I wanted to share with everyone something that happened to me today. I came back from lunch to find a card on my door. I figured it was a Xmas card. It wasn't. It was left by a woman in my office and it says:

YOU'RE LOOKING GREAT
Look at you. Your've been watching what you eat, working so hard to exercise and stay healthy, trying to make a new you.
I've been watching you become thinner, healthier and most of all, happier.
There's less of you than ever before.
But I couldn't be more proud.
You're looking great.

And she signed it: You are a fantastic inspiration!

This is a woman no one would consider sentimental. She's actually considered quite difficult by most. I don't work with her directly and always liked her alright, she has a wicked sense of humor, but we've never been friends. I'm just so touched!

She is quite heavy. No doubt she's 300+ herself. She'd lost over 100 lbs a few years ago on Re-dux, but gained it all back when it was taken off the market. So I know she knows how hard it can be.

I just thought it was the nicest thing anyone's done for me for a long time. It's provided me with a lot of inspiration myself...to stick with it thru the many holiday parties to come and to dedicate myself back to the project in the new year!

Thought I'd check in. I am working on box #20 to mail, and am quite buggy eyed. I've got just a couple more boxes left, and then everything else will go on the plane with me. If I have to come back to Florida to wait on immigration, I will live out of a suitcase. I've been sewing some but not on my gown yet. Sewing is a skill like any other, and if you haven't sewn in a while, you get rusty. I'm warming up by making a couple pairs of pants. If I get a crooked seam on that I won't care. I guess I wanted to clear the decks to really focus. I heard a song on the radio that went, "I close my eyes and I see your face. If home's where my heart is then I'm out of place. Lord, won't you give me strength to make it through somehow. I've never been more homesick than now." That perfectly describes how I am feeling right now. I also had something horrible happen several days ago. One of the things the immigration people want are copies of correspondence and phone bills, etc. to prove that you are a legitimate couple. As uncomfortable as it made me, I printed out our emails. My roommate read them. I haven’t felt so violated since my home was burglarized in 1988. She had been drinking and actually yelled very personal things about Austin and I in the apartment hallway. I know that most people were at work, so chances are no one heard her, but I was devastated none the less. She left on the bus yesterday to go visit her youngest son, and won’t be back until January 6th, and I leave on the 10th, so I will have to deal with her very little. She apologized when she sobered up, but the damage was already done. Austin was livid. It is one thing for strangers in another country to read them for legal purposes. This is something I don’t think I will ever forgive. It did have the benefit of taking away any guilt I feel for leaving her to take care of herself. I’ve been taking the garbage out in the middle of the night to avoid having to see any of the neighbors just in case.

Lilion -- That's a great NSV!!! How nice of her!

Catherine -- The opposite end of the spectrum. Your roommate must be hurting, but that was really uncalled for!!! Sounds like you're taking the high road, though.

I went to the dentist today and wondered how I ever fit in the that dentist chair! Last time I went was right before I starting losing, so 50 pounds ago, and while I fit in the chair okay, it's not like there was a lot of extra room!

Lilion--That is so awesome of that woman to give you that card. What a great NSV!! I know that made your day. \

Catherine--Sorry to hear that your roommate violated you by reading your personal emails with your fiance. I would be so MAD!!! Not too much longer and you will be with him and won't have to worry about her.

Hope everyone else is well.

Good Evening Ladies,

Lillion: What a wonderful thing for you to get and it must really make you feel good to know that you are probably inspiring that lady. Perhaps she will join in and get healthy again too. Wonderful

Catherine: I am so sorry that your room mate is being such an butt. It is so not fair when someone goes into your own personal things and helps themselves. I was livid like your Austin when I read that. Hurting or not she should be an adult and not behave like such a child. The neighbors were probably all at work as you said but if there were a few that were home they probably didn't really hear her and just thought, oh, the drunk lady again. If they did hear just hang in there and realize you won't be seeing them much longer. If they are adults they will realize that your room mate was doing something she wasn't supposed to be doing. Take a deep breath and exhale slowly. This too shall pass!

Blessings everyone,
Dogpal

Tashabella-

my way was the first way that elmay went over. they measured my skinfold with the calipers and did some mathmatical equasion and came up with the numbers. if you have a gym membership (and maybe even if you dont - it doesnt hurt to ask) they can give you a fitness evaluation. if you dont.. you can probabally tell them that you are considering joining and want to know your starting point... hmm..

Hi everyone, the pc was acting up, hubby put a better picture card (or something like that) on it and spent his day off setting it up.
I lost 3 1/2 lbs, not the whole 6 I put on last week I am pretty fed up with that! though I am still feeling achey, tired and crotchety and I'm still getting a bit swollen even though I'm drinking plenty of water (and weeing loads!! ) Hope things get sorted out soon, health-wise.

Catherine, your soon to be ex-roomie is sad, if any of your neighbours heard her, whether they were they loving/sexual or just private emails most NORMAL people would have been sickened by HER and thought that you are just a normal loving woman chatting to her HUSBAND - TO - BE, how could anyone think bad of you, unless you were talking about criminal stuff in your emails!!

Does anyone use a juicer and can reccomend one? I have decided to get one to include more fruit & veg in my diet hopefully it will help me feel a bit perkier!!!

hope everyone is feeling better and ready for Santa!!!
sharon

Lilion ~ That card is wonderful. Maybe that lady is stand-offish because of the way she has been treated by other people because of her weight (there's always a reason, I assure you ~ I have heard co-workers say nasty things about my weight/make jokes and never spoke to them again). How nice of her, and for you.

Princess ~ I belonged to a gym for a year. They measured me, but mainly I measured myself. I lost a lot of inches, but no pounds the whole year. Every time they were supposed to use that machine on me (you hold it in front of you with two weird handlebar-like things), they claimed it was broke (I was under the impression that machine tells you your percentage of body fat too). They also had the scale set back 20 pounds to make people think they were smaller. The only thing the staff were interested in at the gym was looking at themselves in the mirror. They only took an interest in you if you signed up for multiple services (like tanning, B12 shots, etc.), shelling out megabucks.

I would love to know how much muscle I have (though I'm big, I am very solid). I'll have to see about finding out. It was interesting to hear you guys talk about how much muscle you have. I never even thought of that. That makes me feel like a higher goal weight would be good because a lot of it would be muscle. Thanks for sharing that.

Catherine ~ It's not that much longer and you will be with someone who loves you very, very much. Just keep thinking that!

Everyone else ~ I'm feeling better and I hope you are too. I have blown my diet for the last three days though. I'm going to the store after work and buying all HEALTHY stuff so I can get back on track. Got to get back to exercising when my lungs feel better.

sharon (voodoo) -- It's really frustrating to gain! But remember this is a marathon, and getting to the finish is the important part, not how fast you do it! Hope you feel better soon!

tashabella -- wow! same applies to you! it's hard to eat well when you don't feel good... get better and enjoy the healthy food.

I had a moment yesterday when I was feeling really down and depressed and I REALLY wanted to eat the bag of cheetos in the cupboard (which I have been eating one ounce at a time!). But I didn't. I reminded myself that it might taste good at the time, but wouldn't fix the problem. I fixed myself a cup of tea and left the kitchen. After a while, I went and exercised. AFter that, I no longer wanted the stupid cheetos. I don't think I'm a huge emotional eater, but I know that in the past that bag would have been DUST!