Carlene

No, it's just you. Most of us are hetrosexual Christians. Some are Liberals....some are not. There are a few Atheists and a smattering of gay folks. Some of them are Conservatives....some are not.

Well.....if you have to cheat, eat something - don't smoke because they might check.

I didn't have to do a pre-op diet. I can imagine how tough it must be. Will the doc give you an appetite suppressant? It wouldn't hurt to ask. Throw yourself on his mercy.

Find out when you go to the consultation and maybe pick another doc if this one makes you quit? That's the only suggestion I have. Whatever you do, though, be honest with him because they ALL do pre-op blood work and some really do check for nicotine. My PCP is so anti-smoking, he won't give samples of meds to smokers. He has this sign up in his office that says if you can afford cigarettes, you can afford to pay for your meds. Sensitive, huh?

Stacy....try the gum. It really helps. I swear, if it wasn't so expensive, I'd still be chewing it.

I just want to remind all the Vets and Baby Boomers that it was George Bush who put an end to open enrollment for Veteran's benefits and doubled the co-pay on meds for most of you guys/girls. And it is Bush who promises to veto the bill that would require Medicare Part D providers to negotiate for lower drug prices, just as the VA is required to do. So when you're 65 and your company medical benefits stop providing drug coverage (thanks to Bush and Medicare Part D) and you find yourself paying out the wazoo for your meds, remember who screwed you. When you go to apply for your veteran's benefits and find out that putting your neck on the line in 'Nam is no longer enough - now you have to qualify by being "low income" to receive the benefits you were PROMISED when you enlisted, remember who screwed you. I hope you guys/girls at least got a kiss from old George.

TOM...you are never ready to lose your mom. My mother's death was extremely traumatic for me, even though she was chronically ill for several years and many people told me the same thing - that it was "a blessing". It is the natural order of things. We are supposed to bury our parents, but it's very hard. Your mom is the anchor that keeps your life connected. Your childhood, adolescence - your whole life is stored in her heart and mind. Losing your mom is like losing a part of yourself.

Ahhhhhhhhhh....a heartbreaker in training.

Mr. Carlene hates it when I "make a scene", as he calls it. He discourages me from ordering soup in restaurants because I think, by definition, that soup should be served hot. I frequently send lukewarm soup back, asking that it be re-heated. One place told me they didn't have a microwave. I said, "You have a stove, don't you? And a small saucepan. That's what people used to heat soup before microwaves were invented." Mr. Carlene won't take me to that restaurant any more.

No one calls me fat anymore, but it didn't offend me, and sometimes made me laugh. For instance, "Oh yeah...well, I may not be the smartest person in the world, but you're FAT." Okay....and how's that working out for you, Einstein?

:eek: LOL....

Wonderful! We usually have all stages represented - vets, beginners, and newbies, as well as pre-Bandsters. We have people banded by all the area doctors, as well as in several foreign countries. So no matter what your story is, you should have no trouble finding someone in similar straits. We have one woman who has lost over 200 pounds. She had LB surgery while it was still in the FDA trial phase. We have people who have slipped and been repaired, people who've had plastics, etc. We have young, old and in between. As for the menu, they will bring you just broth (from the chicken tortilla soup) if you are on liquids. The "complete" Soup is great, by the way. I can eat the nachos (about half an order) and a little bit of queso. They also make terrific Margaritas....and remember, liquor is a liquid...LOL.

No, this one... Arlington (Near the Ballpark) 2222 Miller Road Arlington, TX 76006 (817) 649-3324 Sorry I wasn't more specific. And they give us a private room, by the way. Edited to add...DH and I hope to be there Thursday, but we are planning a little overnight getaway to Shreveport - leaving Wed and coming back Thursday, so depends on how that goes. The meet-and-eat is 6:30.

CONGRATS!!!!!!!!! I had a TIA (mini-stroke) in my mid-40's. It's amazing how much will power you acquire after a near-death experience. I had quit twice before, and relapsed both times. I'm 12 years smoke-free now. But I'm sympathetic to smokers. I didn't just smoke out of habit - I loved to smoke. I thought if I quit, there would be no reason for me to get out of bed in the morning. Oh, wait....there was still food. Some disagree, I know, but I think getting banded and giving up cigarettes at the same time is perfect. You can't over-eat with the band, and that's what happens when you stop smoking. I switched to chewing gum. At first, I used the Nicorette about 10 times a day, but regular gum in between. I always had something in my mouth. Now I just chew sugarless gum - no nicotine.

