Going Without For Good

I have 4 friends that I've managed to keep through some troubled teenage years, marriage, children, mental illness, career changes and more. They're like the brothers I don't have and a sister that's close to my own age and like all siblings, much of our time spent together includes harassment, dares, jokes and teasing. I consider myself extremely lucky.

Realizing that long-term friendships are so valuable, we've made a commitment to each other to get together at least 20 times a year. With careers and kids it's not easy but heck, nothing worth anything comes for free. Because we tend to group ourselves with people of similar interests, my friends are very socially minded. They all make time to volunteer, give generously to causes they believe in and genuinely care for others. So about 5 years ago we decided that every time our group got together we would each drop $2 into a fund and at the end of the year donate it to a charity. One year we donated to the arts program at the high school we attended, another it was the Humane Society and the Junior Physicist Camp scholarship fund.

Last year Ange, who's always been a bit of a health freak, was arguing with me about the benefits of a raw diet and then proceeded to state, "There is NO way in a million years you could possibly survive a week raw."

Battle on. Within minutes the bet was on, I declared that I could easily go a week raw... heck, I could even go 9 days. Mike set out the terms of the bet, 9 days no cooked food of any kind with an exception made for tea. If I won, I got to choose the yearly charity and a sweet $200 ponied up by everyone in the group just for myself.. If Ange won, I would be serving dinner to the group AND THEIR SPOUSES/DATES/PARTNERS in a Playboy bunny suit and she would be picking the charity..

Well, I suffer from some pretty extreme OCD. Much of it is now (finally) well controlled but I have an issue with breakfast. Every single day I eat the exact same breakfast. It helps me feel in control, it helps me control my emotions and by keeping that one aspect of my life stable I've been able to tackle many of the other obsessive tendencies I have.  So last year, on day 7, I felt like the Earth was spinning uncontrollably. I was irritable, I couldn't focus and my anxiety levels were through the roof. So i poached myself an egg, sliced a banana and made a cup of tea and allowed my world to relax. And 6 weeks later, with cheeks redder than a Red Prince apple, I wore the darn bunny suit and served dinner to my friends. Ange picked a charity fund for vegan farmers and I vowed revenge.

So this year, it's on. We've visited 25 times this year and the fund is at $250. The bet started yesterday and the stakes are HIGH. Stay tuned for tomorrow's post and find out what's on the line...