So I'm out at one of our local home improvement centers picking up supplies for my Spring remodeling project. In the front of the store I am approached by 3 of the cutest and most polite young ladies asking me if I would like to buy some Girl Scout Cookies. Being a sucker for kids and OK I admit it COOKIES too I decide to make a purchase. I browse their selection very carefully, because buying cookies requires thoughtful introspection. You don't want to pick a bad cookie. As I am browsing, it dawns on me. Shopping for Girl Scout Cookies is a lot like picking a Presidential candidate.
On one hand there is Shortbread (John McCain). Noble cookies with a glorious past, but you get the feeling that "You've had this cookie before." I don't know if I want to commit to another bag of the same old cookie. You get the feeling that this is the kind of cookie that your Grandpa would have liked but you aren't sure that it is quite right for your family today. After all, Grandpa used to like to watch television on that old set in the basement because sometimes all those colors get confusing. It's time to move beyond the black and white TV, time to move beyond Shortbread.
Then there is Lemon (Hillary Clinton). If you don't like this years Lemon just wait, next year it will be different. Even if you do like this years Lemon, too bad, next year it will be different. The Girl Scouts constant retooling of their Lemon cookies reminds me of the way that Hillary keeps retooling her image and campaign message. Change...no wait....experience.....no wait change again... uhhhh...did we use women's rights yet....ok.....instant readiness. Always an adventure. I'm not sure I am ready to give my cookie dollars or my vote to adventure.
Finally there is Thin Mints (Barack Obama). One thing that I can say about Thin Mints is that they are refreshing. Much like Barack Obama's message of hope. But you can eat an entire sleeve of Thin Mints and not feel satisfied. Sure you are refreshed, but you get the feeling that maybe you just ate something that has the makings of a good cookie, just not quite ready yet. Maybe if they took two Thin Mints and made a sandwich cookie with more substance in the middle I would be sold.
So after 45 minutes of browsing and thoughtful introspection the adorable little Girl Scouts were beginning to lose their patience with me. One of them suggested that I buy a cookie which best reflects my personality. So I sit here today eating my Girl Scouts Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies. Hard on the outside and a little nutty on the inside.
