What am I giving up for lent?

This is a question we are all asked many times every year. The last couple years, I've given the response that I am giving up hope for lent. It seemed like a wittier riposte than chocolate or booze or crack cocaine.

It seemed like a funny off the cuff remark, until a few weeks ago I was directed to this article where conservationist Derrick Jens puts forward an argument that we should give up hope permanently as a matter of principle, so that we fight like cornered animals for the things we love.

Lenten vows have definitely shifted far away from an ascetic devotion to something straight out of the self-help section of the bookshop.

I'm quite good at sticking to rules I set myself, but I do tend to impose an overly legalistic framework.
e.g. No chocolate for a month - that's cool, I'll just fill up on doughnuts.
No crack cocaine - whatever, I'll fill up on heroin instead.
No goat sex - hmm, well sheep weren't a sub-species of goat the last time I looked.

Anyway, I've decided that my vow this year is to fast between 2pm and 5am - unless I happen to be at a social gathering.

That's a good one because the only way to get round it is to attend more social gatherings - so I win either way.

Which isn't quite the spirit of lent, but it suits my purposes.