A hare met a tortoise one day and made fun of him for the slow and clumsy way in which he walked.
The tortoise laughed and said, "I will run a race with you any time that you choose."
"Very well," replied the hare, "we will start at once."
The tortoise immediately set off in his slow and steady way without waiting a moment or looking back. The hare, on the other hand, treated the matter as a joke and decided to take a little nap before starting, for she thought that it would be an easy matter to overtake her rival.
The tortoise plodded on, and meanwhile the hare overslept herself, with the result that she arrived at the winning-post only to see that the tortoise had got in before her.
Moral: Slow and steady wins the race.
This comes from a book handed down from my grandmother to my mother to me. The book is so old it doesn't have a copyright date or an author/editor's credit.
That fable has been the motivation for us turtles for about two years. Someone on the ancient WW forum mentioned the fable and I discovered it was very motivational for me. I talked about it in posts and other people said that the tortoise philosophy worked for them, too. So, I started a thread for us turtle types.
We work toward accepting that our bodies have a natural speed of weight loss when we choose to live a healthy life, instead of "going on a diet". Many of us have experienced "the diets" as go on/lose weight-- go off/ gain the weight plus more back.
We choose to perservere with each choice we make throughout the day. We believe that choosing to be slow, steady turtles helps us to learn the skills we need to learn in order to not only lose the weight, but keep it off and become the healthiest people we can be.
So, welcome to all who realize that losing and maintaining a weight loss is a lifestyle change. And who want support as we all learn the skills we need to successfully make the changes that will allow us to reach our goals.
My last post went on to a second page, so I started a new one. There are a couple of new posts on #47, though. I wanted to let you know in case you missed them and are interested in catching up.
Mousie,
Happy Birthday. Glad you had such a nice one. And super congrats on passing all your classes with flying colors. Organic Chem. is a toughie and just think--you won't have to dwell on the configurations of ethers and esters for a while.
Lauren,
Glad you've figured out a way to dance with Paula Abdul. It sounds like you have fun doing your videos. Also glad you've got a great goal posted. I'd sure like my weight to shake itself up and drop a pound or so, but we'll see what tomorrow's WI brings.
Lin,
Love to hear your opinions on foods, etc. and success on weight reduction. I think we were coming from two ends of a spectrum but saying very much the same thing. I vowed when I started WW that I would not eat any food I didn't like (such as liver from the old program) and I wouldn't eat a food simply because I thought it would shake weight off me faster if it wasn't a food I could enjoy. I just won't punish myself that way. And, in the process I found that a lot of the new foods work very nicely in the LF or FF categories and they help me eat a lot of food for fewer points.
Enjoy your time at home and the peace and quiet. Also, big congrats on the status of your dh's employment. You must be so relieved.
Everyone,
I'm just having a hard time of it. Last night I ate more points than I wanted although I'm not over the range. I'm a little blue (maybe I was fooling myself by thinking I don't get depressed in the beginning of the year) and I want comfort foods. Today is okay and I have plenty of points left for dinner, but I am uneasy.
I did get on the treadmill today and that's a major plus.
I'll work this through. In the meantime, everyone do well. I feel like we're on a roll.
Judy
234/208/199soon
Judy, congratulations on getting on that treadmill. I know that it was one of your goals for this year. Way to go!
But I'm wondering why you are beating yourself up when you said that you're not "over the range". I know planning is important, but there is no way you can know in advance exactly how much food you will need. That's one reason we have a range--to account for the fact that we're hungrier at some times than we are at others.
I don't want to offend you, but I've observed that you seem to have a tendency to decide to do something one way and then beating yourself up if you don't follow that plan exactly, even if what you've done is still OP. You might think about applauding anything you do that is OP, even if it wasn't your original plan, to help you to build up a mind set of being successful.
An example from my own life: I give myself a sticker even if all I've done is filled out the page in my journal. That has helped me to stay focused, even if I'm not being "perfect". I've managed to be more successful over the long haul since I started doing that. I think it's because filling out that page has helped me to see that if I've not been perfectly OP that day, I'm not totally off program, either. The things I managed to do that day build the habits that will get me to my goal weight and keep me there.
You also mentioned wanting comfort food in the winter. I think that's a common feeling. One suggeston I have is that you make yourself some soups and stews while the weather is cold. They can be low in points and take care of that comfort food craving.
