Wheetsin

Yeah. With holes in the toes. Like I said -- that's Red Lobster for you. :heh: She's laying on a bed and he's stanfing on the bed strattling her, taking the photo downward. TOM, what kind of food fettish porn sites are you visiting lately? :girl_hug:

I'm way behind on this thread, but had a curiosity around this. Remember that there are degrees of legal residency between "illegal alien" and "citizen". I am a citizen, my husband is not. He is an unconditional resident alien. He has a SS#, driver's license, and pays more in taxes than most Americans do. And cannot vote. Point being - he's a legal worker, who is not a legal citizen. What would you think about a Mexican in the same situation, because of a visa program we would offer? No employer is going to want to sponsor Mexican residents on a work visa because the visas arent' cheap, it's a lot of paperwork/work for the employer, etc. But how would you feel about a new visa system - one that would allow people into the country to work, legally, without being citizens, and without significant cost? You could set criteria - e.g. legal US working age, whatever about criminal history, etc. Oh, and ideally it would be a quick deal, say obtainable within a week. Not that our INS system could ever get there. But just curious what you (general popluation) would think about that arrangement. I think it was Mencia who said something like "Yeah, let's build a big wall to keep all the Mexicans out. The only problem is - then who do you get to build the wall?"

Blech. Red Lobster is to seafood what Payless is to quality footwear. That's what she gets for eating there.

I would start with your LB surgeon. They're the most likely to be familiar with the medical conditions arising as indirect results of the band. Self diagnosis is generally inaccurate and not worth the stress it causes, so honestly - relax. :girl_hug: Between when you eat the food, and when it comes up, how do you feel? Do you feel that something is stuck, or does it feel like all is normal? Has this happened with anything other than red meat?

When someone creates an accoun here, there's a field where they can enter the name of a user who referred them to the site. When someone enters a valid username, it adds a referral to their tally.

You won't find too many people since it is a relatively new (in the US) procedure. I know sisters who were part of the FDA trials and they've had their bands... about 6 years now. So you'll probably have to look overseas (maybe one of the international forums here?) for anyone farther out than 2001.

I have not had kids but plan to. I'd like to lose more first, but we've stopped using BC, and will take what comes. It will depend on where your port is. There are several places that different surgeons place them... some do it in a standard location, some vary by patient, etc.

The real question is - out of aan entire lawn, how did you manage to find one roach? :girl_hug:

Is it sod, hydrospray, plugs...? If it's sod, when we built our house they put sod down and the landscaper told us nothing chemical, not even fertilizer or bugstuff, until the grass had been cut twice. He said it would take the length of time that two cuttings takes before the roots start to establish enough to tolerate chemicals.

Whenever I take these standardized tests, the questions crack me up. Especially when they're just fill in the bubble type tests, and don't give you room to comment. "Sometimes I feel people are talking about me." (Yeah, especially when I hear them mention my name) "I have thought about suicide." (Kind of hard not to if you watch Dead Poet's Society) *sigh*

I understand why they do it, but questions like this can be really misleading. For example, most people hear voices when it's quiet. Very common is to hear "singing". Also common is to hear random statements. And I say hear, even though it's obviously not a physical sound. This occurence has nothing to do with mental disorder and everything to do with what the brain does when it has an absence of stimuli. E.g. stare at something for a very long time, and you'll swear it moved. Stare at yourself in the mirror for a long time and you'll swear your features are distorting. This isn't a mental disfunction, it's your brain responding to an absence of new stimuli. It's kind of the opposite of what happens when you're no longer able to smell your own perfume, even though others can smell it from a distance. Point being - people that fit the scenarios above could answer "yes" to that question, and unless they were good at explaining why they answered what they did (or given the chance to alltogether),... well, it wouldn't be misinterpreted by a good psychologist, but like any profession - you have your good ones and your not so good.

