WLSResources/ClothingExch

@@mngreeneyes -- Your towel NSV is gorgeous, but wasn't one of your reasons for losing weight to embrace indecency? Get it on, girl, parade that towel proudly right down the middle of Fifth Avenue. St. Patrick's Day will be the perfect time.

@@Melanie28, never the twain shall meet. Spaghetti squash is so good, but nothing like Pasta. Don't expect a similar taste. You can do most of the same things the squash as you would with pasta. Just for an idea, take a look at the Moosewood (the original book) spaghetti squash casserole recipe. Lots of links to it in Google search. I also like it on its own as a side.

That's quite a lengthy string of negatives and, I suspect, a unique greatest fear. Let's get the underlined part of your note out of the way. There is very little that anyone has to do. What matters is what one wants to do. It's the things we want rather than "must" that are what we take on.. Each of us has to determine what we want and put the attention there. This may not seem so, but it's great news. If you don't want to lose weight, you don't have to. On to the food part. What if you think of cooking as a creative endeavor? It's creative whether one follows recipes or improvises. A huge industry has grown around it, hence all the books, restaurants, TV shows and magazines. Planning is part of the creative process. It's also very much the mark of a capable person. The question is simple: What do you want and how far are you willing to go to get there? Yup, simple isn't the same as easy.

You believe in lightning bolts? If so and none struck you, you didn't screw up. If, however, you'll feel better being told you were a bad girl, very well, "You're a bad girl." Feel better now? The liquid phase is a blip in a lifetime. Remind yourself that "I can do anything for two weeks." Or however long it will be for you. Relax, all is good.

I don't even remember if I posted in this topic before. While most surgeons prefer a patient to lose weight ahead of time -- reducing fat on the liver so that it is more flexible to maneuver during laparascopic procedures -- not all do, as it's been said. My own surgeon didn't care about that (the other two in her practice may have). My first thought was, "Good, I'll wait until after surgery to start losing weight." Then, three weeks before surgery, it dawned on me that, if I were serious about losing weight, I'd get started ahead of the date. By following a very modest meal plan, I managed to lose 11 lbs before surgery. The other factor, a major one, is the insurance companies. Many do require a six-month, supervised program or anything else. Mine had no requirement at all.

@@songsmith, why'd you go and ruin it by inserting "(joking!)?" Offending patients should be punched. Punch proudly. @@SweetPeas, coincidence that I saw a brief video today of a porpoise (or was it a dolphin?) being born. It was under two minutes. If I can find it quickly, I'll edit a link in. Tail first, not head. -------------------------------------- Here it is, from Shedd Aquarium, Chicago -- white-sided dolphin. Turn the volume up so you don't miss the comment about the dorsal fin. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iowxjTJDJBw

@@Margie122 and @@because, I think your notes were not yet up by the time I began typing for Inner Surfer Girl. If this book and other, newer ones are useful to you, excellent. I mean that and hope that I didn't imply that it couldn't be. Often enough I revisit materials. My objection in general is the jargon and baby talk. [it smacks of Ronald Reagan, whom I gladly would have smacked for some of the drivel that came out of his mouth.] My cut-off is language that I'd cringe to use myself. Writing that is straightforward makes its point and even better if it isn't padded out to raise the cover price. Beside that, how many books that rehash the same thing does one need? The information really hasn't changed much from the beginning of WLS. I remain unchastened and affectionate toward all. What matters most to me in a group setting for WLS folk is that each gets to where he wants to go. We'll get along fine if we all apply "radius" only to discussions of geometry and forearms. @@Margie122, I still want to know what you read about the restaurant location bit. People choose tables to be seen, not to be seen eating: Never a table against a wall or near the kitchen door or restrooms or behind a potted plant. They are unglamorous to the glitterati and (this never occurred to me before your teasing tidbit) good places to gorge in secret.

I get your point and remain unchastened. Newcomers very much need reliable info and useful ideas and old-timers sometimes need reminders. Why insult their intelligence in the process with gibberish? "My food radius," my left foot. Or maybe I'll write a book for WLS people who are also members of Chasid communities and call it "My Food Eruv." Ha! I just tickled myself with that one. Eager-faced freshmen? God save the Queen.

You should be fine with a 10 year old and your husband to pitch in. If it would make you feel better, cook up a couple of weeks worth of meals that can be frozen and nuked (I'm the only one with no nuking capability, it seems). Your guys are capable of doing laundry, but if they balk, let them shop together for a new supply of underwear so that they don't run out. I think your son will be happy and proud to cater to you for a while. While he's at it, have him swivel around your signature photo up there.

Yes, consult a lawyer and take Miss Mac's suggestion. There's a big difference between going hungry because of high monthly payments and eating less as a result of surgery. You want to be minimally inconvenienced by payments. I know nothing about arbitration, but it might be an alternative for you to consider.

