ALL SAINTS DAY

And that's what you are to me so I'm sending out a bonafide SOS - I need a jolt from the Marchers. Marilyn, Mo, Pammie, and Connie have been carrying the burden of keeping this board going for far too long, they need a BREAK! Come on, team, rally and BELLY UP - calling ALL MIAs and LURKERS. Let us know what's going on, how you're doing, how's life, how's SEX, how's any damned aspect of being alive these days for you??? Jen, Wendy, Ken, Margo, Elizabeth, MICHAEL, dammit DINA, where are you??? I know I'm gonna get in trouble for leaving folks out so just consider this a blanket ORDER for troops to LINE UP AND BE ACCOUNTED FOR! And thanks NICK for touching base, and Ellen for getting on board with regular posting; now I'm gonna hold you to it! We are fast approaching 3 YEARS!!!! Three years of living and learning together. Don't quit now, I'll be lost without you...love and hugs, Reenie

I have to admit I am more of a March lurker than a poster, though I have been trying to post more lately. I post frequently on the Maryland state board and we have an active group that gets together offline periodically (from a couple of organized monthly support groups to a purely social group that gets together every 4 to 6 weeks to go shopping or out to eat or some combination of the two). I am thankful every day for being able to be active physically and socially. I honestly do not have a clue as to whether I will live longer because of my surgery but I sure as heck do know that I'll be a whole lot more active living whatever life I do have left to live. I've said over and over, I am not a poster child for surgery. I am one of the ones who's not totally (??? minor understatement ???) compliant yet I have lost 100 plus pounds. I'm a little slow out of the gate in that I am only just now joining a gym and starting any sort of organized exercise program. I am looking the potential for 'failure' in the eye ... even though I went into WLS with my eyes wide open and was prepared for everything ... it's been a whole lot harder road than I anticipated ... and now at almost 3 years .. I've got to face that I have to put effort in to not only finish losing the weight but also to maintain what I have lost. I skipped over size 16 clothes on the way down .. and now the 14's and 12's are getting snug .. and I'll be danged if I am going to buy 16's now I don't always post, but I'm always here!!! Hugs, Mo

Mo-- Remember the fable about the hare and the tortoise? Perhaps the true poster child (if there is one!) is the one that gets motivated later in the race and keeps on, when others of us got a quick start and are floundering along the way... Just a thought! Joy

Joy, thanks for the encouraging words! Hugs, Mo

Thanks Reenie!! I agree & hope it wakes everybody up. Hey It's Christmas!! Let's not let this board die like all the others. I need You, I love you & am addicted to you. So There I've said it, now it's Your turn!!! Marilyn, the Bearlady

Standing at attention! I'm here. How has life been treating me? hum. Guess its ok. Nothing special nothing really horribly bad just ok. Got the bills that are always hanging there just waiting to be paid. I think out of the past year there was a month or two were everyone got paid the same month they were due! that is a banner year for me. one of my goals for 2007 is to go past that two month and maybe even do 4! 2006 was the year of the broken engagement. Oh yea! I did good! But now as the holidays are getting closer and closer I'm lonely. I miss him. Don't worry I remind myself of why I broke up with him. I wont go back. Had a couple of nice dates no one special. I had been hopeful that this one guy made it to 3 dates but now no word in over 2 weeks. just not found the one. Yet. Sex. Geesh. Even with out sleep aides I do not remember what that was like! Sizes. ARGGGGGGGGG I want to be my new/old size 8 again! I weighed in at 157 for 2 weeks back in 2005 now I can't get below 160. Been fighting that battle for all of 2006. Hey I'll add that to my goal for 2007! I'd like to lose the extra 6 pounds that have hung on all of 2006. And I pray, I realllly realllllly realllllllllly pray that the extra pounds dont decide hey its 2007 lets add one more to keep the years the same. On the good side. I wear heels! I have a passion for heeled boots. I like them with a pointy toe, black leather, tall or short, not over a 3 inch heel cause then i fall over. but oh god I love heels! They have got to make the clop clop sound when i walk in them. I was thinking about this the other morning when I was clopping down the side walk into work. I like the sound. I strutt in them! Stand up taller, throw my head back and smile! I'm clopping away to a tune that only I can hear! Its not always the same. Sometimes its "born to be wild" sometimes its "Your beautiful" sometimes its the cookie monsters song "C is for Cookie thats good enough for me" what ever it is I'm one hot tomale when I'm wearing heels. I never could wear heels before surgery. My bad hips and knees wouldnt' allow them. Plus I'd tip forward when I walked and wanted to hold onto buildings cause I was afraid I'd fall. Not now. I like the little skinny heels. The ones that I think they call the "kitten" heels. My daughter says they are out of style but I dont' care! I missed alot of style when I was heavy now I'm making up for it and I'm going to use the ones I always liked but missed! What the heck, wearing them I'm not only a hot tomale I'm a hot tomale kitten! They go great with my red lipstick and fake leather skirt!

