Band_Groupie

Wendytip...for you. Troy Palamalu (and he's the nicest guy!)...

Holy cow Batman!!! What a game! My head still hurts from all the stress …and maybe those Steelertinis. I have to leave for my 4th monthly weigh-in in a few minutes…great timing, I know…I’m an emotional eater, so what do you think I did last night with all that Steeler food? Well, here’s hoping I don’t show a gain (and thank goodness there will be no breathalyzer test…just kiddin’). Well this town was rockin’ last night…and this morning…and for the next year!!! What a game…oh, yeah, I said that…but WHAT A GAME!!! Mr.SA loves games where they just trounce on the opposition (he can hardly stand watching if we’re losing)…not me…I LOVE games like last night…edge of your seat, heart in your throat, hyperventilating, biting those Steeler fingernail tips off games! So I was in my element last night…Terrible Towels were waving so fast we had ‘liftoff’…or maybe it was that last touchdown that had me off the floor. Can I just say Ben is the Man and Santonio Holmes…well he played at my alma-mater, Ohio State University, so of course he deserved that MVP…what a catch!!! Steelers now have the most Super Bowl wins of any team…goodbye ‘One for the Thumb’…hello ‘Super Six-Pack’!! Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Santonio Holmes (L) keeps both feet in the endzone as he beats Arizona Cardinals safety Aaron Francisco to catch the game winning touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter of the NFL's Super Bowl XLIII football game in Tampa, Florida, February 1, 2009. REUTERS/Brian Snyder (UNITED STATES)

Holy cow Batman!!! What a game! My head still hurts from all the stress …and maybe those Steelertinis. I have to leave for my 4th monthly weigh-in in a few minutes…great timing, I know…I’m an emotional eater, so what do you think I did last night with all that Steeler food? Well, here’s hoping I don’t show a gain (and thank goodness there will be no breathalyzer test…just kiddin’). Well this town was rockin’ last night…and this morning…and for the next year!!! What a game…oh, yeah, I said that…but WHAT A GAME!!! Mr.SA loves games where they just trounce on the opposition (he can hardly stand watching if we’re losing)…not me…I LOVE games like last night…edge of your seat, heart in your throat, hyperventilating, biting those Steeler fingernail tips off games! So I was in my element last night…Terrible Towels were waving so fast we had ‘liftoff’…or maybe it was that last touchdown that had me off the floor. Can I just say Ben is the Man and Santonio Holmes…well he played at my alma-mater, Ohio State University, so of course he deserved that MVP…what a catch!!! Steelers now have the most Super Bowl wins of any team…goodbye ‘One for the Thumb’…hello ‘Super Six-Pack’!! Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Santonio Holmes (L) keeps both feet in the endzone as he beats Arizona Cardinals safety Aaron Francisco to catch the game winning touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter of the NFL's Super Bowl XLIII football game in Tampa, Florida, February 1, 2009. REUTERS/Brian Snyder (UNITED STATES)

