I am thinking about losing some weight, which usually means I can’t stop thinking about food. So instead of eating I thought I would write. This is not my top ten favorite foods, but rather my top ten favorite foods if there were no such thing as calories.

 In stark contrast to my wife, I am not a chocolate lover and it doesn’t make my top 100 let alone my top ten.  I don’t dislike chocolate but there is usually a better option, and salt is usually involved. Ice Cream will also not be anywhere below.  As I have just separated the chocolate lovers from the salt lovers, I will now proceed.

10.  Cheez-its – I love them! Usually with a Diet Coke (Diet Coke is amazing and would definitely be on this list if it had calories). I also inhale Wheat Thins to the point that I refer to them as wheat fats.

9.  Fried Potatoes – Potato Chips (regular, barbeque, and chips with dip are all excellent) and French Fries are both amazing. I currently like the Five Guys fries the best.

8.  Those funky rye chips that are in some snack mixes. Where do they come from? And why can’t I get them separately?

7.  Good Caramel – No matter how you pronounce it, it is wonderful.

6.  Rack-of-Laaaaaaamb – My wife is a vegetarian and thinks that veal and lamb are especially unthinkable to eat. The first cut on my list was Veal Marsala. I haven’t had either in years. As a bumper sticker said, “Meat is murder. Tasty, tasty murder.” A good steak and a nice bottle of merlot are also right there in the meat category.

5.  Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (peanut butter and molasses are also excellent) – I eat chocolate chip, I’m not a communist.

4.  Sushi – While not necessarily fattening or bad for you per se, I would just eat such an unhealthy volume if there were no calories, it definitely makes my list.

3.  Pizza – Sausage and mushroom (By the way, anything with mushrooms is usually awesome.)

2.  Peanuts – I like to sit on the front porch and break open a bag of unshelled with my dog. He also thinks this is an excellent way for the two of us to bond. One for me, one for you… If only my children had that much patience.

1.   Pie – Cherry, marionberry, peach, rhubarb, apple, and the list goes on forever. Pie is truly the best!

As obesity percentages rise exponentially in our nation we should probably do a better job of watching the old calorie intake, but with so many good tasting high calorie options, it’s pretty tough to stop. But we really should make an effort to watch what we eat and cut out those unwanted calories. Except for pie, how can you not eat pie?