Thanks Reenie for the WAKE UP CALL! Post WLS I was SO into this message board and then as family, work, etc commitments added up, I decided the Marchers could "wait". what a goofball. Can't believe it's been nearly 3 years. Have dealt with MANY issues these past years, esp 2006..what a BUMMER. (whine,whine)My family has dealt (or maybe are NOT dealing so well with ) MANY issues..job loss, kids' problems, etc. We all come from different backgrounds, families, cultures, etc. Yet we DO SHARE in the WLS "game". (I used that word "game", just to try and be UPBEAT about it all!). MO, your post re whether you will live longer because of WLS is NOT so much the issue as whether you will live WELL and active, really hit home. I have maintained my weight loss yet have turned to another addiction (WHAT IS IT WITH ME and addictions, whether to food, or whatever?) . Reeenie said it so well when she told me that we MUST get to the ROOT of our addiction..what is driving us to over eat...over drink..over WHATEVER. Anyway, I will TRY to be better at posting...HUGS, ellen

Ma'am yes Ma'am! Well 2006, basically sucked! My mom had a skin cancer taken off her face in the early spring, which then became a serious issue and has had 3 surgeries to get it all and a new eyelid created for her, which came from behind her ear which gave her 1/2 a face lift BWA HA HA HA ... my mother who says face lifts are so stupid now has 1/2 of one! we tease her about this all the time! Now she has a "good" side! LMAO!!! (it is too keep her spritis up!) May we went to England for 3 weeks which ws great. I got REALLY REALLY REALLY sick (diarrhea for 3 weeks the last 2 weeks there and 2 week at home@@) to loose 17 pounds and looked like death. Summer was fine! School started great. Labor day we had a FREAK storm and everything flooded think 4 inches of water in our basement, our neighbors basement actually flodded completely to the top step@@ Then the NEXT day my mom called me home from school to tell me she has cervical cancer and was bleeding heavily. She was taken to Madison and diagnosed with stage 3 cervical cancer and began an aggressive chemo/radiation treatment plan. November 11th. My Cousin was diagnosed with breast cancer the doc recommended a lumpectomy, did that and told her they got it all she would do some chemo and be done. She got a call 2 weeks later to be told they didn't get it all and needed an emergency mastectomy. During those 2 weeks her dad was diagnosed with prostrate cancer but becasue he has MS his treatment will need to be watched very carefully. He is putting off treatment til Shelly is well. Not sure what that means. I GAINED BACK the 17 pounds I knew I would but they came back with about 5-7 "friends" and now I am 180+ pounds and HATE myself... I am planning to restart my food intake over Christmas vacation when I can be at home and really monitor my eating extremely carefully and re committ to the gym til my membership runs out at which point I am buying a damn elliptical machine for the house NO MATTER WHAT MY HUSBAND SAYS! LOL Lift your glasses of ice cold water high! Here's to 2007 and many blessings and positive atmosphere that WE create within ourselves to spread to those around us! Salut! Nic 291/180/165

Gee Nic! I'm so sorry about your family battles with the Cancer demon! I had that type of year in 2005, but 2006 was better. I hope that 2007 brings light at the end of the tunnel for you! It is so hard to take care of yourself in the midst of all of this. Try to be kind and forgiving, but make yourself a priority as much as you can. Hang in there... Joy

I'm here. I check every day, but the last couple of weeks have had me going mach 5 with my hair on fire. Five out of the last 6 days have involved some sort of holiday hooha (3 at my house) and today brings another one. I get a break tonight and tomorrow from holiday gatherings and then Friday it's back on again. Some sort of big shindig every day and two on Christmas. When you throw in the cooking, shopping and cleaning... I'm pooped. I've still managed to get in exercise in the form of a stationary bike everyday so I feel better about that. Call me a weenie, but it's been in the 50's around here and that's just too cold for me to walk outside. lol Don't ask how I ever managed to live in Milwaukee. OK, I've got three huge green bean casseroles in the oven that I need to check and I need to bathe and get out the door for work. Big, big hugs... Connie