The seven deadly sins, also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins, are a classification of vices that were originally used in early Christian teachings to educate and instruct followers concerning fallen man's tendency to sin. (Wikipedia)
The start of the new year is the time when we plan to be better people — nicer, skinnier, more careful people. Self-help books and service magazines offer a lot of lists, but you might want to check yourself against something that has stood the test of time: the Seven Deadly Sins, a popular topic in art and drama of the Middle Ages.
And in the interest of free choice, here are some modern suggestions for fighting them off — or indulging them.
LUST Fight back
Feeling tempted by the fruit of another?
If you are a believer in the Bible, perhaps carrying it with you would help inspire you to remove yourself from a potentially sticky situation. The credit card-sized Itty Bitty Bible ($10) opens to reveal a 1 1/4 -inch piece of film inscribed with all the words from the Old and New Testaments, reduced by 285 times, according to maker Amazing Faith.
You can’t read it without a microscope. But Amazing Faith assures, “Have faith. It’s all in there.”
“Since it fits right into your pocket you can carry your faith with you at all times,” says Jaime Hovan, a spokesperson for the company.
It comes in both King James and Catholic Latin versions.
Give in
Make love on luxury.
The super-duper mattress race shows no signs of ending in 2008.
Italian mattress designer Magniflex is introducing a platinum bed at the Las Vegas Furniture Market this month, more extravagant than its Gold Mattress, a bed with a 22-karat gold fiber cover. “Each piece is thermo-regulating, anti-bacterial, odor-proof and anti-stress and is customized to fit the comfort levels of the consumer,” says Henry Burney, U.S. sales representative for Magniflex.
The bed will retail for approximately $75,000.
SLOTH
Fight back
Don’t just sit there — Autom-ize!
Get some motivation and support with the Autom, a robotic weight loss coach making test runs in Boston homes. Dieters input food and exercise, and the Autom provides encouragement and advice, such as “Congratulations, you’re doing a good job at meeting your diet goals that you’ve set for yourself,” or after eating a gallon of ice cream, “Everyone has a few days over their goals. Let’s try to make tomorrow a good day for your diet.”
Give in
If you are going to sit around, at least multitask.
Brookstone sells the OSIM uHarmony Massage Chair: It reclines to 175 degrees and has pre-programmed massages, built-in heat and a place to plug in your MP3 or CD player. “But even more important is the heat function because so many of our customers have said they wanted a massage chair with heat,” says Robert Padgett, spokesman for Brookstone. “It helps to relax them even more.”
Relaxation does come at a price. The uHarmony Massage Chair costs $3,995.
PRIDE Fight it
Get rid of those painful 3-inch stilettos.
Swallow your pride and bring your gently used shoes to Kenneth Cole New York stores from Jan. 19-27. Instead of taking up precious closet space, they’ll go to someone who will wear them. The company is partnering with Help USA, a provider of housing and services for the homeless.
In the past 15 years, Kenneth Cole has collected more than 1.5 million pairs of shoes for the organization. And donors will get a coupon for a 20 percent discount on their next Kenneth Cole purchase.
Give in
Fashion takes a turn toward modesty in 2008, but there are always items that will get you noticed. Accessories — especially handbags, jewelry and shoes — seem to be a weakness for many, and they can add flash to an otherwise buttoned-up, eco-friendly, minimalist-luxury outfit.
WRATH
Fight it
Sure, we all are under a lot of stress these days. But don’t pull an Alec Baldwin and take out your anger on someone you love. Try the increasingly popular art of meditation. “Visualize a rainbow,” David Fontana suggests in his new book Meditation Bliss: Inspirational Techniques for Finding Calm ($9.95). “Rainbows are … said to purify space, and to have healing and tranquilizing properties.”
Or take a lesson from spiritual guru Deepak Chopra. At the Chopra Center Web site, you can take the Dosha Quiz at store.chopra.com/dosha- survey.asp to find out about mind-body balance and how to help improve awareness of both.
If do-it-yourself meditation is too much, try your local spa. According to the International Spa Association, 57 percent of U.S. spas that offer mind, body and spirit programs conduct meditation training.
Give in
That’s right. Let it out. Unleash your pent-up anger by joining a constructive cause — volunteering for the presidential candidate of your choice. Yes, in case you haven’t heard, there’s an election in 2008.
All the major candidates’ Web sites offer forms to get involved, with a wide variety of options. If you want to put your money where your mouth is, you can try the 2008 Presidential Candidate Hot Sauces from Dave’s Gourmet. All the leading candidates are represented with their pictures and pithy quotes on individual jars of cayenne-based sauce, pictured below. The company is counting each bottle sold as a vote and will see how well hot sauce purchasing choices reflect the real polls.
You can track the spicy-lection at davesgourmet.com.
ENVY
Fight back
Get over yourself and stop pining for greener grass. Try giving to others instead of focusing on your own supposed needs. Time magazine named VolunteerMatch (volunteermatch.org) one of the top 10 Web sites of 2007.
Give in
Feeling green? Wallow in it. There’s always somebody richer, younger, prettier and smarter than you, so envy knows no limits. Log on to Facebook, the social networking story of 2007, and load up on applications that show just how you compare to others in every category from college football scorecasting, to politics, to rock, paper, scissors.
GLUTTONY
Fight it
For the best taste, most hot chocolate should be made 
with whole milk. But Godiva’s new formula for hot cocoa is equally good with 2 percent milk, the company says. The cocoa makes a rich and creamy drink and comes in four flavors — milk, dark and the new caramel or mocha. Each 14-ounce tin costs $10 and is sold at Godiva stores or at godiva.com.
Give in
Of course, hot chocolate can also be an over-the-top treat — load on the whipped cream, marshmallows and shots of flavored syrups.
But the seriously gourmet may now prefer “drinking chocolate.” New “single-origin” hot chocolates have labels that read like wine bottles and tell you where the chocolate comes from and what flavor notes it imparts.
GREED
Fight it
Here’s a way to cut down on your own greed, or at least make it work for a good cause.
Treat your calories like cash. Any time you break your diet, charge yourself a standard amount of cash, say, 1 cent for every calorie in a forbidden treat. Donate the proceeds to your local food pantry or a national program for feeding the needy, such as America’s Second Harvest, which serves a network of 200 member food banks and food rescue organizations in 50 states. There’s an easy online donation form at secondharvest.org.
Give in
If you are lucky enough have a big food allowance, there are now no shortage of businesses that want to help you get all rich food, all the time.
There’s a food of the month club for just about anything: Start with the Italian Wine of the Month Club ($199.95 a month plus shipping and handling for three “Platinum Membership” bottles a month). For something to munch on with your wine, try Stonewall Kitchen’s Specialty Food Club ($320 for 12 months of goodies).
This article was formerly published on kansascity.com.The beautiful ilustrations of the Seven Deadly Sins belong to Marta Dahlig.
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