CHOCOLATE

By Suzanne Welsh

I have a motto at my house: CHOCOLATE OR HOMICIDE, YOU DECIDE.

Raising 3 children, all prone to talking a lot and all born within 3 years tends to make a mother learn patience. If not, at least learn to hide her own personal stash of Chocolate. Once the kids discovered this stash, we had a heart-to-heart talk. I talked and for once, they listened! I explained that mom needed her chocolate to keep from KILLING them. Suddenly, the stash was safe from little hands.

I find chocolate to have medicinal puproses too. Ibuprophen, Coke and chocolate taken simultaneously will cure any of my headaches. It's probably the Ibuprophen, but the caffeine in the Coke and the sugar and endorphines from the chocolate certainly don't hurt anything.

A few facts about chocolate:
1. Dark chocolate possesses the highest antioxidant content of any food.
2. Chocolates contain many minerals such as iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, and, in milk chocolate, calcium.
3. Chocolate contains antioxidants.
4. Dark chocolate boosts good HDL cholesterol levels.

Chocolate has to have some magical affects on the brain. Got a roadblock on

the latest story? Take a little chocolate break. Nibble the delicious piece of Godiva's chocolate raspberry bar, and very soon an idea pops into your head. The book progresses. Frustrated that the characters won't do what you want? Bribe them with some M and M's!

But I do tend to get a bit compulsive on my chocolate. M and M's

in particular. I'm an M andM organizer. I divide them by color. Sometimes they end up in the pattern of flowers or Christmas trees. And I eat one color at a time. Don't ask me why, but it probably goes along with the need to procrastinate while writing. And have you seen the Mega M and M's? The person who invented them should be sainted!

So what is your favorite indulgence? Do you sort your M andM's? Is there a secret thing you do to keep from committing homicide at your house? Since we're talking chocolate, one lucky commentor will receive a gift certificate for Godiva's chocolate from me. Hmmm...maybe I should make a trip to the Godiva store today to get us both some!