TommyO

<TABLE id=HB_Mail_Container height="100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0 UNSELECTABLE="on"><TBODY><TR height="100%" UNSELECTABLE="on" width="100%"><TD id=HB_Focus_Element vAlign=top width="100%" background="" height=250 UNSELECTABLE="off">Now thats a plan, Have you ever heard the story of Billy Goat Gruff? Maybe he is lurking under the bridge. Who knows, but once you've crossed that bridge there is no need to cross it again. Maybe crossing bridges also allows us to get past the Billy Goat gruffs and/or Trolls that may have held us back. Any way it's just nice to get rid of that old underwear and start wearing the new thong. </TD></TR><TR UNSELECTABLE="on" hb_tag="1"><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 1pt" height=1 UNSELECTABLE="on"> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

<TABLE id=HB_Mail_Container height="100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0 UNSELECTABLE="on"><TBODY><TR height="100%" UNSELECTABLE="on" width="100%"><TD id=HB_Focus_Element vAlign=top width="100%" background="" height=250 UNSELECTABLE="off">Pnut, If I was going to burn the old gitch I would probably make sure there was a fire extinguisher near bye as well. Especailly if kerosene was involved. You may want to leave the underwear on the other side of the bridge. </TD></TR><TR UNSELECTABLE="on" hb_tag="1"><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 1pt" height=1 UNSELECTABLE="on"> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

<TABLE id=HB_Mail_Container height="100%" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0 UNSELECTABLE="on"><TBODY><TR height="100%" UNSELECTABLE="on" width="100%"><TD id=HB_Focus_Element vAlign=top width="100%" background="" height=250 UNSELECTABLE="off">I think it comes down to self definition and if part of how you define yourself is based on physical appearance. This does not mean to imply any sort of shallow values. On the whole females tend to place greater emphasis on physical appearance in there self definition. As a man I would place this item very low on my list so it has never been a concern. If you are having trouble with the change in you appearance it's somewhat based on your internal definition and your fear of losing you. A great way to get through this is by holding a simple ceremony that says farewell to that part of you that is gone. This is not as weird as it seems, many religions perform this sort of ritual at different times in an individuals life to mark significant change. Examples include, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs (sorry if the spelling is wrong) and Confirmations signifying the change from child to adult. Weddings signify the change from single to married and funerals provide the grief strcken a chance to sat farewell. I have a personal ritual I perform when I make significant life changes to help me say a fond farewell to the old and a great big happy hello to the new. What I do is I cross a bridge and crossing the bridge signifies to me a passing from one stage to another. The significance of the bridge is that it allows me to look back at something that was beautiful as I move ahead. Every time I cross that bridge it reminds of of the commitment I have made as well as allows me to look back fondly on an earlier stage. The performing of the ritual allows you to say goodbye and hello all at the same time. It can be fun and it will certainly allow you to get rid of that old underwear. Cheers and Good Luck </TD></TR><TR UNSELECTABLE="on" hb_tag="1"><TD style="FONT-SIZE: 1pt" height=1 UNSELECTABLE="on"> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

I love this weather, this morning I had my coffee on the deck and read the paper. Yesterday I moved a yard of top soil from the front of the house to the back. I was soaked with sweat when I was done but it was great. It's much easier to deal with as long as you can sleep at night I find, so air conditioning is a must. The pool helps too, SPLASH!!! Cheers

Yoda, I'm hibernating so I think that I will stick to posting in the Canadian forum during my self imposed exile. I do think that Alexandra is correct in her assumption as to why many non Canadians popst in the Canadian site. It also appears that the Canadian forum is begginning to get some traction so I will hibernate here. It seems warm and cozy, there won't be as much noise and the bickering should be minimal. All and all a good place to hibernate. Good Luck on Friday Jude, I am certain you won't regret your decision Cheers

A great lyric and song from Marc Cohn. It probably should be posted somewhere else but It outlines my feelings on the role LBT should play in the lives of all who enter. One Safe Place (Marc Cohn) How many roads you’ve traveled How many dreams you’ve chased Across sand and sky and gravel Looking for one safe place Will you make a smoother landing When you break your fall from grace Into the arms of understanding Looking for one safe place Life is trial by fire And love’s the sweetest taste And I pray it lifts us higher To one safe place How many roads we’ve traveled How many dreams we’ve chased Across sand and sky and gravel Looking for one safe place I don't mean to imply that there should be no contraversy but rather, we should all be sure to treat each other with respect as we journey together. I know I said I was going to hibernate but I love this song so much I neeeded to send this note. Good Night:notagree

I read the post, then I made a post suggesting strongly that it should be deleted. Thanks for your sugestion however I will decide when I chose to comment. Good luck to all on their journeys I think it's time I go back into hibernation.

