A Better Understanding

Some of you know that this Christmas issue is a hot topic with me. I grew up in a world where it was okay to say Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah or as of 1966 Happy Kwanzaa. I don't celebrate Hanukkah or Kwanzaa, but I'm not offended by those that do and if someone says Happy Hanukkah I am happy with the well wishes and say it right back..I don't have to be Jewish to respect Hanukkah and I don't have to be Black to respect the celebration of Kwanzaa.
Some places that are primarily Jewish or Jewish owned display large Menorahs, this does not offend me, in fact I'd think it odd if they displayed a Christmas Tree.
Hanukkah is the "Festival of Lights", Hanukkah mean dedication or consecration... It stems from the rededicating of the Temple in Jerusalem after it was desecrated by Syrian forces. There was only enough oil to fuel the eternal flame for one day, yet the flame stayed for 8 days until they had pressed more oil. So Hanukkah celebrates a miracle and has deep religious significance.
Kwanzaa on the other hand was originally created by Ron Karenga as an alternative holiday to Christmas. A holiday for Blacks to celebrate themselves and their history. It didn't take long before it became Incorporated into the Christmas celebration and Black families went back to celebrating Christmas as well as Kwanzaa...no religious significance.
I think all people should celebrate Christmas, some from the religious stand point and others, just in the spirit of the holiday. There is nothing wrong with having a season that brings joy and happiness to others..I wish the spirit of Christmas could last all year long, but I'll settle for December. I don't think I'm alone when I say I 'm tired of political correctness. I know I won't make a difference by not shopping in stores that refuse to openly express Merry Christmas, but I won't do it, nor will I bank in a bank that does not display a Christmas tree. I want my Country back to the way it was before all this politically correct BS. We have spent years trying to abolish discrimination...what kind of message are we sending to the rest of the world?
Okay I'll get off the Christmas kick...If I could I'd light up my front lawn so you could see it from space....across 5 acres (at least) it would say, no it would scream "MERRY CHRISTMAS" in lights........

CHRISTMAS

There I said that nasty, socially unacceptable word...Gee I hope the atheist police don't come to my door...what ever will I do. Oh I know, I'll stick my "Holiday Tree" up their ass.
What the hell is wrong with this country? Why are we yielding to every whim of every little group on the face of this planet?
We are Americans. Our country was FOUNDED on Christian principles, it is the main reason most of our government buildings have some symbol of Christian belief. Suddenly now, everything that was right was wrong. Leave the damn buildings alone. Leave peoples beliefs and choice of decorations alone and screw political correctness . We've gone too far.
Just the other day a dear friend called, I wished her Happy Hanukkah , she wished me Merry Christmas and our conversation continued. Not all my friends are Christian, not all my friends agree with my beliefs...So what?
If anyone takes the time to research the "Christmas Tree" they will find that it dates back LONG before Christ was even born. They will also find that this is not the first time in history that displaying the Christmas Tree has been frowned upon. In the past, some Christians saw it as a pagan custom. Actually it all started with the "winter solstice" and runs a muck from there.
I do not tell people they cannot display anything that pertains to their religious beliefs and I don't much like people telling me what I can and can not say, or what decorations I can not use.
I will ALWAYS have a Christmas Tree displayed in my home, I will ALWAYS say Merry Christmas (unless I know your religious background) and I will not tolerate anyone telling me that the celebration of Christmas is wrong. I've done it all my life. This country gave me the right of freedom to believe how I chose. I thinks it's time to go back to our original roots...oops we can't do that...that's way before we celebrated Kwanzaa and way before Muslims came to live on our soil. What really cracks me up is the fact that I can't say Merry Christmas, but a Muslim woman can keep her face covered for her drivers license based on her religious beliefs...What the HELL is wrong with THAT picture.... I have Muslim friends that dress exactly like I do and they don't believe they are going to hell.
So for anyone that checks on my Blog I'm wishing you a Merry Christmas way ahead of schedule and if you don't like it...Get the hell off my Blog!!

