Before I start on my rant, you should know the following

1. Two years ago I weighed 160 lbs.

2. Today I weight 200 lbs.

3. I think my doctor said it best when he said "You're getting fatter and fatter and fatter".

What could be the reason for such drastic weight gain? Surely it's some sort of metabolic problem. Maybe I'm retaining water. Or is it that I got engaged, not to just any woman, mind you, but to a fantastic, amazing woman, Stacey, who is also a great cook. Oh yeah, every night, something different, something yummy, something delicious. I have no defence, I can't say no, what am I supposed to do?

There is someting else you should know.

1. I love to eat.

2. I have no willpower.

3. Stacey is a wonderful cook. I know I already said that, but I can't stress it enough.

My favourite food is pasta. Not just any kind of pasta, all kinds of pasta. Everything from Penna a la Vodka (which btw...she makes amazingly) right down to the old bachelor standby ... Kraft Dinner, KD, Mac and Cheese, yep, I love it all. Hey Mom, I promised I would mention your spaghetti and meatballs, so here it goes. Mama's meatballs are by far the finest food on the planet. I can eat them alone, with pasta, on a sammy, cold, hot, you name it. Now that I've said that, Stacey's meatballs are like 99% as good as Mama's. Sorry Stace, nobody wins over Mama...those are the rules.

Pasta Carbonara is another favourite of mine. Stacey doesn't make that quite as much as I'd like, but our friend the monsterous huge big man (Eric) does. Eric is a chef at a local pub and he makes the best carbonara around, apart from that he's one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet. I'm certain that I can talk Stacey into posting the recipe for it at her gocurious recipes web site. You've really got to try it, it's heavenly.

So, now you're sympathetic to my situation. I want to be thin, but my circumstances mandate fatness. I want to say no, but the aroma is too much, the taste too tasty, the yumminess, too yummy. I just ate lunch and can't wait for dinner. My innie has become an outie (I'm serious, that's not a good thing). Last night I ate 3 plates of Pasta a la Vodka, the 8 year old boy across the table put it quite simply; "He sure does eat a lot Mom"...and she said "Yes he does buddy, yes he does".

I do eat a lot, no excuses. I need to stop, I want to stop, however the food is so good and besides, it's another 7 months until I need to wear a t-shirt again. Maybe I'll start dieting tomorrow. See you next summer.