are just …. better.

Yesterday afternoon, after returning from mammoth shopping, I consumed probably three servings-worth of the Doritos. Back in my Serious Eating days, I could do at least half a bag, if not more. But I was having tomato soup with cheese tortellini later, and I didn’t want to stuff myself.

I had THE WORST issues with The System that evening. I kept thinkin, “Huh! This is weird. I had pizza for breakfast (reheated, as I hate cold pizza, and when I am not working, I do NOT eat traditional food, ever, for breakfast.) Then I had chips, and soup, with some pasta. I wonder what I had yesterday?”

And didn’t think anything more about it. Until I went to put the bag of Ruffles Light away this morning, and I saw the promotional line about “no fat”. Wow! I thought. No fat? That’s pretty cool. So I opened the bag & tried three-four chips. Yes, it was 8 a.m., but I was impressed. They were crunchy, and tasted even a little greasy. HOW could this be? This no fat thing must be wrong, it must be the new “no TRANS fat” thing that will sweep through all package labeling in 2005. Nope. No trans fat, but no fat at all, either. I looked at the ingredients, and BINGO! Olestra. Well, no wonder my stomach was so upset yesterday! I know, don’t eat more than a serving’s worth. But still – I mistakenly thought Olestra was off the market, because of that whole “leakage” issue and they had put all of the graphic side effects in a warning on the products – not a very appetizing sell, by the way. In any event, the mystery was solved, and I will NOT be consuming the Light products with gusto – I don’t eat chips that often anymore, as it is, but I preferred the “light with fat” chips versus the “no fat light with olestra that turns your insides out” chips.

On a completely separate note, but certainly a more uplifting one, the “BIG” surprise at work was cold, hard cash. Not a ton, but not insignificant. Enough to feel cushy and have some fun shopping next week! So that’s nice. If only I didn’t want to desperately crawl under my desk and take a nap right now, I’d be more enthusiastic…..