I thought I'd share my blog entry today (on LBT "The Sweet Spot")... It’s officially Steeler Fever here in Pittsburgh (although it’s a year round fanfest here), but more about that tomorrow. Today I’m going to give yunz a little lesson on Pittsburghese 101. This might come in handy if you’re watching TV on Sunday night (Have you heard yet? There’s a big game!). Who knows, they might interview one of those many Pittsburgh natives and after yunz lesson here you’ll actually know what they’re saying. I’m not poking fun, as I’m officially a Pittsburgher now. Their very friendly and inclusive here…after a mere 8 years living here, I’m now an official Pittsburgher. Yeah, each city I’ve lived in has their own slang, but it’s very pronounced here and this is not a very transient town, it’s mostly natives, so you hear it a lot. Pittsburghese is mostly VERY fast talking and they just smash all the words together. My very first week here, I kid you not, we were talking to a carpenter who works for our builder and then I told him we needed to get somewhere, and as fast as you can say it he asks us “Da-boat-a-yunzes-g’n-dahntahn?” Now say THAT three times fast (if you can, you’re a Pittsburgher). We had no clue what he said, so DH-Mr.SA politely asks him “Please?” Dear Lord! This is the Cincinnati word for (DH grew up there and we lived there for a year) “HUH? or “What?” (very polite people, those Cincinnatians…Please?...they use it for EVERYTHING. Just sayin’….you might need to know this if the Bengals ever make it back to the Super Bowl.) So I’m standing there in the long pause between these two dialects, with neither one knowing what the other one just said. So I politely as our carpenter “What did you ask?” He repeats at a more normal pace, which must have seemed like super-slow-mo to him “Da…boat..a..yunzes…g’n…dahntahn?”….pause…we smiled and without a response we waved goodbye as “The both of us (you) were going downtown.” I won’t bore you with the million or so slang abbreviations they have for locations in Pittsburgh, as you probably don’t know them (the Mon *wink*), but you need to know they (oops we) call our city The Burgh. Here’s the ones I’ve personally heard. Study up…you only have a few days left… *Anat-A combination of two words that means and that. *Anymore-A rather confusing construction which doesn't mean any, or more, or even anymore. Instead, it means nowadays, or currently, or these days. It almost always occurs as the first word of a sentence, as in this example: "Anymore, the traffic on Liberty Avenue moves so slow, it's quicker to walk." *Crick-The way a Pittsburgher says creek. *Comere-A Pittsburgh "quickie". Come here, said quickly, is comere. See also: Gahed. *D-Pittsburghers have a lot of strange likes and dislikes. One dislike is the letter D, especially when it is in the middle of a word, next to another consonant. Being non-violent, for the most part, Pittsburghers do not rely on force to eliminate those offensive D's; instead they simply invoke one of the laws of English pronunciation and make the D's silent. Hence, couldn't becomes cooun't, wouldn't becomes wooun't, and everyone's all time favorite, didn't becomes din't. *Da-boat-a- The both of. As in “Da-boat-a-yunz g’n dahntahn.” (my personal fav now) *Dahntahn-The way a Pittsburgher says downtown. *Djeatyet? Nodju?-Polish? Ukrainian? No, it's those Pittsburghers again, spitting out syllables as fast as they can and losing half of them in the process. It really means "Did you eat yet" "No. Did you?" *Drug-It's not something we should "just say no" too. It's simply the past tense of the word drag *Gahed-Say it quick in Pittsburgh and it's not go ahead, but rather gahed. See also: Comere *Gumban-A word which, if said slowly, would be heard as gum band, which is what everyone else in the world calls a rubber band. *Hafta- Have to. I haftago to the baffroom! *Ink pen-Although there's really no reason to announce what's inside a pen, Pittsburghers do anyway. Instead of asking for just a pen, they ask for an ink pen. *Ketch-What the Steelers offense should be doing. *You might need to know this one! *Redd up-To clean up, or tidy up. *Tubes-Pittsburgh slang for tunnels. *Worsh-As a noun, it's the stuff that goes into the washing machine when it gets dirty. As a verb, it's what you do to the stuff once it gets into the washing machine. *Yunz-The word that sets Pittsburghers apart from everyone else in the world. It means the same as all of you and is sort of a northern y'all. Yunz is singular, with yunzes usually reserved for the plural.

If you need more, link below to my blog on LBT. Yesterday: Steelers Nation and a Funny Song Today: Steelers food Porn GO STEELERS!

JA- You give me renewed hope, as this is what I'm hoping the band will do for me (well, I'm sure everyone does). I can't live on a diet the rest of my life, but I can live with the right choices and band rules, as long as I don't feel like I'm starving. Thanks for this blog. -BG

