Lunch is never at "lunch" time

It's true. Many a reporter will tell you they rarely eat on a schedule that non-newsies would consider "normal."

We're a different breed. We work late and sleep late when we can. We get into work mid-morning or later unless there's a morning event to cover or breaking news that rouses us earlier. Seriously, 8 o'clock doesn't happen twice in my day.

So here it is 1 p.m. and I'm at work but not working. I'm "working." See, I'm waiting on pages to come out of the printer so I can proof them. Check them over for errors, typos, spelling mistakes and hopefully catch all the big stuff. No one's perfect, but two sets of imperfect eyes can get the paper much closer than only one set.

Anyway, I'll probably get to eat around 2. Dinner will be much later, I'm sure.

Food doesn't necessarily dictate my mood, but has a lot to do with it. And there are times when I'm on such a good mental roll in a story that I won't stop to eat. I'll only stop if I start to feel dizzy. That's a good time to get animal crackers and a soda. Not so good for coworkers who stumble upon the vicious monster prior to munching!

Did I mention that reporters are quite often heavy set too? It's true. Not all, by no means. But people who spend a lot of time stressed out, who work odd hours and don't eat on regular schedules tend to put on the pounds.

So I've decided to implement a desktop diet that should help me maintain a steady flow of healthy foods while providing some sort of schedule. It involves a cooler with blue-ice packs, veggies and ranch dip, Capri Sun or some other juice drink and lots of preparation.

This will never happen of course, but I can dream!