Thanksgiving resolution

This time it’s going to be different.

This Thanksgiving I’m going to keep control of my appetite. My eyes will be SMALLER than my stomach. I’ll go to bed Thursday night, and feel just a little pang of hunger. This year will be different.

That’s not to say I’m not going to enjoy a little turkey. I mean, that’s the central theme of the dinner, and it would be rude to pass on that after all the time it took to cook it up. But this time I’ll just have a little.

Of course, if no one claims the last drumstick, I’ll have to grab it. I can cut back somewhere else.

Not the mashed potatoes, though. They tie everything together. Mashed potoatoes at Thanksgiving fill the same role as refried beans with Mexican food. They have to be there, or the meal is incomplete. But I don’t need much – certainly not as much as last year. I’ll need self control.

And gravy. Without it the potatoes don’t taste right, and then the whole “tie-together” thing falls apart.

It goes without saying that I’ll have to have a couple of rolls – the warm ones right out of the oven. They are essential to give me that “full” feeling, without which I might be tempted to grab more turkey. So in a way, the rolls are a form of weight control.

Cranberry sauce, sweet potato pie, green bean casserole, and stuffing. OK, but just a little. Just enough to get a full appreciation of the flavor…even though sometimes it takes more than you would think to get a full appreciation of things.

When the dessert appears, I’ll need every ounce of discipline I can muster. I’ll probably have to take a small piece or two since everyone else will be indulging. There’s no reason to call attention to the fact that I’m eating temperately. Why invite the criticism?

And if they offer seconds on anything – turkey, dessert, whatever – I’ll draw the line for sure. At a minimum, there’s no way I’m going for thirds.

Man, I feel lighter already.