Is it Mr. T's favorite holiday? Or his least fave?

Early this week, what I had taken to be my first allergy got accompanied by fever symptoms. (Needing lots of fluid when there's a lead advisory in the tap water bites.) I still get stuffy at random times, but at least I haven't had to breathe through my mouth all night since Sunday. I am content with my current health.

Yesterday I told my mom that I had broken my Lent promise by playing two hours of "Animal Crossing." She said, "Oh my," and she said it again when I told her April Fools. The best tricks are surprising but credible, and I rarely have the self-confidence to try.

In spite of this trick, the fact remains that my thoughts on V/C games have decreased dramatically this week. You know how you're not as psychologically fit for sleep if you use the bed for activities other than sleep (the brochures cry out, "Sex is the only exception!")? Well, I'm less inclined toward games when I stop associating home with them. And much to my surprise, my consumption of alternate outlets has not increased to make up for it. My computer time has gone down, I'm not drawing more than I was in January, I've seen all of two movies, and I haven't even started to read the fantasy book lying on my table. The rest is filled by school study, magazine puzzles, interaction with my folks, and long periods of contemplative inactivity. (To call it meditation would be an insult to the real meditators everywhere. I'm pretty sure I do it just out of laziness.)

What remains to be seen is whether this Lent will make a long-term difference in my moderation. I hypothesize yes.