Back in skinny jeans

I dig my Dad's commitment to family

I hope that all of you had a wonderful Father's Day with your dad(s). This was the first year in my life that I did not spend Father's Day with my dad. Matt and I went down south to spend Dad's day with his family. We were going to visit my dad on Saturday but he and mom had plans already, so we are going to do the "official" Dad's day festivities next weekend.

Dad and I played phone tag all day yesterday, and I finally got him on the line at 9:30pm. He and mom were driving home from Santa Rosa. They had a small emergency to tend to. Now, before I go on with the story of this emergency, let me tell you that this is just an example of what a loving, compassionate, and selfless man my father is. The story is even more compelling because it occurred on Father's day.

Recently,one of my mother's sisters (she's 51) had a brain clot and was admitted into the hospital. While in the hospital, my aunt went on to have a heart attack, brain surgery, congestive heart failure, and then pneumonia. She was in a coma for a week as well. They were expecting to pull the plug on her last week, but miraculously my aunt woke up and spoke. She was then moved out of ICU and into a regular room. It really was a miracle considering what auntie had gone through.

My aunt has one son, Mike, who is 16, and it is just the two of them. The dad is in and out of the picture and including my cousin, this man has 10 kids from 4-5 different women. But that is a whole other weirdness. While my aunt is in the hospital, her son has been staying in Lake Tahoe with one of his older half brothers. Tahoe is over 2 hours from Santa Rosa. The whole situation with my aunt and her kid is a tough one in my family. Although we love our aunt because she is our blood, she is not one of the favorites because she is, let say, very Jerry Springerish. Yeah, she's the relative you'd see on the Springer show. EVERY family has a member like that. There's multiple topics my aunt would qualify for, so without any more detail, I'll just leave it at that.

So yesterday, Mike was going to visit his mother in the hospital, and he took  Greyhound. His route though went from Lake Tahoe to Oakland which is like 4 hours, and then a bus transfer from Oakland back up to Santa Rosa, another 2.5 hours. He had to go down to go back up. It's a weird route. Anyway, the bus from Tahoe came in late, so Mike missed his bus transfer and there were no other buses. He was stranded in Oakland, not the safest place for a 16 year old to be stranded. So Mike called my folks. Without a beat, my dad jumped into the car with my mom at about 4:30pm. Mom just got back from work. They drove to Oakland (80 minutes) picked Mike up, and then took him to Santa Rosa (2.5 hours). Then from Santa Rosa they drove back home (90 minutes). This is the point where I spoke to my dad. Dad didn't get to go out to dinner or get to do anything "fun" for himself. Instead, he was out helping my 16 year old cousin get to his sick mother.

That whole story made me cry. I was so proud of my dad. He's not just a good dad, he is a really wonderful human being. Like my mother too, I hope to be that compassionate, loving, and caring like my parents. They have definitely taught me a great deal about family, and being helpful to to thers. I could not imagine having better parents than the ones I have. I am truly blessed. Dad, here's to you!!

Carmen Electra on her fake boobies

Just cause they're ginormous doesn't mean I dig em. So goes the sentiment from Ms. Electra on her bodacious ta-tas. To elaborate:

"I didn't like it at first. I really didn't want to go as big as I ended up going. "It was nice that I didn't have to wear a push-up bra anymore, but I could have left myself alone. "I didn't need to do it."

Carmen admires Jessica Alba, and thinks that she is a sweet & hot dish with oh-so naturale cleavage. But really, the big boobage is a fundamental part of the "Carmen Electra" aura. Do you think she would have gotten on Bay Watch without them? Do you think swarms of tit-elated males would line their locker doors with an un-planted Carmen? I think not.

I actually like Carmen, and think that she is much deeper than her looks. In my skinny jeans fantasy, my body looks like hers. Who would say no to that? But again, it's a fantasy, and so we have some fun. It was really cool when Carmen poked fun at herself and said boob plants in Scary Movie.

More pics of sultry Carmen and more of her thoughts on Jessica Alba at Hollywood Tuna

Smutvibe: social site for you floozies

So you hate the fact that your Ho-ness is censored on your MySpace type social places. No nasty, slutty pics or videos allowed. And, put a sock into that potty mouth of yours.

