Snacking Through the Fundamentals of Life

As anyone  who has studied the great philosophers, and thrown in a couple of brisk walks over the Himalayas during their life experiences can attest, few things demonstrate a person’s desire to connect with the world around him more accurately than his responses to a bar of chocolate.

As you may know, my brain, never a reliable piece of equipment, recently underwent a self-induced assault and is slightly wonky. I find myself doing  odd things, and have some trouble concentrating. Regardless of that, seeing a small bar of chocolate in the fridge today,  a sense of the old adventurer rose from the depths, producing a dazzling display of hand eye co-ordination. I removed said bar from fridge and prepared it for ritual sacrifice. The wrapper was powerless in its attempt to protect the contents  and  soon the bar was  gone.

As the last mouthful was washed down with a mug of coffee I reflected that perhaps the chocolate had not been placed in the fridge for my benefit. Thinner figures than mine might have harboured designs on it. Oops but not much I can do about it now. It was another example of the victory of instinct over dietary planning. As is often the case, instinct had been victorious over strategy.  Bogland, ( actually I wrote “Blogland” but I was too childishly amused to change Mr Spellchecker’s suggestion )  is rich in experts in all matters from fitness and dieting through to car maintenance but I am not skilled in these fields.

I am the enthusiastic amateur whom the expert often regret has joined their class. In fact expertise is not my expertise. I can nod with a mixture of admiration and bewilderment as someone explains his field of knowledge, and I am very happy to do so, but that’s as far as it will go. If someone talks about splitting the atom, I can add helpfully  that it must be much easier to pack like that.

No doubt I will ease through life blissfully lacking the skills apparently required to traverse it, but as long as a little chocolate appears in the fridge on occasion I will muddle through, I am not a purist and some way off being a fanatic. Cheese will certainly do, or a small slice of carrot cake. Anything to ease the challenge of reading a walking magazine or contemplating the rigours of Yoga .

Do not fear, however. Like so many of us I am always seeking for self-improvement. Let us therefore cling to this thought. For those of us for whom actual exercise may be a step too far,  the thought of exercise alone can raise the metabolic rate. It’s a comforting idea isn’t it.