Devana

Way to go Jeff!! A whole new life awaits you.

I know leatha, I'm not easily offended anyway.

OK, I've started to reply twice so far. First was yes, then no, however, now I'll say yes, I would consider him Christian, although perhaps a flawed and hypocritical one, because he says he is. I believe we are all works in progress and who knows what lessons are in store for him or what his personal relationship with Jesus consists of. If Jesus has a personal relationship with him, what does he have in mind for him? Just because he doesn't appear to be what other Christians think he should be doesn't necessarily mean that they have an insight into his own spiritual journey and possible struggle. I feel alright about judging his actions but not about the quality of his professed faith.

I can understand how a strong believer of one faith can judge that theirs is right and another is wrong, even though I don't like those kinds of judgements. However, what I don't understand is how people of the same faith can judge each other like it appears that you're doing. People have made immediate assumptions about things I've posted that have been way off base and I don't want to do this to you here. That's why I'm checking. Do you really mean this?

I'm hearing you all. I've been hanging around the cafe and r&r threads because I've been so discouraged about what's been happening (or actually NOT happening) with me that I couldn't face posting here. I've been at such a standstill and thought I was actually gaining, however, when I got the courage to step on the scale, I found I hadn't. So that was some relief. Our demons and addictions. Holy smokes. So what I've been doing is listening to a Silvan Mind CD about not doing things that sabotage my higher good. It seems to be working. The last two evenings I've been able to easily avoid the night time prowl I usually do and stick to water or herb tea. Pinkylee, I know sugar sub items can be unsatisfying, but I've found that sucking on a Werther's sugar free candy can do it for me. They're small, last a long time, have no aspartame and are damned close to the real thing.

Yikes. Really? I'm not Christian myself, but I have many Christian friends who would really have an issue with a statement like that.

I'm thinking, I'm thinking..............

The morality issue that I see here is a company who is lobbying hard to have this vaccine made mandatory before complete testing is done. Carlene, I fully support parents making informed choices for their children. It's a shame that it has to be made mandatory for all for those parents who choose it to be able to afford it.

Welcome julialois. I'm not computer literate enough to link threads here so I'll tell you where a good thread is. Go to "General Lapband Discussion" and look for a thread there called "Anyone over 50 who has a band" or something like that. I do believe we have several bandsters here who are over 60. Best of luck.

I'm up late too, Dozr. Although on the west coast, I'm not as late as some others might be. So I'll add my welcome, as well, and a big congratulations on your banding.

Welcome adventure-rider. I'm glad you found us. Good luck with your decision making.

Welcome sunny, and holy smokes, I saw your ticker. 125 lbs lost!! Way to go!!

Wasn't there a whole other thread about this Perry guy? The worst governor in Texas or something like that?

Kedasmom, lucky you, 6 grand kids! If our son waits as long as I did to procreate (it wasn't intentional) I'll be 80 before I get to be a grandma.

Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

I slept naked for many years until I had my child relatively late in life. You know, nursing, full breasts etc. Like a lot of you I used to hate being tangled up in clothes at night. We spent many years in the cold climate up north, several of those in a small cabin with no running water. If I had to pee in the night I would climb out of bed into the frigid cabin air, slip on boots and a jacket and shuffle out, bare arsed, in 20 below, sometimes more, weather to the outhouse. I just didn't get it that jammies keep you warm. One good thing, we had a styrofoam toilet seat in our privvie. Instant warmth on your bottom! Yikes, maybe that's tom. I actually missed going outside when we finally built our house and got an indoor toilet. I missed being in touch with the weather and I missed the northern lights.

You know what health care practitioners say- "What's the quickest way to kill off grandma? The flu shot!"

I just had a good travel insurance plan. It didn't say that it did not cover surgery complications, in any of the fine print. However, I did not ask because I did not want to be told no. I figured that in the remote chance I would need to use it they would have to stick by their written guidelines.

How could I have missed this thread? You guys are great. I'm 54 and my band buddy, who I went down to Mexico with, is 43. I lost a lot very quickly and she has been slow and steady and has now caught up to me in total pounds lost. With her much lower starting BMI she is now looking fantastic. I'm only slightly envious. I know I'll get there eventually. One of my main motivations in getting the band is that I have a 14 yr old son and I want to do physical stuff, like kayaking before he leaves home!

Amanda, welcome. It sure seems like you've got a lot going on in your life. The decision to get a band can be a tough one for some people. My only suggestion at this point would be to go to some of the information sessions held by your nearest surgeon. More information always helps when it comes to decision making. Remember, don't rush into anything and it may be a good idea to tuck that money away somewhere where you can't spend it on anything else just in case you need it for banding. All the best.

Have you picked your name yet? Let us know!

If I had a pre-sexually active daughter rather than a son I would not get it for her. I have not been convinced that this vaccine is safe in the long run. I apologise for repeating these things that I have already said on the other thread on this topic, but: - they don't even know how long the immunity lasts therefore how can they be sure that there are no negative effects in the long term? - they want to start vaccinations for 9 year old girls. At the moment they know that it lasts for 5 years. If they find it doesn't last much longer, that means that some girls will be losing their immunity when they're beginning to become sexually active. They may, at that time assume they're still protected. - it doesn't eliminate the need for pap smears as the vaccine deals with only a few of the virus strains. My big issue is with Merck lobbying to have this a manditory vaccine, before extensive testing has been done.

I like the Nicoderm one where the flight attendant is trying to quit smoking (without Nicoderm) and she's losing it with all the passengers. I'll bet there's lots of flight attendants out there that feel like acting like that sometimes, even if they're not quitting smoking.

Congratulations!!!!! How about Speedgoddess, Wheelygirl, Lightning Angel, um, I'll think of some more soon.

When we were kids and still drank pop out of bottles, my friend Larry used to rub the open top in his armpit before handing it over if any of us asked for a drink!