HERE WE GO!!!! Pittsburgh has many regional foods. Here are just a few of my favorites that will probably show up at the Superbowl Party we’re attending today. Dear Lord, give me strength, did I really have to schedule my 4th monthly weigh-in for tomorrow morning!!! Perogies with sour cream- They’re on most appetizer menus here due to a strong Polish population Wash those down with an Iron City Beer Pittsburgh is noted for the all-in one meal. Like the Pittsburghese (smashing all their words together) they enjoy smashing all their food together (hey, it ends up that way anyway, right?). There's the famous (sorry no pic) steak salad with strips of hot steak and hot fries ontop (sounds weird, tastes delicious, on every menu in Pitttsburgh), and the Primanti Bros. style Sandwich- Stacked High with meat (best with the local Isaly’s Chipped Ham) Coleslaw and fries (yes ON the sandwich...what's not to like about french fries on everything?). Trivia- Both the sandwich with fries and the salad with fries were invented in the 1930’s to make it easier for dock workers and steel factory workers to eat lunch more quickly. Keilbasa with Heinz Ketchup Finish it off with an Eat’nPark Steelers Smiley Cookie (remember, I warned you yesterday about the toothbrush!) …and a Clark Bar GO STEELERS!

Yep, works there! What burns me is that there's obviously no system to regulate this. The Mom is obviously mentally unstable, or she should be prosecuted if she did this on her own. There should be a system for screening people and for taking away licenses if you don't follow some kind of ethics/limits. No one has said anything about closing the clinic that let this happen. This should be illegal. JMO

If you have insurance that covers bariatric above a 35 BMI, read HERE.

Geez...and she worked at a fertility clinic?? Really??!! I'm an overly empathetic person (my kids tease me daily because I'm always shedding tears for someone's story), but I have no sympathy for someone who can't afford her own home to raise her 6 kids in and decides to have another 'one' (if she worked there she knew what she was doing). Don't get me started on the bankruptcy...I'm still angry at all those other homeowners and house flippers who I'm paying for now when they walked away.

Cheryl, I think every bander worries about the same thing...especially us professional yo-yoers. I figure the band is permanent so my lifestyle change has to be too. Even if I have some failures/gains along the way I'll always have the band and can get back to the rules.

Thanks Julie Ann! I love comments; it keeps me bloggin' (and I follow yours religiously...way to go on all the weight loss!).

Sure, we’ve all heard people here who, through the course of their pre-op testing, have gotten new diagnosis’ for ailments they didn’t even know they had. Sometimes it’s even helpful with insurance approval :cheatfree:(yep, me). I’ve even counseled others to have their doctor order at least basic blood test as they might have high cholesterol, or indicators of diabetes. Remember I got a new diagnosis of hypertension at the beginning of my journey. At my last PCP monthly check we discussed my comorbidities (that word sounds like we’re all dying doesn’t it...OK so maybe it's appropriate:huh2:). One of my minor ones that has gotten worse with weight is my osteoarthritis in my lower back. Adding to that is the fact that I was put on preventative medication last fall for my migraines. Suddenly I was no longer needing to take the usually daily pain medications, often strong migraine ones. So although my migraines have virtually disappeared my back pain is worse without the pain relievers. The PCP suggested I try Physical Therapy, which I’ve never done before. She ordered a new set of x-rays of my lower back/lumbar to be sure I didn’t have any disc problems and because my last set was 10 years ago, in another state. I got a call from the nurse at the PCP’s office… “We have your x-ray results. They did find the osteoarthritis in several places, but no disc problems.” Pause “And I’m sure you already know about the scoliosis.” Pause…….:Banane37: me trying to process this…thinking…isn’t that the thing we always got tested for as kids…yep, the thing where your spine bends to one side….pause….(me) “No, I didn’t know. What is scoliosis?” (nurse) “It’s where your spine is curved.”…still trying to process… (me) “So is this obesity related or age?”…now grasping at straws… “And is there something I need to do about it?” (nurse) “Yeah you can get this as you age and you just need to do more of those weight bearing exercises.”:iagree: (she said like it was no big deal) …I’ve got nothing:out:…(me) “OK.” So I somehow decided in my mind that I probably just have swayback from my weight and huge ass (Sounds plausible, right? I don’t need a diagnosis to tell me I could serve cocktails on my bum). Well, with all the stuff going on with the kids and doctors this month I’ve put off scheduling the Physical Therapy. So today, after the snow delay I took some time ask some questions online and start researching this.:Banane37: Apparently I do not have swayback, which is called lordosis, or even a hunchback, well it wasn’t my upper back anyway, which is called kyphosis (although it was Notre Dame where I had my 'moment' that brought me to the LB, but that's another story). Nope, and I’m sure it’s no biggie, but I now have a curve to the side, which is called scoliosis. Yep, I’ve got curves! Tell a fat girl something she didn’t already know!:cheatfree:

