maybe next year, chron

only a handful of people are going to think this is amusing. just so you know.

my brother & i play a stupid game around this time of year: the race for boiled custard. i'm not sure if you could really call it a "game," and i totally just made up the name i mentioned there, but it's fun. it always seems to be the case that the loser is completely caught off guard, which is also good for a laugh.

so some background info - my brother & i grew up drinking boiled custard as a holiday treat. this stuff - along with mary ellen's homemade ginger cookies - signified that the holidays were upon us, ie. santa was on his way, most likely bringing us an excellent haul. ah, good times.

anyway, like egg nog, boiled custard is a seasonal item. unlike egg nog, it is delish. tastes like really rich vanilla ice cream melted down and then chilled. a tall glass of this stuff - which is what i am inclined to drink right when i buy it - will send me into diabetic shock. so i am almost forced to train with smaller portions a few days prior to full-on custard consumption mode. back in the late eighties i remember it came in a small carton, like a really skinny milk carton. now it comes in those plastic jugs and thank goodness it comes in a half-gallon size, you know, for those lonely nights. and so far i've only seen kroger's brand. apparently they've got the market cornered (and i'm possibly the only one buying, so whatever).

POINT IS, this stuff is sacred. brings back some good memories. oh, and it's freaking delicious. my bro & i get a kick out of how we, as kids, used to make a huge deal over something that costs four bucks. now we have this "thing" where if he or i think we've spotted the first batch of the season, we have to call the other and gloat. i know for a fact that this is my third consecutive year winning (which is weird because i usually steer clear of the dairy case). i saw some tonite, bought it, and made the call: "hello dear brother, i want you to listen closely: i am now the owner of something delicious!!" and with absolute certainty as to what i was referring, he told me he'd get me back next year.