We're not in the same boat but I'm a student, working on a 2nd Master's Degree. Just another notch on my bedpost of useless things I spend lots of money on. :girl_hug:

I don't really remember. I think it was probably tuna salad or chicken salad. As for meal meal... I think it was grilled chicken tenderloins. I know that was one of my first retaurant meals, anyway.

Guess I have to play a bit of devil's advocate too. You said "I see what she eats and I do not see that she is eating that much" so I would have to disagree with your message and say that it sounds like the BAND is working for her, but SOMETHING ELSE is not. Remember that the band itself does not cause weightloss, so someone's failure to lose weight is not a failure on the band's behalf. If she's been for fills and has restriction, those two pieces are working just fine. So then look at other things that could be the cause. You say "not that much". How much is not that much, and what types of food is she eating? What's her daily calorie intake? What kind of exercise is she getting? Does she "diet" in addition to the band, e.g. count carbs or fat grams?

Does that mean I can just pretend I have a job paying 4 times what I make, and go buy that mansion on the hill I've loved for 10 years? Your mom seems to be missing the disconnect between fantasy and reality. I've never known anyone who could pretend they were on a diet, and lose weight because of it. I'm having some mom issues too, but not because I'm overweight and she doesn't understand -- mine are because she's overweight too and as much as she's happy for me, she's also jealous that I'm losing and she's gaining. Is your mom overweight also, or is she "normal"?

If you made the decision of "no", how would you tell the older sister that she was "not allowed" to be in the wedding? My wedding was me, hubby, my parents, our JoP, and our photographer on the edge of a cliff in Red Rock canyon. Planned 4 days before the actual event. Now THAT'S how you do a wedding!

I can't believe you guys like Good Eats. I've never even found someone else who has heard of it, let alone is a fan. DH LOVES it (being the science guy he is) and has gotten me hooked too. I've even tried out a few of his recipes, and have learned LOTS of general good ideas & tips to use when I cook. DH has every episode on DVD, and TIVOs all the new ones.

If you want to do your own research, rather than using Google (there are some good sources out there, but also some very not good ones) visit your campus bookstore. Go to the psychology area and look for a thick, shorter, paperback called "DSM-IV". Though warning - do NOT do this if you are paranoid or a hypochondriac - diagnosed or not. And don't use it as a substitute for seeking real help. Just see it as a good reference to learn more about the criteria for diagnosing mental disorders.

I travel a lot - generally at least one flight a month, and sometimes three flights in a week. The roomiest seats, by far, are on Midwest's 717 flights. Flights I would try to avoid - anything Southwest. The seats are narrow side to side, but what gets me on SW is that there's very little room between seats, front to back. At my heaviest I could still squeeze into their seats, and even buckle up, but I didn't stand a prayer of being able to get the tray down. No chance at all. Plus - and I hate to say it - Southwest is just trashy. The planes are dirty, pit stops aren't done well, etc. Unfortunately they usually have the most availability and best fares, so in the business world they're sort of a necessary evil but I NEVER fly thenm for personal travel unless they have the best route or there is an extreme difference in price. If you don't fly much, then it's also nice to know that with SW there is no assigned seating. Based on checkin (you can do it starting midnight the night before, and if you can - do it then!) you're giving a boarding group (1 of 3 possible). Then you just line up in the right "corral" and wait for "cattle call" to board. Can I say how much I hate flying SW again? I don't generally fly first class (since it's usually work footing the bill) but I have a few times and I'd say it's worth the price difference unless you're on American Airlines. I'd think these would all be standardized, but I've flown 1st class on AA a few times and I was always as squished, if not more, than in business/coach. Actually in my last 5 flights, including a Southwest flight, the one I've been most squished on was an AA 1st class flight... now that I think about it. Oddly enough American Airlines is my ABSOLUTE favorite domestic carrier for international flights. I go out of my way to book AA for international travel whenever it's available. So yeah - kind of depends on where you're going, and what plane is being flown (the reservation stuff online will tell you this). Something I would suggest if you're not familiar with flights/planes is www.seatguru.com. You can look up all major (and lots of minor) airlines and planes, and get tips about where to sit... what seats are roomier, which are tighter, noisier, quieter, have trays, don't have trays, etc.