Holly Cow!!!! Pittsburghers sure know how to party! It’s serious business here; with a smile! I’ve lived in several big cities with NFL teams, but Pittsburgh fans are Diehards with a Capital D. Mr.SA and I both graduated from Ohio State University, and although OSU fans are VERY loyal/we are (OSU is always rated as the fans most likely to travel with their team), I think Steeler fans take the cake in the NFL. Like I said yesterday, this isn’t a very transient city, so it’s mostly generations of Pittsburghers going WAY back. You don’t just see Steeler’s gear on people during the football season, although the face paint and nail art come out in full force then. Anytime of year here Steelers gear on people surrounds you (in LARGE amounts, not just here and there)…and I’m not just talking about the usual T-shirt, coat, hats, and flags…oh no, you’ll be sitting at the pool and suddenly notice you’re not properly dressed for the occasion. Steeler towels all over the grass, bathing suits in Black ‘N Gold, and that woman laying on the the lounger next to you with the nice pedicure…she’s got Steeler flip-flops on her feet, and yes, they’ve got bling…so do her Black ‘N Gold (‘n diamond) earrings. Did you know that the Steelers have the most women fans of any NFL team?...and these gals can cook!...they can make a tailgate look like a 5-star buffet!...I never knew so many food come in (or can be turned to) Black ‘N Gold (*hint- bring a small toothbrush/paste in your lovely Steeler’s purse to any Steeler’s party or after you’re done eating your teeth will look like the kid who ate all the black jellybeans). We’re, of course, attending a SB party tomorrow night and I can’t wait. We attended the same party a few years ago when the Steeler’s won, so I was told we must be there (apparently we’re the non-natives who are now ‘good luck charms’…nice!). I’ve got my three appetizers planned…no food coloring, sorry, but the corn/black kidney bean dip certainly has the Black ‘N Gold thing going on. Every channel has been Steelerfied since the last game and this week every broadcaster has Steelered there studio and their clothing. There was a ‘Cage the Cardinals’ rally dahntahn yesterday and swarms of people were packing the streets just to party together…OK, it’s Friday, there’s no game, no team in site here, but we’re getting together just so we can start the party early (it reminded me of those pep-rally bonfires at OSU the night before a game…only I don’t think they had a bonfire dahntahn, but they did throw eggs at a cardinal (no, not a real bird). This morning all the hospitals are wrapping the babies in their nurseries in Terrible Towels (boy did that look cute). A fact that any good Pittsburgher worth his weight in Pierogies knows, is that Myron Cope, a commentator here invented towel waving…1975, he asked fans to bring yellow kitchen dishtowels to the game to wave…they won…so the Terrible Towel was created the same season. New songs have been written this year; as if there aren’t enough already; fight songs, rock songs, polkas (you hear them on the stations year-round). Yes, some are slow and sound like we can’t remember more than a few words… “Here We Go, Steelers” now rinse and repeat over and over and over, then add every now & again “Pittsburgh’s going to the Superbowl!” (best one to attempt after you’ve had a few IronCity beers), but others are in true Pittsburgh fashion (remember all that fast-talking smushing words together lesson from yesterday?) well this one’s got it all in spades…and you can sing it even after many Steelertini’s…it’s only one word long! It’s a tribute to the super-sexy Troy Polamalu (listen to the background singers trying to correct the Pittsburghese of the lead singer). He calls him; and this is the title…and ALL the word(s) “Puhlahmahlu” Click to sing it with me in your best Pittsburghese (it still cracks me up)! Oh, and I forgot...Mr.SA won the 'Steelers Basket' of gear at out local bank today. I take that as a good omen for the team as we never win anything!

