You're strong to the finish 'cuz you ate your spin . . . Never mind.

It's good thing Popeye isn't here to see this e. coli thing. Can't you just imagine his left-sided facial palsy being ironed out by his look of shock over having his spinach supply dickered with? If you can't eat spinach, what can you eat?

How about some cake? My cake. Small But Tall Cakes:

• chocolate with chocolate frosting (rich creamy fudge frosting)
• chocolate with white frosting (dee-lish cream cheese frosting)
• yellow with chocolate frosting (again with the creamy fudge)
• yellow with white frosting (more scrumptious cream cheese)

I call them Small But Tall for a reason: They're small (only 6 inches in diameter). But they're Tall (three layers high) Each cake serves 12 to 15 people. They're only $20.00! A bargain? I'll say. Let's listen in on other comments:

• "Two spatulas up!" say some.
• "The 'taste good' dessert of 2006," say others.
• "This cake's got gold medal written all over it!" enthuse the rest.

So order a cake. It won't make you sick.

Now back to Popeye. I used to watch him every single afternoon after school. By default, that means I got exposed to Olive Oyl five days a week, too. She was my idol. Girls today have Kate Moss and the all-too-thin models from Spain to set their sights on for the envied physique. A ridiculous comparison, my cartoon character and the supermodels of today? I think not.

Who am describing? Reed thin body build. No butt. No bust. Knobby knees. Sharp elbows. Legs that reach from the ground to second floor. Head supported on a ridiculously long neck. Thin hair pulled back into a sleek bun. Pouty lips made eight times their normal size by one swoosh of lipstick.

Olive Oyl - - - to a fault. How I wanted to be configured like her. I've missed it by 12 inches at my tallest and by 60 pounds at my lightest. The perception of my body image would have been so much better off if there had been a cartoon show written and illustrated by Peter Paul Rubens (minus the nudity, of course). Rubens should have been a cartoonist; then I could have been a contender. Oh, well.