I'm a west coasterner turned midwesterner and I've never heard either phrase. Well, until now, obviously.

I guess I'd have to ask - do you think the 11 y/o would even care? I'm an only child, and have virtually no experience with kids that age, so all I can do is ask. When I was her age I was asked to be in a wedding and had no desire to be in it, so they used one of my cousins instead and it was no sweat for me. When I sat in the audience and saw my cousin up there, it didn't bother me one bit. I think what's unfortunate is that the bridesmaids are being selected to provide symmetry to the groom's side. That's all about how the pictures look, and nothing about having special people with you on your wedding day. *ETA - I'm not sure I would agree with the "you use both or you use neither". If it's something the older one wants to do, I wouldn't deprive her of it just because her sister isn't being asked to do the same thing. Tough situation, glad it's not mine.

Here are some dishes, appetizers, I've done that have worked well for me & guests: Fondue! I've found it to be the PERFECT bandster dinner party! It is always great because you eat slow, and can have portions as small or large as you'd like, and it's fantastic for socializing. For meats I get lobster tails, shrimp, chicken, pork, and filet, ahi, and salmon - and use baby russets, carrots, pearl onions, etc. for the veggies. For the broth I just use the FF chicken stock and add some orange juice, parsley, garlic, cumin, etc. and a dash on pineapple. Makes a nice "Caribbean" style broth. You can precede it with a cheese fondue (gruyere and crab is awesome), and follow it up with a choclate desert fondue (I just use godiva chocolate bars with either a little bit if Peanut Butter mixed in or plain, or some pecans & caramel - then get pretzels, cheesecake bites, rice krispie treats, etc. for dipping). Seafood (fish mostly) is generally a safe bet. But I like to go a little fancy when we have company, unless we're grilling, so I make a lobster & shrimp stuffed filet of tilapia. Bacon wrapped shrimp on the grill (if you spritz with olive oil beforehand they will stay extra moist). For a great appetizer, take fresh grated parmesan (from the block, not the pizza topping kind) - line a baking tray with parchment paper and place the cheese by the heaping tablespoon onto the paper, a few inches apart. Bake at 350 (I think that's what I do) until it melts and browns. Let them stay on the paper until cool to make a "chip" or they're moldable when warm, so you can lay them over some shape (I use an inverted muffin tin or foil that I've folded into a "taco shell" mold) and let them cool. The muffin tins work great to make "cups" for holding small green salad portions, fruits, proscuitto salads, etc. If we want to do something quick and good and more casual, I make a crustless pizza (have posted the recipe before, so it should still be out there) that my guests ALWAYS enjoy more than real pizza. You can cherry pick your toppings to your preference, or use toppings that you know will go down ok.

My first size took 40 or 50 lbs. Progressively, each size will take fewer pounds because the same number of pounds will represent a greater and greater percentage of excess body fat. I'm now hitting a new size about every 20 lbs.

You know - the boob thing is weird. I'm wearing a full cup size larger now. I think what's going on is that the boobs have stayed the same size, but the rest of me has withdrawn enough that they stick out more. Kind of the same thing behind all the guys who lose weight & think their weewee has grown longer. :tired And on the anniversary - you know, I was so busy that it totally just snuck up on me. Like - I knew it was coming - a few months... a few weeks... oops, it was yesterday! :faint: We should do something to celebrated a belated anniversary.

I broke my promise to myself and shopped this weekend. A LOT. But LB was having their "40% off your entire purchase" sale, including sale items, so I couldn't help it. Thursday was my 1 year. By home scale I'm exactly 130 down. By Dr. H's scale probably about 110 - 115 (he never weighed me at my pre-op highest, just at consultation). I was lucky if I put on a size 32 and it fit, so was wearing 34+. Now I'm buying 18/20 tops and 22 bottoms. Here are my most recent progress pics.