595 Calories of Goodness

I admit it ... I love Milk Duds. I can't really explain why; I just do.



Maybe it's the sinfully-gooey caramel that covers my teeth after the duds themselves are gone. Maybe it's the fact that they are so perfectly sized. Maybe it's the way the candy shakes in the box with its hollow thud sounds.

All I know is today they saved me. I ended up working through lunch and didn't have anything at the office to beat back my upset stomach ... except a 5 OZ box of Milk Duds. So today I'm happy to admit that I'm thankful for those delicious, sticky, yummy bites of chocolate-covered caramel. And for those of you out there who agree with me (you know who you are), I stand with each of you expressing my shared love for the candy.

Does the past ever fade?

I sometimes find myself trapped in the most inexplicably vivid flashbacks from my youth. Teenage years in Europe -- if you didn't live it, you wouldn't understand it. And I often want to spend time with those who've lived the life but have nobody local with whom I can relate. For example, if you don't know where this picture was taken, then not to be rude, but I'm probably not interested in a discussion of the good ol' days:



Alpine-rich camping in Kandersteg, Switzerland; sport-centered winters in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany; crazy-long train rides to Warsaw, Poland; pseudo-educational experiences in The Hague, Netherlands; late-night clubbing in Frankfurt, Germany; randomly-fun shopping in London, England ...

... is it wrong for me to wish that I could forget it all?