# What are you doing for Lent this year? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 17, 2010, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338 "2010-02-17T15:44:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lissla\_Lissar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lissla\_Lissar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissla_Lissar)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/1 "2010-02-17T15:44:14Z")
It’s Ash Wednesday, so I’m starting my semi-traditional Lent thread. What are you doing/giving up this year? I’m pregnant and due before Easter, so I think I’ll take up daily Rosary and leave it at that. I might be able to still do it post-birth, with a newborn. And for everyone who’s itching to say, “I gave up being Christian/Catholic/deluded theist for Lent!”, please refrain. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/2 "2010-02-17T15:57:05Z")
I’m giving up television. Ever since I completed my Masters degree, I just seem to go home from work and sit around watching tv until I go to bed at night. I’m going to give up tv as I feel it’s the catalyst for me staying up too late --\> not getting to bed early enough --\> getting into work late, repeat as necessary. ---
**Author:** ![lalenin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@lalenin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lalenin)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/3 "2010-02-17T16:03:52Z")
I am once again giving up drinking alcohol. ---
**Author:** ![Sonnenstrahl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Sonnenstrahl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sonnenstrahl)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/4 "2010-02-17T16:05:42Z")
Coffee. It’s going to be painful. (Not all caffeine and I’ll still feed my addiction with tea - I don’t want to go through withdrawal and all - but I _love_ coffee.) ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/5 "2010-02-17T16:05:43Z")
This will be my first time to give something up for Lent, so I’m going to try chocolate. I eat that stuff like it’s going out of style, so it should be moderately difficult, but not impossible. ---
**Author:** ![Sehmket](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Sehmket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sehmket)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/6 "2010-02-17T16:15:35Z")
Even though I seem to have rushed right past C&E Catholic straight into lapsed… This year I’m working on doing something life-affirming every day. Since the first of the year, I’ve lost a lot of motivation, and I need some encouragment to remember that God loves me, I should love me, I have worth, and, damnit, someday I WILL get a new job! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Skara\_Brae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f0a364/32.png) [@Skara\_Brae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skara_Brae)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/7 "2010-02-17T16:46:30Z")
> [@lalenin](#): > > I am once again giving up drinking alcohol. Me too. I have done this for the past few years. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Sensitive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/58956e/32.png) [@Darth\_Sensitive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Sensitive)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/8 "2010-02-17T16:53:10Z")
I’m not giving up anything. I’m working on getting into some better habits: tracking what I eat, and getting back on the running program I started at New Years and took a week off of for major busy-ness. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/9 "2010-02-17T17:07:14Z")
It was difficult, but I decided I should give up Lent. After just over 12 hours, the sacrifice seems bearable. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/10 "2010-02-17T17:07:44Z")
I’m giving up snacking during my evening TV-watching, but that’s more of a health thing than a Lenten observation, it just happens to be a good time to motivate myself to do it. For Lent, I’m going to confession for the first time in, oh, about 30 years; I’m determined to organize my family for some specific volunteering activities over the next six weeks, primarily at a local soup kitchen; and as I’m somewhat of a misanthrope, making a concerted effort to reach out to my fellow man. Last night I stopped on the highway to help a guy with a flat tire. ---
**Author:** ![ITR\_champion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c67d28/32.png) [@ITR\_champion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ITR_champion)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/11 "2010-02-17T18:05:41Z")
I’m giving up desserts, sodas, candy, and all other things with huge amounts of artificial sugar. I’m also cutting back on restaurant meals. ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/12 "2010-02-17T19:37:42Z")
This morning I asked my very Catholic co-worker what she’s giving up for Lent, and she said you’re not supposed to tell anybody what you’re giving up for Lent! Is this true? I’ve never heard this before. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/13 "2010-02-17T19:50:53Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > This morning I asked my very Catholic co-worker what she’s giving up for Lent, and she said you’re not supposed to tell anybody what you’re giving up for Lent! > > Is this true? I’ve never heard this before. She might not want to. Some of us don’t like telling others when we’re trying to give something up, in case we fail. If we never told anybody we were trying to give something up, they won’t know if we fail at it. There are some people who just aren’t very supportive of someone who’s trying to give something up. There are others who aren’t very supportive of anyone doing anything for a religious purpose. And then there are the people who try to be supportive, but just aren’t very good at it. You don’t ever want to tell people like that that you’re giving something up. They’ll just make it harder for you. Or she might be giving up something that she doesn’t want to talk about in public. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/14 "2010-02-17T20:46:11Z")
High fructose corn syrup - which I know “is fine in moderation” but I don’t eat it in moderation. I don’t even come close. I’m also trying to keep a highly modified daily office. ---
**Author:** ![Marienee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@Marienee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marienee)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/15 "2010-02-17T21:01:52Z")
I was raised with the notion that what you give up in Lent is a habit of sin, that is, you attempt to become more like your perfect self. After some discussion around the table, my youngest child is going to give up harassing his older brother for fun; my oldest child is going to try to learn to take criticism/correction without getting defensive, and (at their recommendation) I am going to try to increase my patience. I think for myself I am going to try to get to mass more often, I really have no excuse as the church is at the end of the block. I find that I have some internal resistance to mass in Dutch, which is pretty stupid when you live in Holland. I read the paper in Dutch, I talk to my husband and my friends in Dutch, I do everything in Dutch but somehow I have this feeling that I am holding out this last bit: me and God, we talk in English. This is stupid and unworthy, I am aware of it, but there you are. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2010, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/16 "2010-02-17T23:48:59Z")
I am going to give up getting fast food hamburgers (I could eat that everyday), soda, and sexing up my fiancee. All three is what I should be doing either way, as I’m not married yet (May 22!) and we are oh so close to actually getting married in the church without an illegitimate child. ---
**Author:** ![DaphneBlack](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daphneblack/32/5389_2.png) [@DaphneBlack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaphneBlack)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/17 "2010-02-18T00:07:37Z")
I’m not Catholic, but my boyfriend is, and several of my very good friends are Catholic or Anglican. I decided I wanted to support them and also see if I could make some positive changes in my own life at this time. I’m giving up coffee and red meat, scheduling 1 hour of writing and at least 30 minutes walking per day, and getting up early every morning. I’m also trying to limit my TV and wasting-time-on-internet time as much as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/18 "2010-02-18T00:39:45Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > This morning I asked my very Catholic co-worker what she’s giving up for Lent, and she said you’re not supposed to tell anybody what you’re giving up for Lent! > > Is this true? I’ve never heard this before. I have heard this before: it’s not unusual. I personally believe it’s between me and God, so I don’t tell anyone. ---
**Author:** ![apollonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2bfe46/32.png) [@apollonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apollonia)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/19 "2010-02-18T00:57:37Z")
Both a positive and a negative: I’m cutting out sweets entirely, which I did a couple years back. I have quite the sweet tooth, and oh my, it’s hard. I’m also going to make a herculean effort to be nice to my roommate’s boyfriend, whom I loathe. However, since I quite like her, I’m going to struggle with it and be as friendly as I can manage. I find it much easier to keep Lenten resolutions than I do to, say, keep a diet. I don’t know why. ---
**Author:** ![Algher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Algher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algher)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2010, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338/20 "2010-02-18T01:16:46Z")
I have done caffeine (oh the pain), fast food, and alcohol in the past. This year I think I will go in a new direction, and instead read all of Matthew. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-doing-for-lent-this-year/529338.md?page=2)