With soups, if you prefer thicker soups, put in some beans, rice, pasta, or potatoes and puree part or all of it. If you like cream soups, use evaporated skim milk or 1% milk as part of the liquid.
Technique for 0-2 point gravies and sauces (points depend on what ingredients are in the sauce and how much you eat): If you're making a soup or stew that calls for a roux (that mixture of fat and flour that's traditionally used to thicken gravies), you can use a slurry instead. Defat the broth or pan drippings with a fat separator or chill it and remove the hardened fat from the top of the mixture. If you're making a milk-based soup, use a cornstarch slurry. If you're not using milk, you can use either cornstarch or arrowroot.
To make the slurry: Arrowroot and cornstarch have twice the thickening power as flour, so if the recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of flour, use 1 tablespoon of cornstarch or arrowroot. Put it in a small bowl, add twice as much room temperature broth, water, wine, or milk to the cornstarch or arrowroot and mix until the starch is dissolved. Bring the soup or drippings to a boil, remove from the heat and stir in the slurry. Put back on the heat and boil for a minute or so to thicken.
You also mentioned earlier that you've been trying to find a low-point macaroni and cheese recipe. I have a macaroni and cheese recipe that's a variation on the traditional baked recipe. I'll send it to you, if you want it. Let me know.
I've been doing pretty well. I'm still OP, which is good. The weather has cooperated with my walking plan. So, on the whole, I'm feeling really good about this aspect of my life. I feel like I'm on a roll and I hope to keep it up.
Hope everyone is having a great day!
Happy turtlin'!
Lin
272/235/225 (immediate goal)/135 or so (final goal)
Ooooooooooh, Lin, *I* want the mac&cheese recipe! PLEASE! I'll beg if you want! My email is [email protected], you can send it there. Thank you! I have no doubt it will be wonderful. Even though I haven't ever eaten your cooking I've read about it, and you really seem to know what you're doing. Yay!
I went this morning and took my first Spinning class at the gym (group biking, essentially). I did well, I made it through the long uphill (5 minutes out of the saddle) and through the first few cycles of jumps (8 beats out of the saddle, 8 beats seated, 8 beats out....etc, for 5 minutes). My energy started to flag and I spent a lot of time recovering at the end, but still! Other people in the class were coming up to me and telling me they had noticed me and I had done great (even the woman on the bike next to me!) and the intructor herself said she was impressed by how much of it I did (beginners usually can't keep up). YAY! I'm so pumped. AND my schedule cleared for tonight, so I can go to kickboxing. My life is going really well right now.
Yesterday, as an experiment, I recorded my points. I told myself that I was going to quit at the first sign of obsessiveness. I ate little bits all through the day, trying to follow "hungry" and "full" very closely. That's odd for me, I'm usually more comfortable with meals, not grazing. But anyway, I had 32 points. I'm totally cool with that. Another thing I promised myself was that if I got hungry, I was allowed to eat. Even if I "had no points left", if I was hungry I was going to eat. I carried a bag of snack foods with me yesterday (fruit cups, cereal bars), and that helped immensely to stave off the panic of "what if I get hungry and I can't find anything to eat???" Interesting, interesting.
Lauren, I think a fold-up "floor" for exercising is a great idea. Invent it! Patent it! Become a millionaire!
Judy, if you're still within range, or even if you're not but you were honestly hungry, no harm no foul. We're human, not machines. Sometimes life doesn't go according to plan. In winter I crave comfort foods, too, and warm foods. It's physiological, your body is designed to work that way. You're not being a bad person because you're craving these things, it's the way your body works. Be kind to yourself. Talk to yourself out loud, if you need to.
Funny "talk to yourself" story: I was at the market the other night and really feeling upset, but I didn't know why. So I started talking to myself--out loud! I'm wandering up and down the aisles, muttering to myself, "Are you upset about Nick? No, you knew that was coming. Is it Linda? Yes. Okay, why exactly?" and on and on, just walking up and down the aisles, not taking foods or packages or anything. So I notice this woman that I've seen at the end of like...4 aisles, looking at me. She hadn't been turning in to the aisle, just glancing down and turning away. I assumed she was just looking for something, right? Well! I was in the middle of a sentence with myself and I caught her eye. She looked at me, her eyes got huge, and she turned and RAN the other way! Stay away from the crazy person! I laughed all the way home.
