green

Unfortunately I have to be really fussy about what shoes I buy. I learned this the hard way by buying a lot of shoes that hurt my feet. While the skin on the bottom of my feet is probably about an eighth of an inch thick, the skin on top of 'em is really thin. I get blisters really easily even when the leather is really soft. And I can't wear heels over an inch. I actually tell people that I have Lesbian feet (except when I am around my tenant who is one). This is because I have to wear flats that are kinda wide at the front end. And my feet come in drag queen size. Anyhow, given that my feet have imposed certain restrictions on my footwear choices, I try to get the prettiest footwear that I can and I am always offended when I see that manufacturers have made it hard for us......again! Ugly clothes, ugly shoes. It's not right, you know.:kiss2:

Thanx, Neenagh, for the welcome. Yep guys, I love baba ghanoush and hummos and all those lovely garlicky spreads. I also love that Mexican one made out of mashed avocado, guacamole, and I love a really good, fresh salsa. And I love raita which is an Indian yogurt and cucumber salad. I was thinking that maybe I could eat this stuff during my stay in mushie-land. I sure am enjoying soup-ville after that first week. :hungry: For some reason I can't stop talking about soups. :help:

So today I went shopping for food, eh. More Gardenay soups and some yogurt as well. I don't actually have much of a sweet tooth, I am more of a salt and garlic kinda grrl, so I got some tzatziki which is yogurt Greek style - lots a garlic and minced cucumber. I am very happy! I also got lo-fat yogurt with chocolate in it. Little yogurt puddings. I am saving those for when I run out of the tzatziki.

The gas pains are finally beginning to go away and I had soup today. Those Gardenay soups that Campbells make are going to come in very handy over the next pair of weeks. I had half a cup of Mediterranean tomato and it was sublime. I bought a bunch of these soups at Walmart before I got operated on. I see that I am going to have to keep on drinking apple juice which I am coming around to loathing. I also got to buy me some yogurt and start drinking milk. It seems I am gonna need some kinda nutritional supplement. Anyone got any ideas on this?

I just had my first half cup of soup. Mmmm...soup! I am so happy. I hate apple juice.

The Toronto Laparoscopic Band Centre (last Thursday). It was easy for me as I live quite close to the Centre.

LOL!!! Thanx for the great story, eh.

Like it or not, modern society is very lookist and ageist, too! I took my mother shopping for a pair of pants a couple of years ago. She was 86 at the time. The saleswoman, a middle-aged individual, completely ignored her and addressed every remark to me. I kept telling her "I don't know. You'll have to ask my mother." But this sales clerk was a dim one. She persisted in discussing my mother's clothing purchases with me and she tried to sell her via me clothes that she didn't want or need when it was a just-the-trousers-ma'am kinda situation. The final insult was when the VISA bill came in. She had charged my mother twice. Now, I wanted to see if I could get her fired for just being a generally lousy saleslady but my mum is much nicer than I am. (I take after my father's side of the family, I guess.):paranoid

Maybe you should explain your extreme anxieties with your doc. Perhaps some meds are in order. Medication can make all the difference in the world. I know from personal experience.

My pre-op diet wasn't strict compared to many, just a lot of low/no fat cottage cheese and yogurt. Instead I went on Green's Farewell Foodcourt Tour. I was really in mourning for my days of fat eating. My surgery went okay even with the cheating. What a relief!

I was banded last Thursday. I have one week of clear fluids which I am almost over - a good thing! - two weeks of full fluids, two weeks of mushies, followed by two weeks of soft food and lotsa chewing. I am often troubled by fantasies of pasta and filet mignon done extra-rare but everytime I grab my big gut I remember why I am doing this and that kills my appetite for a little while.:girl_hug: I am also afraid of cheating on the diet because I don't want to get slippage and have to go under the knife again!

It's always fun buying new clothes. For the last number of years I've been having to buy mine in bigger and bigger sizes and that hasn't been as much fun. And it is harder finding nice clothes in nice fabrics at size big. I am glad you got the sweater and the tank top in Moncton. It's great that they are only XXL. Congratulations! You should be feeling good about yourself. Do you ever shop at Cotton Ginny? That store has been saving my ass for years now.

Kimmason, that's fabulous news about York Uni. I went there (Glendon campus) a very, very long time ago back in the sex, drugs and rock&roll era. My grades were fairly dismal as a result. Some of what I learned must have stuck however because I now help my niece out with writing some of her papers. She is in our situation, overweight and suffers from depression. She also has a young child and so she has a lot on her plate. (Actually she started to putting on weight at a younger age than I did and she is bigger than I am. She is now carefully watching how lap-banding will affect me.) Well, I had the operation on Thursday and now it's Tuesday. My gut still looks like it is housing twins - baby elephants, that is - though my husband says that my face looks thinner. I have been living on nothing but water, broth, and apple juice, and crushed up vitamins, Gas-X, and pharmaceuticals and I am starving. I am desparate for pasta and filet mignon done rare. :hungry: I don't hurt but I get tired quickly - no food, eh - and my temper is very, very short. Ask my husband. The gas pains finally seem to be going away. :clap2: I am so looking forward to soup time. Excuse me for venting but I really had to get that last bit off my big chest! I know that you will enjoy university and congratulations!