C'mon, folks, you weren't plucked from the cabbage patch just this morning. This book sounds like a retread of a retread of a retread, the only difference being that the current "author" has renamed some ancient tips. "food radius?" That's a joke. Your radius for anything is where you are and where you go in relation to it. Where is the insight in reporting that someone who displays chips on a counter or a nightstand is going to eat them? Doesn't every surgery practice recommend smaller plates and only salad forks and teaspoons? Doesn't every book, article and person? Latin lesson: Etc., et al., ad nauseam. @@Margie122, I don't get the dangling carrot vis à vis one's location in a restaurant. Why not just say it? It's up to you, of course. I won't be lured by smoke and mirrors into buying this revelatory work in any case.

@@shifa, I have no "Expert" advice, as I am not a physician. I hope that your father is under the care of his medical doctor and being treated for the problems he's having. Perhaps he should also inquire with the dietitian at his bypass surgery practice and his medical doctor about whether nutrition and food choices are relevant to the illnesses. It's probably especially important that he get enough Water in. His disappointment in his weight loss is unfounded. At an average of nearly 12 lbs. per month, he is doing very well. It's true that some people lose faster, but the main thing is that he is losing weight.

No, you're not very good at this. How can I think you're a wretched indivdual if you have me laughing so hard? Your cuteness overpowers your powers of vituperation. Back to the drawing board with you.

@@rmarylee09, I get that your concern is genuine and that my thinking that you've signed on with a raft of loons is irrelevant. Instead of speculating and fretting, you can phone your advocate and find out where things stand right now. That is, make it easier on yourself. This will teach you to fib if you ever find yourself in a similar situation again. When you get approval for surgery, and I believe you will, put a note in here, okay?

Congratulations on your daughter. Good job. As to the rest, why not make an appt with the RD at your practice? Get guidance from the source you trusted in the past, reconnect and start attending the monthly support groups. [And watch for the notice from your practice and here in BP for my next clothing exchange! Six years of free and local.]

Oooh, you're right. Never thought of it. Creepier than "Every breath you take." Finally, at this late date, I know how fortunate I was to be exempt from the Santa thing.

You may recall that it was more preposterous in 1939. Scarlett O'Hara's waist in the first few pages and minutes, i.e., the picnic at Twelve Oaks, was 17 inches. Sure, I'm mixing up novel and movie, but, 17 is 17 in any medium. Fiddle-dee-dee.

It sounds as though you're trapped in an alternate, invasive universe. What is the relationship between a "no-smoking contract" and WLS? Who are the parties to such a contract? Drug test? Are these things required by your insurance plan, Wackos R Us? Are they required by the surgeon, Wacko Am Me? I'm surprised the psych evaluator didn't want to do an internal exam. What is an "advocate" in the world of WLS? You either omitted a significant piece of info or I'm no longer on my home planet. I hope someone comes along who understands any of this and can give you some solid info and ideas on dealing with these Lewis Carroll characters. For your sake I'll be pleased to be made foolish.

It sounds as though the 2cc is having an effect. You surmise pretty accurately about the "green zone." As you go along you'll discover what work for you -- keeps you feeling mentally positive about your progress, gives you a rate of weight loss that pleases you, allows you to consume a healthy amount of Protein, et al. It's a good idea to discuss how far to go with adjustments with the person who does them for you. There's no reason not to compare notes with others, but it's just comparing notes. The experience that others are having has nothing to do with yours and vice versa. We run the full range based on the natural course of adjustments and based on preference. Just two examples, I knew a banded man who'd never had an adjustment. His band worked for him from start to finish. Another chose to keep his band tight, caring only about rate of loss and not a fig about feeling sick from being too tight. In my unhumble opinion, he was nuts. I'm a believer in feeling good about the course of weight-loss events, not feeling sickish, uncomfortable round the clock, or feeling as though the band is a medieval device.

Don't explain. You were a terrific straight woman up top there. I thank you.

@@MrsKarenC2008, the Stones never sang about baking or recipes for flavoring up oatmeal. The song is very Stones, very hot and very rock-bluesy, as is much of the catalogue. For your evening's entertainment and shock value: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fmfi3UbDPnQ A good companion from a concert quite later on the calendar: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXqQh7Y30eg The 2006 concert on Copacabana Beach, from which the second link comes, is worth watching. Old guys can move. Whomever watches and gets to the segment when Mick introduces the players one by one, you'll see old guys wishing they could die just to be done with the agony of the long night. They did it, though, so there may be something to recommend skinny.

@@lauraellen80, gorgeous photo. You remind me of Vivien Leigh in one of those Second World War movies.

I thought they'd died out. Live and learn. Great photo. I can see why they'd go for you.

My dear ISG, you have all three right now. The lyrics were intended to be creepy, but no reflection on you. If you want to be creepy, you'll have to try much, much harder. You'd have to be someone else.

About three sweaters that date to 9th grade, circa 1962. Also a wonderful raincoat bought during freshman year of college. And the finest-quality suede-front dress purchased in early 20's, worn once because I deliberately bought it snug -- the old "I'll lose weight for it" gambit. I know where the dress and coat are and they are not outdated. The sweaters, I expect, have remained cardigans, one hooded and the color of coffee ice cream. Dub, you can get your jacket closed. It'llll be a good fit before you know it.