Mousie, I got a good chuckle out of your grocery store story. I also think that's very cool that instead of just ignoring your feelings, you tried to figure out what was causing them. I could take a lesson or two from you, I think.
As for patenting the foldable hard dance floor, I'd love to -- but I didn't think of it. Lin did! Here's another thought: why don't these video choreographers try choreographing for carpeted floor for a change, since that's what the majority of their customers have??
Lin, thanks so much for the gravy suggestions. I'm going to keep those. I make awful gravy (not that I've made it often -- about twice a year, max) because I usually try to do something "interesting" with it and it comes out wretched. Faithful DH doesn't think so, but he has very little sense of taste or smell left, so ... anyway, I also loved the term "slurry." What a great word. And yes, I'd also love your mac and cheese recipe -- why don't you just post it? If you don't want to fill up the turtle group with recipes, why not start another group called "Mama Rose's Recipes" or "Turtle Food"?
Judy, I understand where you're coming from. As you know, I'm like you -- I don't lose the weight unless I eat lower in my range. Here's a probably unwelcome thought: maybe you need to go down a range. I find that I stall out as I approach a new range, and that it usually helps me to go down early (5-10 pounds before WW says I need to). I did that this past time, and it worked well. Since you're pretty close to 199, you might want to try knocking a couple points off your range now. Of course, that assumes we can actually EAT within that lower range! I find that it takes time, but I eventually adapt.
I think Lin's suggestion of soups and stews is an excellent one. I lose better (and stay satisfied longer) when I eat a lot of soup. I also lose better if I don't eat a lot of sugar, though I'm having a tough time cutting back on that right now. I've been eating near the top of my (new) range almost every day, which no doubt is contributing to my lackluster weight loss of late. (I think I'm down a half pound for the whole past month.) So lately I'm trying to eat more zero-point foods and am drinking herbal tea with Splenda in the evenings. I just bought Sugar Plum Spice herbal tea, and it's awesome when made strong and with a packet of Splenda added to a big mug. It's like a dessert.
Well, I went to the dentist today and realized with amazement (and embarrassment) that it has been a whopping 7 years since I last had my teeth cleaned. The hygienist was surprised that my teeth were in as good a shape as they were, but it looks like I may have a whopping 6 cavities. Note: all of them are between my teeth and would have been preventable if I had flossed regularly! So if you've been an idjit like I, get thee to your bathroom and FLOSS. I have to go back for a second round of cleaning in a couple weeks (and additional x-rays) and then in February to go under the DRILL. Since I'm hard to numb up, I really dread it. Wonder if they'd give me valium or knock me unconscious ... I'm such a wuss. Imagine what even our grandparents had to endure, much less the generations before them! Tooth pulling without anesthetic!
Oh, Mousie and Lin, I forgot to mention -- on Tuesday, I went back to my old WW meeting, which I dearly missed over the holidays. Pam, my leader, said something that made me think of you two -- she says she hates the word "TRY." She said: "What does it really mean when you say you'll TRY to do something?"
Also, just as I posted my last note, Judy's short note disappeared. Weird. Hope it's not lost.
Mousie,
Way to go on the spinning. I had heard of this type of exercise, but had no idea how one spun! Good for you.
Lauren,
Still in awe that you had so much fun with Richard Simmons. Is this the week you're back at work for 20 hours?
Lin,
Thanks for such a long post. I love your ideas about thickening soups and making a roux, etc. And yes, I'd love your adapted recipe for macaroni and cheese. And I don't take offense at what you write. I know you're pointing out things that strike a note in you and you're going out of your way to offer ideas. That's always appreciated.
I tried to eliminate the above post I wrote, but no luck. So, do me a favor, gals , and don't read it.
I lost a pound this week at my WI at WW. I need to knock off one more pound and I'll be right back to the lowest point I had been in December. This is a very good thing. Doing WW really works! HMMMMMM. What a novel idea. When I have posted my failures in the past it's been because I wanted to say what I had been doing wrong and correct it instead of dwelling in denial and pitying myself. I had not been exercising or following the program and then feeling sorry for myself which is pretty much what I did last year up until the end of the summer. Now I'll work on giving myself plenty of positive feedback on all the many things I do right. I like that attitude and that idea.
It's great to hear everyone's doing well. Take care, be happy , and let's all enjoy the ride!