I think someones boss would be very disapointed in them.

The words in the post that Dawg speaks of are crude rude and disgusting. The threatening nature of that post is beyond any acceptable behavior. The person who made that post should be denied access to this site

Nykee, I would be honoured to wash your window :cake:

Hello all, I hope everyone is well. I am about to go through a significant change in my life and have decided to go all the way. This morning I resigned from my job after almost 20 years with the same company. I am going to another company to a role that is a huge opportunity for me to take advantage of my current skill set, so the news is good. I have also decided that I am going to make some other changes in my life to coincide with my career change. I have decided that I am going to re-commit to my weight loss program. I have lost 90 pounds to date but things have slowed down for the last month or so. I have decided that I must lose another 50 lbs over the next 6 months or so. To ensure that I do lose the weight I have decided that I am not going to post anything on LBT until I have met my goal. When I do lose the 50 pounds I agree to post before and after pictures on the before and after thread. Until then I will only allow myself to lurk this challenge starts June 1 the same day I start my new job. Hear is my mission statement I am commited to losing 50 more pounds by November 30 2006. Until I do I will not be allowed to post any messages on LBT lounge. When I have met my goal I will post two pictures of myself, one a before surgery picture the other a 140 pound loss picture. Talk to you all in six months

I lived in Ottawa for 20 years, I love Bytown. The Byward market is home to the best Irish pub in Canada, the Heart & Crown. I still consider Ottawa home evn though I have been in Toronto for 6 years now.

I love Canadian Beef, as a matter of fact this weekend I plan to have some Canadian Beef on the BBQ with some Canadian Beer with my Canadian wife and kids.

I am also a citizen of the greatest country on the globe

I truly beleive that the Lap band is saving my life, I have lost over half my weight and will, over time lose the rest. Before my surgery I was certain that I could have a massive haert attack any time so the cost of surgery and how to get the money was not an issue. If I live an extra 15 years it amounts to $1,000.00 a year, I was paying that for my fitness club membership so it was a no brainer. If you need the surgery then get it done, if it's a money issue think of how much money a funeral costs. Good luck

Can you spell Catastrophic Global Disaster!!

You say you don't have a drinking problem so quit drinking for a month and see what happens. I drink far less than I did when I was younger so I don't want to appear like I am being hollier than thow (See my signature below for confirmation) but I have have a suggestion. When I was a young man I would quit drinking every year for at least a month, my rational was that as long as I could do this I was able to confirm that I did not have a problem. My rule was I would quit drinking for a month until I was unable to quit. If I was ever unable to quit for a month it was time to quit for life. I bet you would lose a few pounds too so it's all good

CC, please don't go there, are you suggesting that the stories you read in this thread are written by people who don't know how to act in public. Sometimes it easier to blame the person who is being discriminated against that way it makes it easier when we discrimate. Maybe it provides us with a sense of right when we wrong someone if we can blame them.

P-Nut, I think I may have given the wrong impression. I want people to forgive themselves for those things that we blamed ourselves for from our childhood. Many kids blame themselves for the harms done to them by others throughout their childhood. I am not religious but I think this is the root of original sin in the bible. I give this example, Vines Queen has written about her childhood so I hope she doesn't mind me using her as the example. She has told us that she was beaten as a child and it has been proven that children that go through this sort of terrible experience often blame themselves. They believe that they must be bad people and they deserve their punishment. They then feel strong guilt based on the bad people they must be. Others go through childhood and adolescence and make mistakes that they carry through life. They hold these secrets inside and more guilt occurs. It is these things that I think we need to forgive ourselves for, we need to free ourselves from the guilt. Once we forgive ourselves we hopefully become free and this freedom allows us to overcome our faults. I choose to own my eating habits and I no longer lay blame elsewere in my past, I own it. I do however believe I had to forgive that child who mistakenly blamed himself.

