I'm Giving Up Dinner For Lent

I've given up coffee and milkshakes for a month before. They're my weakness and it was tough waking up in the morning and going for juice or something else.

This year, after much mulling, I've decided to give up dinners. I eat horrendously late at night; it's been a habit for years now, so there's no reforming me. This will be a tough test of my willpower!

Notice, though, that I didn't say I was cutting off the late night munchies, which I take ALONG with the late dinner (yes, I'm a glutton at after 9pm). This is because I suffer from acid reflux and need something in my tummy at odd hours of the day and night or suffer the consequences, which is, for those who don't know gastric pain, is me curled up in a ball while something puts my tummy insides through a meat grinder. I do, however, intend to eat more fruits than the regularly scheduled KitKat and cookie breaks ;-). And, in case of emergency, there's always MikiSquirrel's stash of nuts.

Why do I just not eat earlier dinners, you ask.  Well, actually, I do have a good answer. Or, at least, a somewhat logical one. I work till dark most of the time. Tearing off roofs (reroofing) has taken its toll on my available time. Before, with new roofs, I could just up and leave the house whenever and I wouldn't need to worry. But with reroofing, I've to make sure everything is properly covered up because it's a lived-in home and we can't afford any water damage from a sudden rain at night. When the day is over, tired and VERY dirty, I usually drive straight home and the period between my coming in the house and sitting in front of puter is very crucial.

I CANNOT sit down. Or the whole night is done for. So, I use the next hour doing all the chores--let the dogs out, play with MikiSquirrel and clean her cage, run the vacuum or wash, depending on which needs the most attention, or pay attention to any home things that need to be fixed.  Sometimes I've to run to the store if there's a shortage in dog food or stuff, so that's the end of house chores.

When those things are done, I either take a shower or sit down for some relaxation in front of the TV. The mutant poms are happily munching on bones and MikiSquirrel is happily playing with my hair. I use the time to catch up on email and Facebook while taking in the show.  Sometimes, if the roof was particularly difficult, I'd just vegetate with a glass of wine.

After putting MikiSquirrel to bed after the show, I get ready to write. Sometimes I struggle. Okay, lately, A LOT, because of the traveling around looking for roofing work (my mind seems to get tired from all the haggling and questioning and price bidding), and when I struggle, my tummy starts to rumble and it's by now, as you guess, pretty late, and yeah, I'd start thinking, "Wow, I'm hungry.  Maybe if I eat, I'll be able to write better."

So off I to the kitchen and get myself a real meal, the kind you guys eat between 5-7pm, and I'd eat and write at the same time (or get distracted by email and other stuff). After that, if I'm lucky, words start coming and I'd take advantage of that hour or two. Other times, nothing. Then I'd use the time to look at bills and figure out how to pay them :-P.

Anyway, that's my reason for eating so late and yes, I've existed like even before hard roofing days. It's just the way my internal clock goes. Hungry late at night. I think it all started in my youth in Malaysia, when my grandma would take me to the night bazaars to watch Chinese opera and eat delicious food. I grew up doing that till I moved here, and then, in college, PIZZA RUNS at midnight reinforced this habit.

So this is going to be a difficult month for me. Snacks will help but heck, the first week, expect a very bad-tempered Gennita at night. Heh. My poor Facebook friends are going to see more of that side, I suspect.

What about you? Are you into giving something up for Lent or for a month?

As for writing tonight (first night of no dinner), I actually did quite well.  I edited ten pages of my novella, The Game, that was published in The Mammoth Book of Spec Ops Romance anthology, added a bit more heat to the sexy scene, and only felt had a cookie and a mango in between. I'm still hungry, but not ravenous. Maybe one more cookie would help.

For those who didn't know, yes, I'm intending to release The Game as an ebook, with edited and added paragraphs (not many) through Kindle, the Nook, and Smashwords for $2.00.  I sold it when I fell off the roof and landed on my head a while back, and I couldn't find the brain cells to rewrite it properly. Anyhow, it'll be a start of getting more of my work available for those who are looking for them as ebooks. I'm working on this while trying to finish VOne, so don't worry, I'm not ignoring my priorities, but sometimes I feel I need to take my mind off of forcing that so, as a compromise, I'll get The Game out, and then The Protector will be my next tackle.

So, that's my Day One of giving up dinner news. Not bad, huh?

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