Call me a spoilsport, but as my office has grown larger, I’ve become somewhat more resistant to the idea of office holiday gifts. (Yes, in my office the appropriate term actually IS “Happy Holidays” as we’ve got all three of the Abrahamic faiths represented among the staff, and one Buddhist.) It’s not that I mind the idea of giving a token something to everyone, but there comes a point at which a $2 gift, multiplied over several staff members, becomes a considerable chunk of change.

So, this morning, my very weak replacement was to pick up a box of “munchkins” from the new Dunkin Donuts on the way to Bev’s house (does anyone remember when these were called “donut holes”? When did they change the name?). Bev, Lisa and I sat in the reading room and had donuts and coffee this morning, and that was kind of my holiday offering.

The problem, as I discovered fairly quickly, is that donuts are pure sugar, and, combined with the caffeine, about an hour later I suddenly realized that I couldn’t type because I was so jumpy that I kept hitting the wrong keys. It was still better than the subsequent caffeine/sugar crash that followed shortly thereafter, at which point I wondered if anyone would notice if I took a nap and … jeez, were my pants this tight when I left the house this morning?

That’s the other problem with Christmas, Hanukkah, and the entire month of Ramadan. Every one of them is associated with sickly sweet desserts that are in no way good for you. (Yep, you read that right: what do you think Muslims do all night after they fast all day? The number of people I know who put on weight during Ramadan might surprise you.)

Anyway.

While I’m on the food tip, I have to share the following excerpt from a blog that I won’t name that covers local stuff here in Austin. They visited the Ethiopian restaurant in town, and I found myself reading their review with the same sort of horror that Shin seems to feel whenever he grades freshman composition assignments. To whit:

If you’ve never had it, Ethiopian food is a little like Indian food, but different enough to make it a nice alternative.

For the record, if you’ve never had it, let me explain: Ethiopian food is a little like Indian food in that neither is American food, and both will blow the top of your head off if you don’t know what you’re doing. Past that, the similarities pretty much come to a screeching halt. I do enjoy me some Ethiopian food (and, lamentably, do not terribly care for the restaurant covered in the review). In fact, I garnered a bit of attention when I mentioned it in this very blog and it got picked up in a DC blog and … well, they called me a tourist, but I’ll get over it.

Anyway. All this talk of food is making me ponder lunch. The only things open in the Union are Wendy’s and Taco Bell, and I can’t take the thought of either. On the other hand, I may have had enough calories for one day!

Tags: Austin, blog, caffeine, christmas, coffee, food, gifts, holidays, ice, india, lisa, me, men, stuff, Will