A new take on Fat Tuesday

So, this morning a friend wished me a "happy Pancake Tuesday" by text.  Honestly I ignored it because 1) we were running late, and 2) because I had no idea what she was talking about.  I went to daily Mass (as I do most days) and found out that tomorrow is Ash Wednesday.  Surprised that it is so soon, but still making no connection to pancakes.

Then when I picked up Jack from school I saw the local restaurant/coffee joint had set up an outdoor pancake stand.  "Hmm" I thought, "perhaps Maria wasn't just making a very obscure joke this morning and this day IS actually Pancake Tuesday".  Jack then comes out of school and tells me that he had pancakes in class (with a choice of Nutella, honey or syrup) in honor of this supposed holiday.  OK, now I believe it exists, but still have no idea what it's about.  So, on to home and Wikipedia.  Aha!  This day is actually called Shrove Tuesday.  And this is why, and more importantly, what pancakes have to do with the whole affair:

The word shrove is the past tense of the English verb shrive, which means to obtain absolution for one's sins by way of Confessionand doing penance. Thus Shrove Tuesday gets its name from the custom for Christians to be "shriven" before the start of Lent.^[4]Shrove Tuesday is the last day of "shrovetide", somewhat analogous to the Carnival tradition that developed separately in countries of Latin Europe.

• In the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, Shrove Tuesday is also commonly known as "Pancake Day" or "Pancake Tuesday" due to the tradition of eating pancakes on the day.

Pancakes are associated with the day preceding Lent because they were a way to use up rich foods such as eggs, milk, and sugar, before the fasting season of the 40 days of Lent. The liturgical fasting emphasized eating plainer food and refraining from food that would give pleasure: in many cultures, this means no meat, dairy products, or eggs.

Now, I don't plan to refrain from eggs, meat or milk (except meat on Fridays) but I might try to lower my rather massive sugar intake. I think it's funny that here in Ireland people "indulge" in what is taken as a common breakfast food in the States.  I plan to follow tradition and instead of meatloaf, we are having pancakes for dinner.  Jack will just get lucky and have them twice.  Super Fat. There you have it.