Reading this thread has made me think about how incredibly similar but at the same time how different our experiences are. The only thing we have in common is the fact we are overweight, we come from different backgrounds and locations, we may or not be banded and we may be losing weight quickly, slowly, not at all or gaining. I read the words that all of you have written and I am amazed at the level of self study we have all done in regards to our weight issues. The self awareness level on this forum is amazing, everyone is very much aware of their food issues and what drives them. I am certain that the average person in the world does not have this level of self awareness. It seems we are all driven to find the answer that will solve our weight problem. It is also interesting that the more we search the more we lose the battle not just as individuals but society as a whole. At no time in history have we been more focused on obesity and at no time in history has our society been as obese. I don't know the answer but I have a sense that it has something to do with a sense of self loathing. As children we blamed ourselves (as children do) for the bad things that happened to us. As adolescence we noticed every one of our flaws and blamed ourselves for them, compounding our guilt. Now as adults we continue to feel shame and we beat ourselves up for our past wrongs, our present mistakes and certain future errors. We do all this and then apologize to the world for the terrible people we are. To prove to the world we are flawed we ware layers of guilt in the form of fat just in case they can't figure it out instantly. We apologize because we crave forgiveness but we never realize that we need forgiveness from only one person, ourselves. I don't have the answers but I think that a good starting point is self forgiveness. So everyone make a list of all the things that make you a bad person and then grant yourself forgiveness. Remind yourselves that you are incredibly good people and that the good in you far outweighs the bad and for that reason you deserve forgiveness. Lisa, it's time to forgive, I would forgive you but I have nothing to forgive you for. You need to stop what you are doing and remind yourself what a great person you are. You need to realize that you are just like everyone esle and that we all make mistakes. Then you need to say to yourself "You are forgiven" Now everyone else forgive yourself, I can't guarantee it will make you lose any weight but It will make you feel better about yourself and as such you will be happier.

Yoda, I thought we should be asking you oh great Yoda . I have noticed over my 47 years that some of the people who are asking these questions are just being polite and they really don't care about your response. In much the same way people discuss the weather. I do not mean this as a negative comment but rather a point of fact. In the last month I have had many conversations with people, that I am sure none of the participants recalls much if any of what was discussed. Based on that I have chosen to not share my decision to be banded with more casuall acquaintances. I don't think anyone is really interested and If I am going to explain this procedure to someone I would prefer that they are interested in the topic. I would also be more than happy to discuss it with anyone who came to with a weight issue and looking for help. So in a nutshell you could say I tell only those people who I feel should know or those people who would possbly benefit from knowing.

Do Homeless people get knock knock jokes?

"Remember a Journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step" (Confucius). If you found $20.00 on the street would you be unhappy because it wasn't $50.00. Well that’s how you are reacting to your exercise. Walking for 10 minutes is much better than not walking. Stop punishing yourself because you didn't walk for 30 minutes be proud of the 10 minute walk. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> <o:p></o:p>If you walk 10 minutes a day, 7 days a week, you will have walked for over 60 hours by this time next year. Now that's a long walk by anyone standards.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> <o:p></o:p>3 years ago I had a heart attack and after the heart attack I was under strict Doctors orders to begin walking, making sure to be careful. I was only allowed to walk for what amounted to less than 5 minutes. <o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> <o:p> </o:p>This turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me in terms of exercise. In the past I would begin working out and would get very frustrated and quit because it was too hard and I was in such bad shape. <o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> <o:p></o:p>After my heart attack I was forced to go easy, this not only forced me to go slowly it made it easy to keep going. Today I work out 5 times a week, I am able to run for more than 1/2 hour at a fast pace and I lift weights. Not because I am a wonderful person but because I was able to maintain my exercises program. So keep up the good work and keep it slow,remember old Confucius and his thousand mile journey, he was a very wise man.

A man a plan a canal, Panama It seems we're a little unhappy with the skinny folk. Maybe they aren't thinking about you at all, as they run on the treadmill. An old saying "If you concern yourself with what people are think of you remember how seldom they do"

Okay, it’s time for me to get way to philosophical and internal. This thread has reminded me of how important it is to have special moments that don't include food, if for no other reason than to make me aware that there are a lot of other things that bring me joy. I am now going to share with all of you one such experience. It’s a late September morning and I have traveled to the Outer Banks of North Carolina with my Family. At about 8:15 in the morning I have just returned from a short walk to Tommy's Market in Duck, were I picked up a newspaper and a Couple of large coffees. I would have gotten up earlier but Tommy's doesn't open until 8:00 am, I am sitting on the deck of a cute little ocean front cottage staring at the sea as the wind blows on my face. The very same wind that made the waves that gently crashed onto the shore all night long. The sound of those waves gave me such a sound sleep, a sleep like I haven't enjoyed since childhood. It's going to be a beautiful day but the morning air is cool as it blows in from the sea. I can't help but stare at the vast ocean with a twinge of inner sadness triggered by the sea’s power and mystery. The sea has always drawn me to it, as much by its beauty as by the secrets it holds about our beginnings. I don’t even consider reading the newspaper, there will be plenty of time to review the issues of the world later. Soon my wife will awaken and wrap herself in a blanket before she heads out to snuggle up beside me on the deck. She will smile at me as she takes her coffee then gets comfortable underneath my arm, her head on my chest. She will ask me how I slept and I will tell her of my incredible child like sleep the night before but that’s all the words that we will speak for a few moments. We normally are talkers but this is not the time for talk, she knows how much I love these moments staring at the ocean, so the silence will remain as we sip our coffee’s and wait for the kids to awaken and explode into our day. No biscuits anywhere in site