Judy
234/208/199
Lauren,
We were online together and I actually edited out and deleted my last short post. I didn't think I had, and that's why I wrote "ignore the last post gals", but then it did get taken out.
Also, thanks for the tip==you're right. I'm closing in on the next weight grouping for WW and I think adjusting my points a little might be just the thing to do.
At my meeting today, Margo asked what was the reason we went off our last "diet" . Once we figured that out, she asked what we would do when we encountered the same problems this time? I love my lecturer. She doesn't hit you over the head with a hammer, but she does often say, "If you always do what you always did, you'll always get what you always got." I am going to buy some ribbons and finally take my measurements as I had planned to do some time ago. That seems like a plan to me! I love my group and we give each other little tips before the mtg. begins. The gals I hang out with have lost 60, 230, 200 pounds respectively. They are winners and have lots of positive things to say.
Oh, lord, Turtles, when blood sugar drops dramatically it's NOT fun. When I came in from class this morning I posted then took a bath, end tried to lay down for a nap. I rolled over and got incredibly sick to my stomach. So I decided to get up. WELL. That didn't quite work! I was shaky and wobbly and could barely stand up, my head was pounding hard enough to explode and I was trying valiantly to hold onto my stomach. I suspected blood sugar issues because I hadn't been hungry after class, so I hadn't had anything (and had taken an hour long Spinning class) in the last 6 hours. I talked to a diabetic friend of mine and got some food into me and voila, better. I'm okay now, but it was scary.
Anyway, upshot of this is that I'm skipping kickboxing tonight. I am trying valiantly to keep my new gym as a fun, safe place, and to keep the classes enjoyable and rewarding. Obviously if I push too hard, they won't be! Ah, the trials of enthusiasm...
Lauren, I went to the dentist last week, and we had the exact same flossing talk! I had no cavities--2 spots to "watch" but no active cavities. She was really nice, and she said it is essential to floss, because the food particles trapped between your teeth encourage the growth of bacteria that destroy the enamel. But. Because of the damage to my elbow I can't bend my hand to my mouth. Well, I can touch my lips with the tip of my thumb, but I can't control floss. I also can't eat on one side of my teeth, the tooth that was broken on that side is now sensitive to pressure and it's awkward to chew. So the "natural scrubbing effect of eating" is lost to me. She ended up giving me several of the little "floss stretcher" things they give to kids. So now I have a triceratops and TWO teradactyls and a crocodile to hold my floss for me! The loopy things I have to do to compensate, I swear. My mom (gotta love her) decided early on that my "compensating" was going to be fun, darn it all, and decreed that "Bert&Ernie bandaids are magic". So anyone who entered my hospital room, and all the stuffed animals people gave me, had to be wearing a Bert&Ernie bandaid. 5 years, and we STILL hold to that. The frog I use to support my arm when I sleep still has his original bandaid, actually. Whatever works!
Judy, for the record, when I did WW the time before I had to switch down points levels early, too. About, oh, 5 pounds early. It was rough to deal with the first week--suddenly I had WAY less banked points!--but it got easier. If low points and exercise is what does it for you, well, that's basically what they say you're supposed to do (less food, more movement). Just be careful you don't drop below your minimum, you don't want to get into starvation mode. THEN the only thing you lose is muscle, and that's a bad deal. Be sure you talk nicely to yourself though! I'm becoming a stalwart proponent of gentle self-talk. It's doing great things for my mental state, I can't believe the mean things I was saying to myself before. Now I'm happier and more stable, and I wouldn't go back. Best of luck to you in reaching your goals, Judy. You know what you need, get it for yourself!
Oh, Lauren, funny: in one of your posts on the last thread, you said your goal was to lose 100 pounds by your birthday. Well, I didn't realize that 174 would be the 100# mark for you, right? I was thinking you wanted to lose 100# from NOW. I was going to write a "Don't set yourslf up for failure! That is SO not healthy!" note until I saw your sig and realized I was being kinda dim. Heh!
You all must have been on really, really early this morning or they got the forum back up last night. I kept trying to get on yesterday and finally gave up.
It's so great to read all of your excellent posts.
Ladies, I will send you all my macaroni and cheese recipe. At least its latest incarnation. I have one request, though. This one isn't quite "finished". So, I'd appreciate it if after you try it, you send me a little critique telling me what you like and don't like about it. I'm still tweaking this recipe. Most people would probably not even worry about it, but I'm picky.
