Impromptu Potluck

As mentioned before, my fun-filled work place is hard on The No Food Fun Life. Earlier this week, my team decided that we should do a potluck today.

I bought all the ingredients to prepare either Beef & Broccoli or Braised Short Ribs. Either dish would give me a non-carb option. This is not my first potluck rodeo... people looooooove making and sharing dishes with oodles and oodles of delicious carbs. I didn't want to throw myself into the potluck predicament without a safety net.

Now, also as mentioned earlier, life throws curve balls. As documented in my previous posts, I've been deeply afflicted by the PMS party mix from the underworld this week. I was in no mood to cook last night, and even less mood to do so this morning. Uh oh.

So, I went to the grocery store right before work and bought a Meat, Cheese, & Crackers platter. Classy fingerfood... score. Next, I quickly grabbed an Apple Harvest Salad: baby lettuces, apple, chicken, cheese, and sunflower seeds. Yum! That way, if I rolled up to this potluck and there was nothing for me to eat, I wouldn't feel compelled to just give in and eat whatever was there. I feel like I played it pretty smart today. *pat on the back*

Lo, and behold! I arrived to the following: 3 dozen donuts (seriously!), cookies, enchiladas, lasagna, and slutty brownies (heaven-on-earth triple layers - brownie, oreos, chocolate chip cookies). I set out my little platter, stocked a little plate of salami & cheese and dug into my salad. I still ate with the rest of my team and socialized, chatted, and stuffed my face... I just did it on my own terms. I felt pretty powerful.

My teammates are all very supportive. I'd say 50% knows exactly what I'm doing in regards to changing my health and PCOS... and the other 50% thinks I'm extremely picky, healthy, and/or strange. Haha. But they accept it.

In fact! I got three of them to help me eat donuts and brownies vicariously through them. I would take a giant inhale of a particularly good looking Krispy Kreme to get all the deliciousness up my nostrils... and then I'd watch them take a big bite. OMG... if you've never done this... DO IT. I don't know if I'm crazy or if it's like a true scientific thing... but smelling it and then watching someone else eat it is REALLY CLOSE to eating it. I'm not joking! I'd even ask them to take a 2nd bite and go "mmmmmmmm" and then I'd make the same noise - and I swear I felt like I experienced the entire thing myself.

DON'T JUDGE ME!!!!

Today, I am in love with my teammates for supporting my journey, for not judging me, and for being such good-sport weirdos!!! hee hee... I consider this potluck a success because 1) I didn't give up when plans got derailed 2) I played it way smart 3) I found support from others and 4) I had fun! :)

Success, indeed.