donali

Keep on those docs about your wife! **hugs** to you both - what a heart-breaking situation. Love your writing, of course. What I was building was a "safe" room - I didn't realize it was going to turn out to be a prison...

Maureen - Congrats!! But... if you've gone from a 46 to a 38, and you're JUST NOW getting a new bra... It just begs the question... uh... what exactly were your old bras doing? And we can never have too many bra pics on the site.... lol

Hang in there, Sultana - I echo... there is NO "window of opportunity" with the lapband. Some people actually lose more in their second or third year than they did in their first - they get to the right fill level, they get their habits down, their body and mind gets to a point where it's ready to release the excess weight. In the meantime, life is for the living, so go out there and Celebrate all of your blessings, and your 30 pound loss!!! Whoo hoo!! I carried a 40 pound air conditioner into the house yesterday, and my poor legs could barley lift me up the stairs. I've lost 2.5 40 pound air conditioners - no wonder I could barely move!!! **hugs**

Wow - Ryan, too cool. Do you have any deceased relatives that were medical doctors? Perhaps you were a medical doctor in a former life? I am very interested in the idea of a collective consciousness that some claim they can "hook into". I liken it to my own experiences, on a very small, teeny, tiny, low level, where I go to sleep on a problem with the intent of finding inspiration in my dreams, and waking up with answers. I saw a story a few years ago on TV about a person in India who does medical procedures (surgery!!!) without any kind of medical training, or anesthetic. They "channel" some deceased prominent doctor to do their work. Now that I write this, I get vague memories of a possible debunking story, as well. The human mind is an amazing thing, and since science states we only actively use the smallest fraction of it, I like to believe the rest is for the psychic/telekenetic abilities that seem to lie dormant in the vast majority of us. As I child I truly, truly believed that if I concentrated hard enough I could move things with my mind. The fact that I never succeeded in moving anything only made me think I had never concentrated hard enough, or not in the right way - never proved to me that it was impossible. lol My scientific boyfriend finds that particular personality trait amusing. I'd prefer to be able to say "endearing", though... lol

DeLarla - Have I mentioned lately that I love you?!?! This was my laugh for the day! xxoo

OH, Bright!! The people you know come up with the most amazing things to say... lol Thanks for sharing that laugh, and for being able to laugh about it yourself. I am a little jealous that Rica's your favorite, now, but I'm gonna change all that soon... :devious ... Let your imaginations run wild!!! :bandit

Ooooo!!! See, I LOVE these stories!! Vera, that is too cool. I keep willing my Dad to come visit me, but I have only had the rare dream about him. Sometimes we have weird light spots on our digital photos around Christmas time, and I always say that's him. Sometimes I smell cigarette smoke in my house, and I always tell him "Hi." He was a heavy smoker, and no one has smoked in my house in the last 3 1/2 years since he died. My sister and I joke that he'll never come visit, 'cause he always insisted there was nothing afterwards, and we always insisted there was, and he HATES to be wrong, so refuses to visit us now... lol MY BF has promised to come visit me from the other side "in the least frightening way possible." lol Hopefully that is a long, long time away! We've had weird coincidences happen, like one of the Admins here at work had bought a sympathy card for us at the time of Dad's death and collected a bunch of signatures, but had forgotten all about it and never passed it on. About 7 months later she was cleaning up her desk and came across it, and brought it to Mom. Just happened to be the day of Dad's b-day. How cool is that?

Ooooooh! LOVE this topic. I have nothing good to relate personally... When I was younger I was terrified I would meet up with a ghost, so I made a pact that I'd believe in them if they promised never to show themselves... lol Now that I think I'm a little braver, nada, nothing, zilch... I've tried to retract my bargain, but to no avail. I've heard so many stories it's hard to NOT believe. But as scientific as my mind is, I tend to lean towards, "If someone claims it's true/happened, I believe it's possible until proven otherwise." Please share, those of you who've had experiences!!

