Hug a Girl Scout

I made friends with a Girl Scout tonight. Her name was Mary. She came to my door and said, "Hi, I'm Mary. I believe you ordered some cookies?"

And I said, "Have they been paid for?"

"Yep," she said.

"Then yes!"

We were fast friends. But now I'm sitting here eyeing the boxes of Samoas and Thin Mints, and wishing my roommate were here so I could get permission to eat some. It's like freaking Sophie's Choice over here. Do I resist the temptation? Or do I eat some and blame it on Mary?

While I'm deciding, here are some little gems of insight I found on the Girl Scouts of America Web site:

***Girl Scout Cookie boxes are bold and bright and capture the spirit of Girl Scouting. Introduced in the fall of 2000, these boxes clearly show girls having fun and growing strong.***

Well, that's a nice theory, but I'm looking at the box of samoas and seeing a bunch of girls squirting themselves in the face with a fire hose. The thin mints fare no better: a whole troop is attempting to climb into a tree house armed with hard hats and harnesses. I don't know about you, but back when I was a young'n, I climbed trees freestyle. Sans hard-hat.

Or, try this one on for size:

*** For the safety and security of the girls who are selling cookies, Girl Scout Cookies are not available for purchase online.***

Because going door to door in random neighborhoods in the greater Los Angeles area is way safer than, say, filling out an online order form. Not to mention the fact that pedophiles probably really appreciate that the "boxes clearly show girls having fun and growing strong." Stellar logic, Girl Scouts.


Well, I'm sorry to say, I'm giving in to the temptation. Now, the only question is: Fire Hose, or Tree Climbing Gold Miners?