I knew the small bowl strategy too. Makes you think “oh, just a little bit won’t hurt.” Suddenly you’ve had 4 of those tiny bowls, which was equal to two normal sized ones.
this is such a wonderful piece of writing. It contains a reality that every single person can identify with in some way or another and thus is a perfect way of drawing readers into a story.
I need to re-read with the first part to tie them together in my head properly. but this flowed together nicely.