Yup, very counterintuitive, but if you read my link you know I went through that and then some. Don't forget those layers (and my other things). It'll come off later. If you even 'think' you have sleep apnea then all you need to do is ask your PCP for a referral for a sleep study. Any PCP should not refuse this as THEY cannot do any tests for it and it's a serious issue (I had a neighbor die in his sleep from it). If for some reason they do refuse (personally, if so, I'd get a new PCP) then tell them you want it written in your medical files that you asked for it and they refused (who would want to risk that liability).

bear...WELL SAID! You are wise beyond your years. shelly- If you go to the 'fills' forum you can read a lot about restriction there, and about unfills from being too tight. I'm the same point you are, so take this for what it's worth...For me, one indicator of being a good candidate for the band was the fact that I have been able to stick to diets in the past...even lost good amounts (many times, I'm a professional yo-yoer). I'm not saying you will have to feel like you'll be dieting the rest of your life, I have no intentions of doing that (it's a lifestyle change, not a diet, and yeah I know there'll be a few foods I can NEVER eat, but I know I'll be able to eat most things, just in tiny amounts), but you do have to be a person who can follow a plan. Secondly, your mind has to be in the right place to make the committment that's needed. I have a sister who has about twice the weight to lose as I do, but I know she'd have a hard time with the band and would probably lose nothing...she's never stuck with a diet or exercise plan for more than a month or so. If you could never make the slightest change before what makes you think you can now? Third, I think you have to be prepared. The reason we keep seeing 'it's only a tool' and 'it's not magic' all over this site is because so many come here, don't do the research and are expecting something they're not going to get. I haven't been here that long, but lately I get tired of the people who are already banded and complain because they don't have restriction immediately after banding. I, like you, won't be banded until late April or May, but I'm already preparing myself not to have restriction until the holidays, maybe longer, maybe shorter (some take a year of fills/unfills to get to that sweet spot). If people were prepared before banding they wouldn't be asking questions like 'I'm 5 weeks out and I'm gaining weight and have zero restriction, why?' I'm sounding grumpy here, but really I just feel frustrated and sorry for these people, and yes, I still try to help them. I'm not saying I won't make mistakes or have problems, but my expectations are realistic. All the information is here and people are willing to answer. Anyone whose lost only a few pounds in a year should have known they weren't ready for this to begin with. You'll do great, you're asking the questions now... -BG

No way she's getting a TV show with all this backlash, but I wouldn't be surprised by one of those 'made for TV' movies. ...and I feel sorry for the kids too.

I hear you Amy! I've got a pretty high threshold of pain also (3 natural childbirths without any cursing or screaming...I'm just sayin'), and I'm the caregiver also, but I've had a few pain things (ie. back out) that have lasted weeks or more, and I always say that's so much worse...it just wears you down after awhile. It makes anyone complain when you can't function for a long time and you just feel like you're in a fog of pain. I don't know how people who live constantly in pain do it. One day at a time...hopefully you'll be one of those LBT'er whose posting soon "it was all worth it". Prayers for you... -BG

All the TV news stories I saw said the grandmother issued a statement saying her daughter was implanted through invitro and made the decision not to selectively terminate any of them, not in those words. How does the hospital who has been helping her since her third month not have the full story? I'm sure they know and it will all come out in the end. Hmmm...

Welcome Real and good luck...wow, that's soon (I'm sure not fast enough when you're on liquids, but remember...I'm jealous!). Keep bloggin'...it's a good 'accountability tool'!

luluc- Yeah I remember one of our good friends going through invitro and they said it was extensive. I was going to say I don't know that she wasn't supporting the kids (and maybe her Mom too) but then I saw... WTF? I remember my friends telling me how much invitro costs...a year and a half is longer than 9 months of gestation...so that's where my tax dollars are going!!! I don't think anyone would argue that...I'll agree the docs are too!! I hope this leads to some regulation.