Rain and chocolate does a soul good

I can honestly say I've had better days. Or weeks. Or Springs. Sometimes, though, when personal and professional pressures just keep on compounding and you think you've about hit your breaking point, it's amazing how the smallest thing can get you to take a deep breath. For me, that thing often involves food.


Take my experience this afternoon. I'm working on one of those projects that can just hang over you. The Type-A in me wants to work on it forever, and there's enough info out there to do so, and the rest of me just wants to throw my hands up and say enough is enough. (I'm hoping what I actually submit strikes the appropriate balance...) Plus, like the great big cloud currently hanging over the Capitol, I have my own big cloud hanging over me this week. By about 3pm today, the weight of both of these things was nearly too much and I decided to get up from my desk and take a quick walk outside. The aforementioned cloud (the real one, not the figurative one) was looming large and seemed to follow me down Pearl St. Although I was sans umbrella and picked up my step a bit, I kind of appreciated its presence. Behind it I could see slightly brighter sky and that gave me a little hope with respect to my figurative cloud. Plus, I love the smell of impending rain.


I scurried down the hill to a candy shop that I rarely frequent, but a snack was in order. I walked in thinking I wanted crunchy - nuts perhaps - and grabbed a bag of wasabi peas that were on sale. But then, as I stood at the checkout, my true desire - the one I didn't even know I had - called to me. Sorry I didn't think to snap a photo before devouring most of it, but $0.83 bought me a truly satisfying moment of pure joy. Pretzel, immersed in dark chocolate and generously caked with toasted coconut and toffee. Is my project done? No. Have my other stresses vanished? Not really. But thanks to this little salty, sweet, chocolate, unexpected moment of joy I can say the burden of both is at least temporarily lifted.