Joey & Last Meal

I had nothing much to watch on tv the other afternoon, so I turned on an old Friends episode. Joey was going to tell Rachel about his feelings for her, and he kept rehearsing the words: “I’m falling in love with you.” That struck me as false. How many levels can one come up with when telling someone you like them as more than a friend? It's like that Bud Lite commercial where the man talks about how much he loves that beer, but he can't bring himself to say the same things about the woman next to him. The honest and most straightforward way is to say, “I love you.” Then it starts tapering off: “I’m in love with you,” Joey’s “I’m falling in love with you,” “I’m beginning to fall in love with you,” “I think I’m beginning to fall in love with you.” Each level is further away from a commitment. Jesus, Joey, just tell Rachel you love her!

As I was eating a piece of Florencia’s sausage/pepperoni deep dish pizza, I thought about what exactly I’d ask for if I were going to be executed and I had a shot at my last meal. It struck me that I’d want to include pizza. Along with a ribeye and some lobster. Forget the veggies or the salad—steak, lobster, pizza. Oh yeah, and a chocolate shake for dessert. And then I thought about how I’d feel if it really was my last meal before someone killed me. Would I even be able to swallow? Probably not. However, at this (not my last) meal, like a shark in a feeding frenzy, I had no problem swallowing three lovely slices of pizza.