Dreaming of a Burger Party

Childhood Dreams and Adult Reality

Gorging on Hamburgers
One of my greatest dreams as a kid concerned food. A lot of food. Fast greasy and tasty food. They usually popped into my head while at a fast food joint. I wanted two boxes of 20 nuggets, a few burgers, at least three large French fries, dipping sauce, and a refillable cup of Coca Cola. The food was just so good...

Then I grew up and started making my own money -- I even had meals that could be expensed up to a certain amount. Did I ever go wild and fulfill that childhood fantasy?

Nope.

From the looks of it, I could probably make that dream happen for less than $50 at various fast food joints. That's about the cost of a few movies or a video game. What happened?

I got old, started to think about a lot of things like calories, cholesterol, dying, saving money, health and safety, body weight, the opinions of people I just met and would probably never see again, funny looks in public, etc. The usual.

If I ended up spending that much at a fast food joint, I would probably end up making that food last as long as possible. Stretch it out to last a few meals?

There's also the issue of discomfort. I've been to a buffet or two where it really was all you could eat. Let's just say that I was very concerned about getting my money's worth and downed at least one more plate than I should have. Those were disgusting, wonderful, and sickening -- literally -- times. I now know my limit and the idea of making myself feel bad isn't that appealing -- that's not to say that I don't go against all logic and still do it. Huh... Maybe I should go get my two boxes of nuggets and supersize all my fries. My younger self would be so much more proud of me.

What happened to you, man?