Pop psychology available in many flavors

Paul the Apostle, in one of his many letters to early Christian churches, said, "The things that I should do, I don't; and the things I shouldn't do, I do."

I suspect that many of us find ourselves having that same problem. We spend millions of dollars going to psychiatrists and psychologists in order to help us understand ourselves.

We buy books that "guarantee" a better self-understanding. Others buy into the Myers-Briggs Personality Test. Some even patronize psychics. Some go to worship. And there are those who find a modicum of comfort in reading the horoscopes to help define who they are. I often wonder if reading, and then applying the information to ourselves, that we enter into that phenomenon known as "self-fulfilling prophecy."

Ralph Milton, in his Rumors column tells of Dr.Alan R. Hirsch (MD), Neurological Director of the Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago, who suggests we can discover something about our personalities by the kind of ice cream we eat. Knowing that Edy's Ice Cream Company paid for the evaluation may cause us to be a little cautious about the final report.

However, the report concluded that if you like vanilla, you are colorful, impulsive, a risk taker who sets high goals and has high expectations of yourself. You also enjoy close family relationships.

If you like chocolate, you are lively, creative, dramatic, charming, enthusiastic, and the life of the party. Chocolate fans enjoy being at the center of attention and can become bored with the usual routine.

If you like butter pecan, you are orderly, perfectionist, careful, detailoriented, conscientious, ethical, and fiscally conservative.

You are also

competitive, aggressive in sports, and the take-charge type of personality.

If you like banana, you are easy going, well adjusted, generous, honest, and empathetic.

If you like strawberry, you are shy, yet emotionally robust, skeptical, detail oriented, opinionated, introverted, and self-critical.

If you like chocolate chip, you are generous, competitive, and accomplished. You are charming in social situations, ambitious, and competent.

So, if you are hungry, have the bowl of ice cream, but remember the flavor you choose tells a lot more about yourself than you may have expected!