Mousie, perhaps you ought to consider eating a small snack before you exercise, even if you're not super hungry, to keep your blood sugar from dropping. I had that experience once with my walk, and now I don't go unless I've just eaten a mini meal.
Good luck to you all with your dental work. I'll need that later this year, after my dh gets permanently hired and has benefits.
I loved your grocery store story! Mousie, it's so great that you can laugh at that poor woman's absurd reaction to your muttering. I do that a lot because my mind goes off in a lot of different directions at once, so I'll talk to myself to keep focused on what I'm doing.
I'd love to patent that dance floor and sell it, but I'm not the person to do it. I ought to give the idea to my brother. He owns a cabinet-making business and has all of the tools to make a prototype and he's already a small businessman, so he knows how to make that work, too. For me, I just want to focus on writing stories and not get sidetracked by thoughts of making a fortune.
Lauren, gravy made using a slurry is a lot easier to do than traditional gravy because if you make sure the starch is completely dissolved in the liquid before you stir it into the pot, it doesn't lump. Ever. The other key is to use herbs and spices to season it. You can't let the fat take care of the flavor because there isn't any in this gravy.
It sounds like you have a great leader! You, too, Judy! That makes it worth the money WW charges for meetings. You get something from the discussions. I had one leader that I didn't stick with for very long who let the discussions end up being focused on sharing food products that will help you lose weight. Well, you all know how many of those things I eat--some, but not enough to warrant paying over $50.00 a month to learn about them.
Congratulations, Judy, on losing that pound. You're doing great and you're on a roll. Keep going, girl!
I seem to have reacquired those three pounds I lost. Actually, it was four, but one is gone. I'm not changing the numbers on my signature line until Sunday when I do my "official" weighin. It was the week between Christmas and New Year's when I had a houseful of leftovers and was PMSing at the same time. Well, I have a plan for next year and I'm back on track for now. I've journaled about it and I'm ready to move on.
My son and I are going for a walk as soon as I finish here. It will be a good workout because he walks really fast.
I've noticed that I'm feeling full before I finish my food lately. So, I'm going to put half portions (like 1/2 cup soup, 1/2 cup pasta, etc.) on my plate and eat the other half for seconds, if I'm still hungry. I hate throwing what looks like a whole plate of food away, so it's better to start with less and add more if I need it.
For my midmorning snack, I made a 1/4 cup of oatmeal and ate a pear with it. And I'm full. So, I think this plan will work for the two weeks when I'm not PMSing. Then I'll probably end up eating a little more. We'll see how it goes.
Gotta go. My son is getting antsy waiting for me.
Happy turtlin'!
Lin
272/235/225 (immediate goal)/135 or so (ultimate goal)
Lin,
How interesting that you would start with 1/2 cup of soup. It's a great idea. I know at lunch today I had split pea soup. It was measured and a lot more than a 1/2 cup! About 3/4 through I realized I was satisfied. I did eat the rest because *I knew I'd be hungry within a half hour and I wouldn't have time to eat it then.* Now that is crazy and show how I let food influence me.
I sense a very strong feeling or emotion of food deprivation in me
and I know I always had enough to eat, so I need to delve a little deeper into this to see why I feel the worry of deprivation.
I love that you're using sized portions and then deciding if you need more or not. Very intelligent.
Things go well here. I've kept points low and today I'll go to the top of the old range. I've got banked points which will come in handy on Sunday when we're having company here. No problem because I'm in charge of the food.
Mousie--I must admit I talk aloud and sometimes even do it in class when I'm working through a problem. You handled it just great in the grocery store.
Everyone take care, enjoy the weekend, and keep this roll we're on rolling!
But, I wanted to let everyone know that I took another Spinning class this morning (SO MUCH FUN!) and when I got home I had a bit of bread and butter, even though I was not hungry. I figured, I needed carbohydrates. Anyway, I had the shakes coming on when I put the toast in, so I just caught it, but the toast really helped and I was fine.
Then we had an upsetting morning dealing with INS (Immigration) and I'm pleased to report that though I was angry, frustrated, and upset, I did NOT eat down my feelings. Instead I played Metallica really loud while I drove, but that's beside the point. I let myself feel the feelings, and coped with them another way. Yay me! I even ended up having a very healthy lunch and didn't even finish it. I'm learning! And I'm getting better, and I feel happier and more stable than I have in months, and that's what it's all about.