Well fret not, there is a new social site called SmutVibes where the smuttier you are the better. Get floozy. Let your inner Ho run amok online. Oh yeah! Let it all hang out here and swing from bone to bone, if you know what I mean [wink]. You must be 18 to play in this trollup house, but since the site is FREE, I am worried just how they are going to control this. Kids can lie about their age.

Ironically, the company who created SmutVibes has created another social site called ChristianVibes for Christians to mingle and socialize with each other. SmutVibes and ChristianVibes. I won't even go on about what images pop into my head. I'll let you fill in the blank.

That I would be good

That I would be good
by Alanis Morissette
Album: Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie
Buy at iTunes

Alanis Morissette is one of those songwriters whose lyrics always articulate into song some part of my life that I cannot. "That I would be good" is one of those songs that hit me at the core because she sings about something that I have struggled with my whole life, feeling good enough just as I am. Feeling good enough because I am beautiful as I am. Feeling worthy enough for the love of a special man just because I am me. Feeling good enough that I do have unique and special talents that others would appreciate.

Many women, I know, feel like this. Not feeling good enough is a compulsion that makes many of us ache, depressed, and desperate. This is especially true when it comes to our physical appearance, and that is why we obsess about fixing what isn't "good", so that we could be good. What Alanis is saying in her song is that we are good regardless.

Some lines in the song that grab me:

that I would be good even if I got the thumbs down
that I would be good even if I gained ten pounds
that I would be good if I lost my hair and my youth
that I would be good whether with or without you

There was a time a few years ago where I would just drive for hours and sing songs. That I would be good was one of those songs I would sing as loud as I could, and then cry as hard as I could. It was car therapy, and it helped me get through a rough time in my life.

Bowflex gives good examples

Remember the 50 year old grandma that Bowflex got to flaunt their product? That woman was HOT. Forget that she was 50, she was smokin' with a HOT body, not too skinny, and you could see the muscles. After seeing that commercial, I practically had my fingers on the phone to order me up some of that hotness. Realistically, I know that just working out on a Bowflex product won't make me look like the GILF, but the fantasy that Bowflex was selling was Jedi mind trick powerful. For days, I asked people if they had seen that Bowflex commercial, and everyone who did had the same reaction I did. We all got sucked into the Bowflex fantasy hook line and sinker.

Every Bowflex commercial I have seen has featured a female model who is slim yet very muscular, and not too buff. The Bowflex ladies are also attractive but they look realistic, and someone you might know like an aerobics teacher, a trainer, or a fitness consultant. The muscles are sexy, and it's a good message to send out.

Muscle weighs more than fat, but it burns 9x the calories, and it takes up less space, so it does not expand the body inches like the equal poundage of fat does. The muscle also gives you curves that starvation and deprivation never can. It would be wonderful if we could see more runway models with more muscle instead of more bones.

Miss America gets reality

This is hysterical to me. A show that is about “not real” women parading around for the honor of Queen of the paper dolls is going to get real with a reality show. The producers of the Miss America pageant are gonna take us behind the scenes and let us see what goes into picking America’s next paper doll. Details:

"The pageant will tape a seven-episode documentary series titled "Finding Miss America" in Los Angeles from Sept. 5 to Sept. 13.

The series, which is to air on Country Music Television for a week preceding the televised pageant finals in January will show the 52 women in preliminary competition and give viewers a chance to choose which ones advance to the top 15 for a shot at becoming Miss America 2007."

I know times are desperate for the plastic doll pageant, but come on, the Country Music channel. Besides the “you must be a redneck” crew, who watches the CMT? Now don’t get me wrong. I love my Tim McGraw and Shania, but to SAVE the pageant you need BIG numbers and the CMT is a small piece of the American viewing pie. How about SPIKE? "Dude! Chicks in swimsuits." Or, how about LIFETIME because the Miss America pageant is a living woman’s tragic story. People stopped watching the Miss America pageant because it’s BORING and TIRED.

And honestly, are we going to get to actually see the bitch fights. You know they happen! I want to see the carnage, I want to see the claws come out, the hair pulling, and the sabotage because that’s really what these pageants bring out in people. I also want to see how they tape up all them boobies, put industrial strength cover-up on those imperfections, and plaster all that makeup that never seems to smudge under those hot lights.