Missy... I obviously didn't write this piece. I can only speculate that the author meant all 50 states are in financial trouble. Governments, of course, don't declare bankruptcy, no matter how "broke" they get. Unlike the rest of us, they can always generate more income by raising taxes/lowering services. I don't necessarily stand behind the whole article, by the way (although some of it has certainly been proven to be true). I posted it in response to a similar Web rumor list that Ron cut and pasted, vilifying Bill Clinton. My point was that you could go back and forth with this kind of stuff all day long, and at the end of the day, nothing has changed.

A lot of doctors won't do the procedure unless you are smoke-free for six months. Same goes for plastics. Some people have posted that they even do pre-op blood tests for nicotine. Check with your physician, as to his policy.

Welcome, Dina.... I was banded 11/29/04 in Ft Worth by Dr. Adam Smith. I live in North Richland Hills and every third Thursday, a bunch of us Bandsters get together for dinner in Arlington. You are welcome to join us - even pre-band. Bring your hubby, mom, kids....whomever. Mercado Juarez restaurant. Let me know if you'd like details.

People do this all the time - even on some of the forms you have to fill out. Makes me want to march right up to the little window and say, "You know here where it says "race", and then it gives you all these different choices, well that's just wrong, because there are only five races. Now, if what you mean is ethnicity, that's something else....except that "Jewish" is not an ethnic group - it's a religion. Perhaps you were just trying to be politically correct when you made up this form, but this is a doctor's office....you should not disseminate inaccurate, unscientific information."

Try www.craigslist.com as well. They are local and you don't have to pay shipping. I posted in the "wanted" section for a cheap cell phone for my daughter after hers broke and someone gave her one for free - wouldn't even let me pay the postage.

