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January 3, 2007
Why are there cookies on the front desk?
That's what I asked the hotel registration officer when I walked out of my conference room to see a big glass cabinet with chocolate chip cookies sitting on the front desk.
"They're there in case guests want them."
"Are they free?" I asked.
"Yes, help yourself," replied the clerk.
"No thank you," said I.
And then we wonder why the majority of Americans are overweight or obese. Do people really need free cookies thrust at them when they check into a hotel? The Hilton chain keeps apples and bananas on the front desks at their hotels. I have eaten many of them. That would be a much better idea if hotels wanted a little bite to offer their guests when they check in.
One of the insights of "Why French Women Don't Get Fat," one of my favorite books, is that French women are not constantly snacking. They eat meals. At tables. With silverware. Now of course there are many times in life when we are on the go and don't have time to set the table, put out fresh flowers, cook a meal and eat it over candelight with the one(s) we love. I ate a megamuffin in the car today on the way from one meeting to another, and ate my lunch while walking around the office getting things done before I had to run out to yet another meeting. But do we really need a cookie when we check into a hotel? There's a sane middleground here.
At least this hotel had one piece of good advice: taped to the microwave in the breakfast room was a sign that read: "Do not put hard boiled eggs in the microwave."
Now that, my friends, is timeless wisdom.
Posted by april at January 3, 2007 6:09 PM
Comments
we live in a world where people put their children into the drier to teach them a lesson darlingmu, so that warning is "normal". Funny as hell too. Who would even think of putting hard boiled eggs into an oven to begin with, before warning people against it?
z.
Posted by: istanbulwitchy at January 4, 2007 12:19 PM
...and microwave dinners say "do not put in the toaster oven." Love your posts. Have you seen the ads for "Go-Tarts"... POpTarts in a cereal bar form? As if POPtarts are just too unwieldy to be portable. Those people trip me out. On the front of the box it's like "good source of this and that vitamin"... but it's all sugar and HFCS and fat. Marketing. Gotta love it.
Posted by: Jake Silver at January 4, 2007 7:39 PM
I love that book! There is this article I found that cracks me up - someone who took the French diet philosophy *just a bit* too far
http://archive.salon.com/health/feature/2000/02/03/french_eating/
Enjoy! -Christina
Posted by: Christina at January 5, 2007 8:19 PM