Talk about Calcium

My goodness, we have surgery and suddenly we all become doctors...okay maybe just experts on nutrition NOT!!!
I've had years of experience in proper nutrition having raised a diabetic brother (yes we had a mother, but I was the one who figured out his calorie based meals) All that experience meant nothing when it came to gaining weight. That experience was helpful with every diet I was ever on...please note I speak in multiples. So it obviously wasn't all that helpful when it came to maintaining WL. Rich and I spent years doing the "natural food" thing, all supplements were natural. We weren't any healthier. I spent a great many years as a weight watcher counselor...
So yes I know WHAT to do, what to eat and how things work...does it play out in my daily life? Sometimes :-) lets just say, after surgery, I'm a lot more committed.
Recently there has been this big discussion about calcium. Now I could do my medical friends proud by using big words and research links...but that just isn't me. So here's the simple truth.
We are told to take calcium citrate . Why? Because in PILL form it is easier to absorb then Calcium Carbonate..in fact Calcium Carbonate pills will often come out, exactly the way they went in. So of course with a mal absorption situation Calcium Citrate would be the choice...How ever, Calcium carbonate comes in chewable form which allows the body to absorb it more readily. Makes sense HUH? So that could be the reason why, after blood work is done, that some providers say "Calcium Carbonate is fine, you're doing well".... I think some people take life much too seriously...Not that there are certain aspects of life that shouldn't be viewed at "serious", but what form of calcium you take isn't one of those issues. Another trick is to take Calcium Carbonate with orange juice, which also makes it more absorbable.
As if the new comers aren't overwhelmed enough about their new life style and all the changes that will take place. They also get the idea that our supplements are hard to find because they are so "different". When , in fact, the 5 supplements I take can be found in Walmart.
Sometimes we get hung up on silly things...Yes this WL is truly a Journey into a new life style, but it's no magic bullet...You will still have to eat properly, watch your intake of calories, exercise and yes, take supplements. Life isn't as complicated as we sometimes make it.
I go back to what I also say...do your research folks. For those of you hung up on Calcium...Google Calcium carbonate vs. Calcium citrate. Then you'll be as smart as me LOL

The Killing Fields

Are alive and well in these mountains. Usually I try and keep this blog up beat and somewhat about WLS, but today I am angry.
I NEED someone, anyone to explain the "Joy" the "Thrill" of hunting for "sport". Really...This is a concept I can not grasp and I'm willing to learn and try to understand this barbaric "thrill". The definition of THRILL is to excite and give great pleasure.
Where is the pleasure in taking the life of an innocent animal ? Of having it alive one minute and then dead by your hand the next. What great pleasure is there in feeling the life leave a living body? Better yet why then take it's head off and hang it in your living room...You don't see that as being a bit Barbaric? It's not like it's a bowling trophy for an excellent game or a baseball trophy depicting you as above average. It's the head of an animal you KILLED, in all probability using a scope. The animal was dead before it even had a chance to run from you...where's the sport in that? What does that trophy symbolize ? That you are capable of taking a life...Gee, there's something to be proud of.
No I am NOT a member of PITA nor am I a vegetarian... Surprise!!! I'm just a person that would like to feel that man has evolved beyond the point of killing something for "Sport". take up golf, boating, skiing...they are all sports not requiring blood , guts and bullets.
As humans who feel we need meat to survive (wrong) we've learned how to farm our meat needs. So as civilized beings we go to the store and purchase meat, not sit in a tree stand for hours waiting for some unsuspecting animal to cross our path. The people truly hunting for food for the table are the people, the hillbillies, most hunters would make fun of...and they don't collect "trophies", they are happy if a woodchuck crosses their path.
My beef is with the "Sport Hunter" who claims he is doing the deer a favor ...WHAT? The balance of nature allows for certain animals to die in order to feed others. Nature doesn't need you. From my window I am looking at thousands upon thousands of acres where animals can live without encroaching on YOUR land. If you farm and the deer are causing you financial problems by eating your crops, they belong in your freezer.
If you are buying expensive hunting clothes, rifles and ammunition, you can afford to buy meat for your freezer. If I had my way, I would take all the hunters and put them on a wooded island and tell them "Now you are the hunted...no weapons..just warm clothes..run..because in 15min. open season begins and YOU are the hunted" Just so they could feel the fear, listen to shots in the distance and wonder if it hit a target. Looking over your shoulder while you try and find food, never knowing where the HUNTER is lurking, waiting to watch you bleed.....
I sit here this morning hearing shots ring out...remembering when I first moved here and there was an actual herd of deer, beautiful 10 point bucks. Slowly the bucks were gone, although smaller ones survived to impregnate doe's. Doe's that ended up twinning to increase the herd size...but even that didn't help. In 11 years our herd has diminished to 5...that's not "management" that's "annihilation" all in the name of sport...So please, someone explain to me the joy and thrill of killing. I truly want to understand.