Judy, it sounds like you were raised by my mother! One of her food "rules" was to eat now, in case we couldn't eat later. One of her other food "rules" was that we had to eat when it was "time". If we were hungry earlier, we had to wait. If we weren't hungry when it was "time", we had to eat, anyway. No wonder I had such an issue with knowing when I was hungry and when I was satisfied.
Yesterday I did really well with my "half portion" idea. I didn't need more. I did get really hungry about 8:30, but I didn't eat anything because I was planning to go to bed at 9:00. I do allow myself an evening mini meal, if I need it, but I don't like to eat within an hour of going to bed. I don't sleep well if my stomach has a lot of food in it.
Judy, glad to hear that you're doing well. You have a good plan for tomorrow. It always helps so much when we plan for those special times.
Mousie, have you had your blood sugar tested? You might be hypoglycemic. Those shakes when you exercise could be a signal that you need to get checked out. Or, they could just mean that you ought to eat some carbs for energy before you do strenuous workouts.
WooHOO! Great job on dealing with your emotions without eating. That's a huge success. It's one of the hardest things to deal with and I suspect that it never completely stops being an issue for those of us who tend to eat emotionally. I've made a lot of progress in that area, but it still gets me sometimes.
Yesterday I got a super long walk in with my son. Today I won't be walking quite as much because I have to do errands. I get some walking in because I walk the whole store, just for the exercise. I look to see what new and interesting things might have shown up on the shelves that I can use to cook with. Sometimes I actually find the ingredient for a favorite recipe that used to be unavailable in this town.
If I can get more computer time later, I'll send you all that recipe. I'm aiming to do it today or tomorrow, but my son isn't working and he (and his brother, when he's here) really use up computer time with their music and art and talking online with friends and searching web sites and all the other cool stuff you can do with this machine.
Have a great weekend, everyone.
Happy turtlin'!
Lin
272/235/225 (immediate goal)/135 or so (ultimate goal)
I must have still had some of that water left from TOM when I weighed myself last. Because I'm sure I didn't lose 5 pounds in three days! Actually, my weight is now 233, which is 2 pounds down from my last "official" weighin. YAY!
I discovered a great topping for toast. There's a brand of jams and fruit spreads and curds called Dickenson's. Well, the best way to describe lemon curd is that it's a lot like the filling in lemon meringue pie. The great thing about curds is they have the same points as jam, but they're so creamy that you don't miss the butter. So, I've been using 1 teaspoon, which is only 1/3 of a point on my toast in the morning. They have lemon, strawberry, and raspberry. The berry curds are better on toast. The lemon is great on biscuits and scones and untoasted bread. You can also use them in recipes.
I don't think it's difficult to make, but I don't have any specific recipes that I've tested. I'm thinking about trying to make some because it's kind of expensive to buy. And I'd be able to do other flavors, like peach or apricot.
I'm still OP. This little experiment with half servings is turning out to be really interesting. I'm discovering that 2 ounce of meat or poultry at a meal is plenty. I prefer to add more veggies, grains, and fruit to my meal, instead of adding more meat. (I get plenty of protein because I eat eggs, beans, and dairy products, in addition to meat and poultry.)
I had a bunch of cheese balls left over from the holidays and I'm going to have to make another batch. My family really is liking having them for snacks. Well, I've discovered that a half ounce piece with a few crackers and a half a bowl of soup is perfect for my midafternoon meal. It's filling enough to keep me from munching on dinner while I'm cooking and is only about 3 points.
So, I'm going to continue to put half servings on my plate and see how it goes. I ended up with 29 points yesterday, which is about the middle of my range. That's a bit lower in my range than I was eating before Christmas.
The only change I'm going to make is to add an evening mini meal at about 8:00, because I've been getting hungry right as I'm ready to go to bed. I don't like to go to bed with my tummy growling, but I also don't like to go to bed immediately after I've eaten. If I eat at about 8, that will take care of the problem. I'll let you know how it goes.
Hope you all are having a great weekend.
Happy turtlin'!
Lin
272/233 YAY!/225 (next goal)/135 or so (ultimate goal)
Turtle Club #48
My email is 
Here's another thought: why don't these video choreographers try choreographing for carpeted floor for a change, since that's what the majority of their customers have??
