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Archive for 5 January, 2008

Chocolate Immunity

Julie| January 5, 2008 1:01 am

The red hearts started going up the day after Christmas. I noticed them during the after-Christmas sale. At Target it was just a small aisle full of red heart-shaped bowls and the like. The chocolate hadn’t been put out yet. It’s just as well.

I have a confession to make: I’m immune to the allure of chocolate. It’s not that I don’t like chocolate or that I don’t understand the difference between inferior chocolate and “real chocolate“, it’s that given the choice, I usually prefer other types of candies and desserts.

Most people don’t know about this quirk of mine, even people close to me. It’s just not considered normal. When I was younger and more self conscious, I even considered fabricating a food allergy to respond to the awkward questions that come up when I turn down offers of chocolate. These days I’m a lot less reticent. When the office holiday party cake turned out to be a chocolate one, I declined.

“No thanks, chocolate cake is not my thing.” When pressed, I admitted that neither are truffles, fudge, or anything else chocolatey.

“You’re a freak,” said a friend who knew she could get away with saying it. I know, I said. “I wish I had an immunity to chocolate,” she continued, forking a bite of chocolate cake into her mouth.

The only times I’ve ever craved chocolate were during my pregnancies, but the craving diminished with each one. With Alex I was devouring pounds of dark chocolate. With Ana, I had a standing order at the local doughnut shop for chocolate chip muffins. But with baby #3 the craving has been sporadic and negligible.

So what does a guy like Kevin do on Valentine’s Day with a wife who doesn’t go gaga over chocolate? Dinner for two always gets a favorable response, whether home-cooked or at a restaurant. Flowers are always appreciated. As for other treats, here are a few of my favorites: