He's #1

 I like that I can buy my dad a Van Otis Chocolate Trout for Father’s Day and don’t have to sit for six hours hoping to catch a real one.

I love the imagery of dad and daughter dipping a line while enjoying the serenity of a pond, surrounded by the music of spring peepers. However, my need for immediate gratification, fear of slimy things, and aversion to heat, humidity, and mosquitoes destroyed my angler aspirations.

I’m grateful that my sister filled the shoes (waders) of Dad’s fishing buddy. Dressed in her pink L.L. Bean fly fishing vest and carrying her matching tackle box, she’s spent many hours with our father in his favorite habitat.

This Father’s Day, I won’t be expressing my love by sitting in a canoe, smelling of bug dope. My dad will know how much he means to me when he opens a box of hazelnut truffles, Bacca Z Wine cordials, or a Number One Dad Pop. These pops come in delicious dark, milk, and white chocolate.

Check out the full line of Van Otis’s seasonal and holiday chocolates at www.vanotischocolates.com.

End of the World

December 2012 marks the conclusion of a b'ak'tun - a time period in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar which was used in Central America prior to the arrival of Europeans. Some interpretations suggest that the 2012 date marks the end of the world or a similar catastrophe.

Are you preparing for major devastation on December 21, 2012? If so, you may want to inventory the supplies in your Y2K bunker.

I have thoroughly enjoyed the jokes contrived from this concept. I especially like the irony that Dick Clark passed away during the year without need for a Rockin’ New Year's Celebration.

I know it’s not nice to make fun of people’s beliefs, but I figure this is a safe one. If I’m wrong, there won’t be anyone left to point a finger and say they told me so.

You still have time to sample all the great handmade confections at Van Otis Chocolates before December. Start with their famous Swiss Fudge and then head straight for the truffles. Don’t forget the wine and liquor-filled chocolates, the chocolate-covered popcorn, or the Van Oreos. And be sure to devote an entire day to their amazingly creamy fudge.

Actually, with all that Van Otis has to offer and only seven months left, you’d better hurry!