lol

Smile time!!! ******* Spotted on T-Shirts: I CHILDPROOFED MY HOUSE, BUT THEY STILL GET IN. (On the front) 60 IS NOT OLD. (On the back) IF YOU'RE A TREE. I'M STILL HOT... IT JUST COMES IN FLASHES. AT MY AGE, "GETTING LUCKY" MEANS FINDING MY CAR IN THE PARKING LOT. MY REALITY CHECK JUST BOUNCED. LIFE IS SHORT. MAKE FUN OF IT. I'M NOT 50. I'M $49.95 PLUS TAX. ANNAPOLIS--A DRINKING TOWN WITH A SAILOR PROBLEM. I NEED SOMEBODY BAD... ARE YOU BAD? PHYSICALLY PFFFFFT! BUCKLE UP. IT MAKES IT HARDER FOR THE ALIENS TO SNATCH YOU FROM YOUR CAR. I'M NOT A SNOB. I'M JUST BETTER THAN YOU ARE. IT'S MY CAT'S WORLD. I'M JUST HERE TO OPEN CANS. EARTH IS THE INSANE ASYLUM OF THE UNIVERSE. KEEP STARING....I MAY DO A TRICK. WE GOT RID OF THE KIDS. THE CAT WAS ALLERGIC. DANGEROUSLY UNDER-MEDICATED. MY MIND WORKS LIKE LIGHTNING. ONE BRILLIANT FLASH AND ! IT'S GONE. EVERY TIME I HEAR THE DIRTY WORD "EXERCISE", I WASH MY MOUTH OUT WITH chocolate. CATS REGARD PEOPLE AS WARM-BLOODED FURNITURE. LIVE YOUR LIFE SO THAT WHEN YOU DIE, THE PREACHER WILL NOT HAVE TO TELL LIES AT YOUR FUNERAL. IN GOD WE TRUST. ALL OTHERS WE POLYGRAPH. ********

Gorgeous before, gorgeous after, gorgeous inside... Girl, you have gorgeous dripping all over you!! Congrats, Sweetie!! Love the pics!! xxoo

Seven pages in two days?!?! I can't keep up, but need to read this thread, so gotta post!! I accept no challenges, but cheer you all on and wait for the inspiration fairy to club me over the head...

Whoo hooo, Penni!!! 16/18?!?! You GO girl!!!

Chantal - So so glad things are looking up again! I was on Wellbutrin for 6 months, and it saved my life. Whoo hooo!

Michelle, you make us so proud!!! Congrats!! Whoo hoo!!!

So glad everything went well. Here's wishing you a speedy recovery!!

Love the black dress with purple - stunning!! Whoo hoo!! Congrats!!!

Audrey, you are doing SO great!!! Congrats!!

Whooo hooo Carmen!!! Congrats!!! Happy b-day, and I hope life gets a little easier soon.

Alex, you're wonderful. I <3 U...

Saffy, that is indeed unfortunate. The truth is, both of these boards can be read by anyone - you do not need to be a member to read posts, only to post. There is no privacy on the internet - you have to basically assume that anyone can read what you write. Even moderated sites that are for members only cannot guarantee that their members are who they say they are. I think your doc's office is way out of line - particularly if they think that you are not perfectly normal. The lapband is about reduced portions and hunger, not deprivation. I hope your doc is either able to get past this, or that you can change to a more realistic doc. These groups are about SUPPORT, not policing! **hugs**

DH = Dear Husband; dh = damn husband (depending on context, of course... Other popular ones, besides those that Alex mentions: BF = boyfriend GF = girlfriend SO = significant other OMG - Oh my gosh! HTH = hope this helps FWIW = for what it's worth MHO = my humble opinion JMHO = just my humble opinion ROTFL = rolling on the floor laughing ROTFLMAO = rolling on the floor laughing my a$$ off TTFN = ta-ta for now! WTF?!?! = What the f#*@?!?! There ARE tons of them - these are just the ones I can remember offhand that I've actually used. HTH!

Hi Saffy! Welcome! Here's an avatar-sized version of your pic, if you like.

Oh, Leatha... At least you are keeping your sense of humor... Remember, "Less is more..." Chin up!

Whoo hooo!!! Congrats, Carmen!!