What Is Your Diet Like

The doctor’s intake nurse smiled at me. “What is your diet like?” For a brief second I thought about lying. Yes, it is that bad. But I tell the truth. “Here is my typical day. Two cups of coffee, no water, a frozen lunch – usually frozen lasagna, a whole family sized bag of barbecued potato chips when I get home from school, and a piece of key lime pie. If I am still hungry before I go to bed, I have another piece of key lime pie. I know I am supposed to drink lots of water. I drink two glasses of iced tea a day, but no water. I do not like it.” The intake nurse says “okay”. Makes a note. The doctor comes in. She asks me about my diet. I tell her the same story. She smiles at me. “I did not mean just today,” she says. I smile back. “Neither did I,” I tell her.