GEORGE W. BUSH RESUME The White House, USA * ACCOMPLISHMENTS AS PRESIDENT: * I attacked and took over two countries. * I spent the U.S. surplus and bankrupted the Treasury. * I shattered the record for biggest annual deficit in history. * I set an economic record for most private bankruptcies filed in any 12-month period. * I set all-time record for biggest drop in the history of the stock market. * I am the first president in decades to execute a federal prisoner. * I am the first president in US history to enter office with a criminal record. * In my first year in office I set the all-time record for most days on vacation by any president in US history. * After taking the entire month of August off for vacation, I presided over the worst security failure in US history. * I set the record for most campaign fund raising trips by any president in US history. * In my first two years in office over 2 million Americans lost their job. * I cut unemployment benefits for more out-of-work Americans than any other president in US history. * I set the all-time record for most foreclosures in a 12-month period. * I appointed more convicted criminals to administration positions than any president in US history. * I set the record for the fewest press conferences of any president since the advent of TV. * I signed more laws and executive orders amending the Constitution than any other president in US history. * I presided over the biggest energy crises in US history and refused to intervene when corruption was revealed. * I presided over the highest gasoline prices in US history and refused to use the national reserves as past presidents have. * I cut health care benefits for war veterans. * I set the all-time record for most people worldwide to simultaneously take to the streets to protest me (15 million people), shattering the record for protest against any person in the history of mankind. * I dissolved more international treaties than any president in US history. * I've made my presidency the most secretive and unaccountable of any in US history. * Members of my cabinet are the richest of any administration in US history. (The 'poorest' multimillionaire, Condoleeza Rice, has a Chevron oil tanker named after her). * I am the first president in US history to have all 50 states of the Union simultaneously go bankrupt. * I presided over the biggest corporate stock market fraud in any market in any country in the history of the world. * I am the first president in US history to order a US attack and military occupation of a sovereign nation, and I did so against the will of the United Nations and the world community. * I have created the largest government department bureaucracy in the history of the United States. * I set the all-time record for biggest annual budget spending increases, more than any other president in US history. * I am the first president in US history to have the United Nations remove the US from the Human Rights Commission. * I am the first president in US history to have the United Nations remove the US from the Elections Monitoring Board. * I removed more checks and balances, and have the least amount of congressional oversight than any presidential administration in US history. * I rendered the entire United Nations irrelevant. * I withdrew from the World Court of Law. * I refused to allow inspectors access to US prisoners of war and by default no longer abide by the Geneva Conventions. * I am the first president in US history to refuse United Nations election inspectors access during the 2002 US elections. * I am the all-time US (and world) record holder for most corporate campaign donations. * The biggest lifetime contributor to my campaign, who is also one of my best friends, presided over one of the largest corporate bankruptcy frauds in world history (Kenneth Lay, former CEO of Enron Corporation). * I spent more money on polls and focus groups than any president in US history. * I am the first president to run and hide when the US came under attack (and then lied, saying the enemy had the code to Air Force 1) * I am the first US president to establish a secret shadow government. * I took the world's sympathy for the US after 911, and in less than a year made the US the most resented country in the world (possibly the biggest diplomatic failure in US and world history). * I am the first US president in history to have a majority of the people of Europe (71%) view my presidency as the biggest threat to world peace and stability. * I am the first US president in history to have the people of South Korea more threatened by the US than by their immediate neighbor, North Korea. * I changed US policy to allow convicted criminals to be awarded government contracts. * I set the all-time record for number of administration appointees who violated US law by not selling their huge investments in corporations bidding for gov't contracts. * I have removed more freedoms and civil liberties for Americans than any other president in US history. In a little over two years I have created the most divided country in decades, possibly the most divided that the US has been since the civil war. * I entered office with the strongest economy in US history and in less than two years turned every single economic category heading straight down. * RECORDS AND REFERENCES: * I have at least one conviction for drunk driving in Maine (Texas driving record has been erased and is not available). * I was AWOL from the National Guard and deserted the military during a time of war. * I refuse to take a drug test or even answer any questions about drug use. * All records of my tenure as governor of Texas have been spirited away to my father¹s library, sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view. * All records of any SEC investigations into my insider trading or bankrupt companies are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view. * All minutes of meetings of any public corporation for which I served on the board are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public view. * Any records or minutes from meetings I (or my VP) attended regarding public energy policy are sealed in secrecy and unavailable for public review. * PERSONAL REFERENCES: * For personal references, please speak to my dad or uncle James Baker (They can be reached in their offices at the Carlyle Group where they are helping to divide up the spoils of the US-Iraq war and plan for the next one.)

Poodles... I suggest you consult a professional - or two. Do you have a minister who is schooled in counseling? And what are the legal ramifications? You would have to legally adopt this child, as would your husband. Is your sister stable enough (off her meds) to not freak out and change her mind at the last minute? This is kind of indelicate, but when a married woman is trying to conceive by someone other than her husband, how does that work, exactly? No sex for you, sweet pea; I'm trying to make a baby for my sister and tomorrow we have a date with a turkey baster, so we can't have your DNA swimming around in there, can we?

What a great metaphor! I love it!

I wouldn't worry so much about the psych issue, but what would you tell the child? Everything....or nothing? I know no one personally who has enlisted a surrogate mother, but I am well acquainted with several in-family adoptions. My DH has a niece who found herself unmarried, 17, and pregnant. She allowed a family member and her spouse to adopt the little girl. Eventually she did marry, and went on to have two more children. I almost fainted at a family function when my sister-in-law said, "Don't anyone let it slip in front of "Dudley" that "Sissy" is "Tammy's" birth mother. He doesn't know. I was always very careful that my kids didn't find out about Tammy while they were young. I knew that sooner or later, someone's little darling would let the cat out of the bag, and I didn't want it to be one of mine. You can't keep these things a secret forever. If more than one person knows, then it's not a secret.

Someone (surgeon? nutritionist?) told me the same thing. By the time your body says "give me water", you are already in early dehydration.

I would definitely proceed slowly. Mashed potatoes are not my friend. They end up acting like a dam for liquids, etc. Your mileage may vary, though. I would do very creamy soup first - no chunks of any kind. Tomato soup is good. I add some low-fat cream cheese to it and it really tastes a lot better. You could put some chunky soup thru the blender, then sip on it. I have some great soup recipes. Just PM me your e-mail address if you want them.