No Chocolates Before Christmas

I've been known to eat indulgently during previous holiday seasons as though food around me is disappearing exponentially, and I have to eat everything I see before it goes away for good. Last year, however, I learned something: Christmas in Australia is HOT. I can't quadruple the amount of goodies I put in my mouth, because I can't hide the extra weight under heavy clothes anymore. I have to eat smart! 

This year, my eating habits have been excellent. I satisfy my sweet tooth by storing low-calorie ice cream bars in the freezer and drinking low-fat chocolate soy milk (in moderate portions, of course). So when one of our clients dropped off a mammoth Christmas package full of sugary and carb-olicious snacks, I almost avoided it successfully. That is, until my boss put some of the chocolates on my desk. 


Hey, once it's right in front of me, my self-control has no fighting chance. 

I had no idea what was in the middle....

...but I bit in anyway to find out that it was a chocolate truffle. A wonderful chocolate truffle. 

After I enjoyed my first chocolate, my boss put another one on my desk.

It was a chocolate-covered honeycomb square. There is a chocolate bar in Australia called a Crunchie Bar. It's very similar to what I ate below. I never liked it, but I swear this honeycomb thing is starting to grow on me. It's super-sweet, and it melts in your mouth.  

When I finished my afternoon snacks, my boss put another object on my desk. It wasn't edible, though.

It was a Coles/Myer giftcard, which is the perfect card for anybody. I can use this card at Coles (a large chain grocery store), Kmart, Target, Myer (a department store like Macy's), Officeworks, 1st Choice Liquor Superstore, Vintage Cellars ("Australia's Fine Wine Specialist") and Liquorland. Since I now get lots of free alcohol, I don't need to put that money towards the last three options. I'll probably  use it to get a nice dress at Myer or maybe get a couple of things from Target. Either way, I am so touched that they gave me something like that for Christmas. I'm not permanent there, but they still treat me like I'm part of their family.

We have our Christmas party this Saturday, and I'm very excited! Those are always fun. I'll try to be good and take pictures. 

Alastair also promised me that he'd take me to see the Xmas lights in Lobethal in the Adelaide Hills (for Chicago people, it's the equivalent of our Sauganash) tomorrow night. This is the last weekend that we'd be able to go, because we're going away next week. We don't have a Christmas tree (where would we fit it?), and I have hardly heard any holiday music this year, so I need to get my fix!

 I'll also have to remember to post pictures of the West End Brewery Riverbank Christmas display from last year. I have some good stories about that...

Bye for now, friends!