Fear

During this journey of WLS, one observation has become clear to me...a great many of the people are more fearful of dying then anything else.
I guess because that was never one of my concerns, this baffles me. From the moment we take our first breath we begin the dying process, because after birth that is the only sure thing in our future. Life in itself is a crap shoot and if we live in fear of dying, we will fail to live life to the fullest. People seem to feel that their chance of dying during RNY is greater then dying with Band surgery. To that I say, if it's your time to go, you're going to die no matter what surgery you have. People die from infections after minor surgeries on hang nails. Shit happens!
Obesity is a killer in itself, how come people don't fear that? How come with every pound we gain, we don't say to people "OMG this weight is going to kill me.". How come we don't learn to look at harmful foods as a murder weapon that will eventually kill us if we over indulge ?The human mind fascinates me.. We can justify just about anything...but when it comes to something that will kill us, we are very selective in our fears. Example: We fear we could die during elective surgery, we ponder it we wonder if a slightly more invasive surgery will make the difference between life and death...But we will elect to get in our car, with no worry what so ever that we will arrive safely at our destination. Yet more people die in traffic accidents then from WLS. We will climb up on a chair to change a light bulb and never consider the statistics involving death risk within our own home (unintentional injuries are the 5th leading cause of death )
So what do we do? Do we stay home, sit on the couch and pray falling blue ice doesn't come through the ceiling and kill us ? When push comes to shove, we just have to let go of that fear. Take for example those people who have chosen to have the Band because of the risk factor...then somewhere down the road NEED to have a revision to by-pass. What are the risk factors for Two surgeries rather then one ? Is that risk factor still a fear? If so then why not just have the Band removed? My guess is because the fear of obesity killing them is greater then the fear of dying in surgery or because of it.
I live every day of my life, I enjoy each new morning, I make a point of learning at least one thing during the course of my day and I try to touch at least one person in a positive way and accomplish at least one task. None of us will live forever, although it seems I may have too just to finish all I want to do. When my time comes, I hope to meet it with the same overwhelming intrigue as I have each day of my life...Just a new adventure.
I wish I could sit and hold each persons hand that fears this unknown factor in all our lives. It hurts me when I see people dwell on the risk factor and I want to tell them , until they can let that go, set that fear aside and concentrate on all the positive factors about this surgery...they shouldn't have it. NO ONE should enter into ANY surgery if they even think for one second that they may die. If there was ever a time for positive thinking, it is the day of surgery.
I am sure that fear will always be expressed, regardless of anything I say here. Worry seems to be a human trait that goes right along with Fear and that will be the case until the soul is at peace and faith runs deep enough to overcome it.

The Smile

Every morning when I post to my WLS group, I end with "Don't forget to smile at someone today"...This morning one of my little cuties wrote "you make me smile, so I smiled at you, does that count?" LOL I love that group.
Smiles are important to me...I grew up with one parent who rarely smiled and one who always smiled...I found that parent made me the happiest. I loved seeing that smile and when I did something really good ,the smile got even brighter and warmer.
Some will say it takes more facial muscles to smile then to frown, some will reverse that and say it takes LESS to smile and more to frown. The truth is there is no definitive answer...
There are 43 facial muscles controlled by one nerve that splits off to each side of the face. However, some people have less movement in their face and some people have more...That's just the way we're built folks, not one of us is exactly a like. Who cares. More useless data
My question is; "what would you rather see, a smile or a frown?" I'll take it even further, look in the mirror and frown, now smile...which one makes a more beautiful YOU ?
I remember when I lived in California for a brief time. Coming from NY I wasn't use to people smiling at me all the time. Everyone I passed seemed to take the time to look right at me and smile...so I did what came naturally, I smiled back. There were some mornings that didn't start out as the brightest, but by the time I made my mile walk down hill...I felt good, I had a big smile on my face and I was happy for no apparent reason.
Now by the end of the day I was facing that mile walk UP hill and that would not normally bring a smile to any ones face. Yet, once again, everyone I passed gave me a big old smile (probably because they were walking down hill LOL ) by midway up that Hill and after many smiling faces, I actually had a pep to my step and happiness in my heart, for no apparent reason.
I have had a lot of experiences in my life and no matter what I've done or where I've gone, I've always come away with a lesson.
I'm not sure how much I smiled prior to California, but I haven't stopped smiling since... I realize that smiling makes me happy. The first person I see each morning is smiling back at me in the mirror...The day may not go as planned, and yes there are days when I have tons of reason to frown. But Mr. and Mrs. Public have no idea of my troubles so why would I visit that upon them? I find when I smile at people, they can't help but smile back...maybe, like me, the smile will stay with them all day.
So even though science really can't tell us how many muscles it takes to frown or smile...What would you rather see? Be the change in the world you want to see....SMILE (life ain't all that bad)

Obsession....

We are a nation obsessed by so many things Weight loss, fashion, cars, wealth...and the list goes on and on...No sooner do we let go of one obsession, we create another...like we have to be obsessed to be happy?

Being an addictive personality seems to go along with being in a chronic state of obsession.
(The domination of ones thoughts or feelings by a persistent idea, image, desire etc.)
When a person finds themselves in a state of obesity they become obsessed by the need to find a solution, a quick fix to a problem that has been long standing ( talk about a lost cause).
With most addictions a person can walk away, take the addictive thing out of their lives completely i.e. alcohol, drugs, gambling etc. It is impossible to take food out of ones life, so we have to go through a learning process of how to deal with our addiction without removing the source... How hard is that ?
For those who have taken an extreme route by having surgery, we have given up one obsession (Food) for another Weight Loss...we know this is the final "FIX" and we are bound and determined to make it work. Knowing that less calories and more exercise = weight loss and less calories not being a problem thanks to the tool we now have...We then become obsessed with exercise, at least some of us do..it is a healthy obsession for the most part. Endorphins, like any other 'drug' be it natural or otherwise, are addictive. And so our cycle continues...replace one obsession with another, more healthier one, or so we hope.
I sit here pondering, wondering if obsession ever really becomes a controllable issue to an addictive personality...If I ever find the answer , I'll be sure and post it :-)