The Ins and Outs of a Craving You know how it is Lying on the couch; zoning out Watching TV Halfway between dinner and bed time You have a craving; you’re not really hungry, Just a craving. So you get up and walk into the kitchen Head to the pantry and open the door And stare… Cheerios, pretzel sticks, cranberry granola, oreos You’re not really hungry, Just a hankering. But there’s the refrigerator You stride to it and open the door And stare… Strawberry yogurt, carrots, leftover tuna salad You’re not really hungry, Just a yearning. You start back to the couch but have to check out the freezer You open the drawer And stare… A chilly bag of peas, an icy salsbury steak TV dinner, … and then you see it. An oversized cardboard cup with a pair of friendly faces printed on the side, It’s your buddies - Ben and Jerry. You are not hungry But you do have a longing. You need some patience. Have you ever played in snow? Ice crusted; step, crunch, step, crunch? That is not how you want your ice cream. Fresh fallen; talcum powder? Not like that either.. Sun soaked; warm; slushy, creamy? That’s it! So you wait The waiting pays off, the spoon slips in, slides, glides and rolls. You put the spoon in your mouth Butter and cocoa snowflakes melt on your tongue. Cold, velvety river of sugary mud cascades down your throat. Oh Ben! Oh Jerry! Oh brown fudgy spoonful of sweet sludge. Again and again and again and again and Gone. Then later that night after it has warmed up in your belly… Well, Have you ever extruded Play Doh? Unprotected, crackly, flaky? That is not what I’m talking about. Fresh from the box; begging to be shaped? Not really that either. Mixed with some water; slimy, runny, clingy? Yea – that’s it! And as you sit in your bathroom you scream, for the umpteenth time, Fuck Ben! Fuck Jerry! Never again!