the theory of many mouths

a good theory with a boring beginning. bear with me.

unlike many unfortunates who suffer from the inevitable "freshman fifteen," i actually lost weight when i came to college. i couldn't really figure that out, but i did notice that i always ate more when i went home to my family for the weekend. i figured it was some psychological change of location thing, and that i ate more at home because that's what i was used to. now i have a new theory: the theory of many mouths.

so my little twelve-year-old brother andy somehow got it into his head that socorro must be more exciting than las cruces (even though socorro is minus the dogs, the x-box, and all his friends) and came up to visit me for about a week. even though my dad sent him with a load of snacks, the kid's eating habits are something like a plague of rabid locusts. we've had to go for several food runs already. at the store i suffered from yet another impulse buy... you know those circus cookies? the pink and white yogurt-covered animal crackers with the crazy sprinkles? the control they have over me is alarming. a big bag like that would normally last me a week, but i made the mistake of opening it with andy and scott while we watched a movie.

they aren't nearly as conservative as i when it comes to sprinkley snacks. they just eat... and eat... and eat! and i had to keep up with them, because if i didn't, i wouldn't have any pink hippos or white elephants for myself. i was forced to eat faster just so i could actually eat. the same was true for the gatorade, the cheez-its, the ice cream, the toaster strudels, everything! if i didn't start eating the food as soon as i bought it, i'd suddenly find that it was gone without a trace.

hence my theory: when a person is around several other people, he or she will tend to eat greater quantities at a quicker pace than if the person is alone, due to the fact that said person will otherwise miss out on eating all together.

aha! so that's why i always eat more when i'm around my family. maybe it's some sort of animal survival instinct.

so yes, my snack supply (and my everything supply for that matter... paper towels, toothpaste, dishsoap, you name it) is quickly shrinking, but i'm really glad andy is here. he still looks a bit bewildered when i tell him "no, i'm not kidding, there's really nothing to do," but... for example, last night he and another younger boy i know had a dance-off. (i know, right?) just when the other kid hit him with "the worm" and it looked like the competition was over, andy busted out with "the inch-worm." well, you can imagine what that looked like. we fell all over ourselves laughing, and everyone, including the other kid, declared andy the winner. he cracks me up.

turns out he's pretty good at jumping through the hoop, too.