Pancakes are for Fat People

Last week I got to experience Pancake Day (or Fat Tuesday if you will) the U.K. way. The proper name is Shrove Tuesday and is celebrated in Ireland and the U.K. to mark the beginning of the Christian season of fasting and prayer called Lent. The day is associated with the eating of fatty foods (like pancakes with chocolate on it). The point used to be for people to use up ingredients such as fat and eggs (which was traditionally restricted during Lent). And although I don't consider myself to be a Christian, I definitely view this as an opportunity to grow spiritually and to push myself to boundaries I have yet to reach (and to eat a lot of pancakes the day before). So, I have decided to give up soda pop. [Mm-hmm, soda pop, watch it fizz and pop The clock is tickin' and we can't stop (can't stop now)]

So, first I went to my friend Mike's for homemade pancakes and soon realized that these pancakes were very different than the pancakes I was used to back home. The pancakes here seemed to be bigger, but flatter, and a lot sweeter and drenched in chocolate or golden syrup. Then, later that night, my friend Tom from upstairs made Katie and me some pancakes which he bragged would be "the best pancakes in the world." And I have to admit they were pretty dang good. He even taught me how to flip the pancakes high in the air (it's all in the wrist) and by the end of the night I had deemed myself Jeph the Chef. Wockatow!