The Life Ledger

Fitness is a way of life.

So, this morning I faced a 3-digit number I expected never to see again - 200. I have to admit though, last night’s Oscars celebration was worth a couple of pounds that, because of my newly-developed dedication to fitness, I can quickly drop.

So, where did that weight come from? My wife and I participated in an Oscar dinner and I overate a little. Oscar dinners, in my wife’s family, are derived from the five Best Picture nominees - one dish from each movie. While previous years have provided for a fuller selection to choose the dishes from, this year was as fun as any. My guesses for our meal were:

• The Departed: Boston butt, grilled
• Babel: Hummus and grilled pita
• Letters from Iwo Jima: Sushi
• Little Miss Sunshine: Make your own ice cream sunday
• The Queen: Honestly, I couldn’t think of anything here, so I guessed a semi-copout with Earl Gray Tea.

Our actual menu?

• The Departed: Boston creme pie (DELICIOUS! I had never eaten this before)
• Babel: Hummus and grilled pita (the only one I guessed right)
• Letters from Iwo Jima: Rice with grilled portabello mushrooms and gravy (apparently our other choice was dug-up worms)
• Little Miss Sunshine: Fried chicken
• The Queen: Potato leek soup (YUM!).

I did well to limit my fried chicken consumption, but the leek soup and the Bostom creme pie were fantastic, and lead to my having to ramp up my exercise for the next week to compensate.

By the way, I thought Ellen did a fantastic job hosting. I don’t typically really enjoy watching the Oscars, but this year was a lot more fun than previous years’ - not only was Ellen fresh and witty, but the other variety-type inserts were fun too (the “dancers”, the comedians-don’t-win song and the sound-effects choir, for example). All in all, an enjoyable night, and well worth gaining a couple of pounds.

Do you celebrate the Oscars with a similar celebration? What were your food choices? Let us know in the comments!

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