Extremes

(I'll double up tomorrow - today was busier than I thought it would be...)

Sperbs go in extremes: we're disappointed if we get a 95 when 100 points are possible, second-place finishes make us upset, we don't tolerate any relxaing of standards or bending of rules, etc. This tendency toward the extreme also applies in consumption. We consider the all-you-can-eat buffet a personal challenge, often eating until we are uncomfortable - or if we're dieting, we will eat no more than that diet allows... often less to make it work that much better (or so we think).

Extremes in consumption are bad. With food, they will make you either obese or anorexic. With spending, either hopelessly in debt or miserably tight-fisted. With drinking alcohol either an erratic, vomiting sloppy drunk or an uptight neoprohibitionist (but this discussion is for another day about a decade or so away...) Suffice to say extremism, natural tendency or not, is best curbed.

Eat until you aren't hungry any more, then stop. If there is still food on your plate, so be it - in Ohio we call those "leftovers". Eventually, you'll start taking just as much food as you know you'll want, so that shouldn't be a problem for long anyway. When you're thirsty, drink unti you stop being thirsty. Any more will make you sluggish and waterlogged (and, yes, these rules apply even when it tastes really good.) Consumption in moderation maximizes your likelihood of enjoyment since it decreases discomfort.

It takes a while to rewire the circuit board, so don't be disappointed in yourself if every once in a while you destroy a buffet table. Memory of the discomfort after a gorging session will likely be enough of an incentive to get back on track for the next time.