Yeah, living in a small town kinda changes things from the privacy aspect.... I live in anonymity in the Big Smoke and tend to forget about that side of life. And Chloe's right. That capsule is made to melt really fast once it hits your innards, so as long as you don't crush the little balls when you swallow them you will be doing just fine. I've got more of a problem with the extended release Wellbutrin tablets. You are lucky.

This is in the way of a P.S. I wouldn't go off coffee before the operation. And after the op your mind will be on other things. Sleeping ranks right up there as a fun thing to do. I spent a lot of my time drifting in and out of sleep, and occasionally taking a crushed up little something for the pain with a sip of water. It was really kinda peaceful. Actually, the gas cramps hurt more than the incisions so be sure to get a lot of chewable Gas-X! The gas is still giving me grief!

I don't know whether I had withdrawal. I was goofing on Darvon at that point.:clap2: But I have had caffeine withdrawal headaches once before. I was travelling in a country where the coffee was so bad that I switched to tea for the entire time that I was there. I had headaches and was constipated for about 3 days.:help: As to the other drugs:) all of mine come in a tablet form and so I am able to crush all of them except the Wellbutrin extended release. I found some old Wellbutrin and I have been using up that stuff for now. I don't know what I am going to do when I run out. I might just try swallowing a pill to see what happens. They are not really big. Or I might crush it and then take pieces of the crushed pill throughout the day. If you are talking caps, it sounds as though you have an Effexor problem. You might want to ask your doc or your shrink or even your pharmacist about this. Let me know what you find out.

I have been discriminated against because of my sex - I am a woman who builds aircraft - but I don't know that I have been personally discriminated against because of weight; if I have, it hasn't been to my face. I do know that all larger women are being discriminated against when it comes to buying clothes. Once you hit those plus sizes it's good-bye to natural fibres and the cute little black dress, and hello! synthetics, florals, pastel colours, and cute appliques. It is like the fashion world wants to punish the fat girl for something that is the result of genetics and a modern lifestyle. I've also been cursed with big feet and I can't get cute shoes, either. Seems that there is a cut-off point here, too. I guess this is my personal peeve. And T.O.M., your comments concerning discrimination are right on the money. It seems that there is a part of all of us that tends to favour the in-group. This is why the Hollywood fantasies continue to flourish. We all want to see something that is better and more attractive than our usual selves.

It's nice to hear your voice, Yoda. What are you up to?

Yah, a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you from Green. May all the all the best things come true.

I mentioned coffee the morning that I was waiting for my surgery (I am an addict) and the nurse said to me that it was not a clear liquid. Then I read somewhere in their literature that it was not recommended because it was an appetite stimulant. I have been coffee free since last Thursday, and haven't been missing it but I have been missing pasta! I have been thiking about drinking tea. It is supposed to be good for you - anti-oxidants, eh, and I can drink it without milk. I've also been thiking that I should get my act together about buying some Protein supplement. Right now I am living on Water, apple juice, gas-x, chewable Vitamins and Calcium, and crushed up anti-depressants. My belly is still hyper-bloated or I am actually gaining weight! Blehhh....

Yep, for me it is definitely salty, crunchy foods. Love those carbs covered with cheese and garlic.

Congrats on starting your thread, Lila. Your question is a good one. I have been told to use either Isopro or Isopure, and I found one of them at GNC. I haven't bought or tried the stuff yet. Can anyone tell me what the stuff is like. I got banded on Thursday and so far I've been drinking apple juice and water. I tried some beef broth but was grossed out.

Yah, I've been getting shoulder gas pain, especially in my left one. Very weird. And my belly is getting itchy. My husband is just now discovering that I ate a lot of food before getting the band installed. I explained to him that it was Green's farewell foodcourt tour, haha.

I've got a problem in the foot department, too. My feet are big, wide and boney. I take a 10 and a half, and very often I can't find shoes in my size. They are all sold out or they are all ugly. I've taken to calling my foot size "drag-queen size." Winner's doesn't stock many cute shoes that are larger than 9. Just like they want to punish us with ugly clothes when we are fat, they want to punish us big-foots!

Thanx for all the advice re blood stains, and the support, everyone. I managed to get the stains out of my favourite pants. Today I am gonna be stripping and washing the bed. I've spent most of my time since the op falling off into sleep, chewing a lot of gas-x, and fantasizing about solid food! Those chewable vitamins and the gas-x are the high-lights of my day. I am feeling pretty good today, except for the gas.... I think it's time for me to start acting normal. Hahaha. The gas is a real pig though. How long does it take for it to go away?