Of course, we won’t see any eating on camera. Nope! No eating allowed. However, for PR antics, I bet they get a few of the contestants, the ones you know who don’t have a chance of winning, to talk about how they really do eat, and that there is not really any pressure to starve before the BIG show. Yeah, feed the illusion sisters.

Working with a 300 pound gorilla

Katie on her blog, Eat4Today, wrote a post called "Working with a 300 pound gorilla," which was in reference to a comment I made on one of her other posts about procrastination. My comment read:

"Glanced at the Hacker’s Diet real quickly, and intended to dive in later. But reading this post today, the procrastination, I realized, is related to me struggling with the commitment (dropping weight). My left brain knows what I need to do. THE LB is always a team player. That is never the issue. It’s the emotions. The emotions are like a 300 pound gorilla next to a 130 pound logical girl. The gorilla starts throwing her weight around and then I’m whacked. How do I get the gorilla to be a team player?"

Katie brought out this question to the forefront because it is a common issue that many people experience in their weight dropping programs. Her suggestion was that instead of imagining my emotions as a 300 pound gorilla, I imagine her as a toddler someone much smaller than myself. This way I feel bigger. She is right in that we are always the boss in our lives, and that we are the ones ultimately in charge. I let the gorilla push me around almost always when it comes to weight management. If the gorilla wants a McDonald's Big Mac, and I don't give it to her, she will go on a rampage until ultimately, I give in. I always give in to the gorilla because she's bigger, meaner, and physically stronger than me.

I did like the toddler idea, however, as I started to write my comment, thoughts started to flooded my brain. Katie was giving me the idea to physically change the gorilla into something smaller like a toddler. Then it dawned on me. Instead of changing my emotions into something else, why not just let it be who it is, and change myself instead. Goes to that lesson that we can never change other people, but we can always change ourselves.

So, I decided to leave the emotions a gorilla and turn myself into a 50 ft woman. Now, I am literally the bigger one, and the gorilla now looks like a pet next to me. If she gets out of control, I can literally pick her up by the collar and tell her to behave. What's she going to do that I can't stomp on? My size now humbles her. As well, symbolically, it shows that I am literally growing out of my debilatating pattern. I am choosing to be a bigger person, and choosing to live a bigger life literally. Makes me feel empowered.

My roommates and I, in college, had this Attack of the 50ft woman poster hanging in our livingroom. We got it because it reminded us of how powerful a woman could be. Who's going to mess with ANYONE 50 ft tall?

It's a good technique to use too when you're one of the few women in an all male field like tech, Wall street, law firms etc. I know that there are times when the guys make me feel small, or namely I let them make me feel small. But if you're in the same pickle, why not picture yourself as 50 ft tall and see just how scary those guys seem now. Not very scary anymore, busters. And heaven forbid, can you imagine what would happen if they angered the 50ft woman. Wow! Ain't that an awesome thought.

Example of why geeks stay single

I kid you not. This is a real posting in the Bay Area Craigslist from a geek software guy looking for a part-time wife. Oh yeah! He is advertising for all the fringe benefits WITHOUT the commitment. At least the guy is honest, and stupidly, there WILL BE women who apply for this job.

Author drops 120 pounds

My friend Camy, who has just earned her first book writing contract (yeah!), has on her blog, Camy's Loft, an author interview with Allison Bottke about Allison's new book, A Stitch in Time. Back in Skinny Jeans readers will find this book topic, and the interview with Allison interesting because Allison dropped 120 pounds going from 280 to 160 after having gastric bypass surgery. She tells her story. There are before and after pics in Camy's post. She looks fabulous!

As well, the main character, Dee Decker, in A Stitch in Time, a fictional story, goes through enormous changes in her life. In the course of one year Dee Decker:

. . . has gastric bypass surgery and loses 150 pounds
. . . has plastic surgery
. . . separates from her husband
. . . buys a whole new wardrobe
. . . flourishes in her glamorous fundraiser job
. . . and becomes a Christian.

The interview is fabulous. Go to Camy's blog and read the interview. While there, you can also enter a contest to win a copy of A Stitch in Time. Enjoy!