Jennifer Semple, Age 19 (1970) One year after she was released from the institution ______________________ Some personal issues have come up today, and I don't know what to do about them. Unfortunately, I can't do anything about them because they apply to me only indirectly, so I'll just have to continue worrying and fretting. Perhaps I should just jump on the treadmill and work out feelings that way. Or maybe work on my book Memoir Madness: Driven to involuntary commitment ; yes, I have changed the title from I, Driven: memoir of involuntary commitment --the new title came to me in a dream, and it just seems to fit. However, I need to do a bit of tweaking to the text itself. I just love the multiple meanings of "madness"--craziness, anger, and mania, all of which are contained in my memoir. The I, Driven title has never been, in my view, a satisfactory one, more like a placeholder until a better title came along, and so it has. The old titl...

There once was a corpulent carp, Who wanted to play on a harp, But to his chagrin, So short was his fin That he couldn't reach up to C sharp. My late mother-in-law would have loved this limerick. She loved silly jokes and this one definitely fits that category. She died five years ago today, on her 91st birthday, doing what she loved: working on her sermon for services later that night. Anita Siegel Photo taken August 11, 2006 __________________________ Well, she never got to deliver her sermon, but at least she never lingered in pain. For over 25 years, she was not only my mother-in-law, but also a mother to me, and I miss her tremendously. She accepted me into her family wholly and without conditions--and with much love. We even fought like mother and daughter! Jerry, I, Mark, and Missy (and the rest of your family) will always love you, Anita Siegel! Much love to you!

The clean version: There was once a man From Nantucket Who kept all his cash in a bucket; But his daughter named Nan Ran away with a man, And as for the bucket, Nantucket.

I love Limericks--perhaps it's the Irish in me--so when I found an old book filled with Limericks, I bought it: Limerick Lyrics , edited by Stanton Vaughn, published by Sully and Kleinteich, 1906. This little volume contains well over 500 Limericks, all public domain, so, over time, I will post most of them on this site. I haven't felt much like posting regular articles here lately, so these Limericks will fill in the gaps. An opening "double" Limerick from the book: There was once a poet named Immerick, Who worked 40 days on a "Limerick," At the end of which time, He remarked of his rhyme, "There's a limp in the limb of my Limerick." I never could quite see the trick, I never wrote a limerick, I've often tried And gone to bed a-feelin' sick. Also, if I run across any other public domain Limericks, I'll post them here. Ta!

Behavior is the mirror in which everyone shows their image. --Johann Wolfgang von Goethe About a month ago, I did something that is generally out of character for me: I posted something nasty on someone else's blog. This is difficult to admit, especially in a public forum, but it must be faced. I won't go into details because the specifics are less important than the act itself, which falls under the heading of "bad behavior." The owner of the blog did the right thing and called me out (on a PM) on what I had said, and he was absolutely right. Even so, I was about to respond in a snarky manner, but then my brain started working right for a change: I stopped my finger in midair from pressing the publish button. "Whoa!" I told myself. "What are you doing?" Then I felt shame because I had forgotten my manners; I was a guest (probably unwanted) on the blogger's site; I was acting like a total Neanderthal and about to compound my idioc...

What some call health, if purchased by perpetual anxiety about diet, isn't much better than tedious disease. --Alexander Pope It is true that most diets fail, especially during the maintenance phase. Why do 93-95% of dieters regain most (and sometimes more) of their lost weight? I think the answer is pretty simple--dieters often sabotage their own efforts by making these common mistakes: --Eating too little food. Whenever we try starving ourselves, our bodies are programmed to seek out more food. Ultimately, biology will win the diet war, perhaps even resulting in a rebound effect, which is why so many failed dieters often gain more weight than they originally lost. Eat enough nutritious food and you will lose weight, perhaps not as fast as you would like, but a steady weight loss will be much easier to maintain. --Viewing "the diet" as a temporary nuisance. Not a good idea; in order to keep the weight off, you have to view your "diet" as a per...

Elephants and grandchildren never forget. --Andy Rooney Ha, ha, isn't that the truth? I am currently working on a domain name project called Name for the Day . The blog is half built, but I love the background (shown in the above image) and the layout. I'm thinking of making some changes on this site, namely a new template, perhaps a new background. Also, there is way too much introductory material... On Monday, Jerry and I had Rhia, our granddaughter, so we went miniature golfing; it was hotter than Hades (97 degrees!!!), but it didn't seem to bother Rhia at all. We, on the other hand, looked and felt wilted, even though we were drinking lots of water. Jerry actually felt a bit sick on his stomach. We sometimes forget that we're (gasp!) senior citizens. I hadn't been miniature golfing in years, and we were all terrible at it. I did, however, make a hole-in-one, but it was just plain dumb luck. Rhia held the golf club like a baseball bat, despite our bes...

Evil is the shadow of angel. Just as there are angels of light, support, guidance, healing and defense, so we have experiences of shadow angels. And we have names for them: racism, sexism, homophobia are all demons - but they're not out there. --Matthew Fox In today's paper, there was an editorial by a young female editor about having to endure "cat-calling" and other harassing behavior by men on the street. Does that crap still happen? I don't know why some men think such behavior is, in any way, acceptable. Women (and children) need to feel safe out in public and men hitting on women (even if it's just in "jest") can be frightening. Also, yelling at and mocking overweight people is a big no-no. Okay, I get if someone doesn't "like" fat people, and no matter how much I wish I could change the heart of haters, one can think whatever he or she wants. However, one should keep one's thoughts and feelings inward and move o...

Acceptance of prevailing standards often means we have no standards of our own. --Jean Toomer Food Pushers. Pressure Feeders. Whatever you call them, these are people in your life--parents, grandparents, siblings, children, other relatives, friends, and co-workers--who, for whatever reason, try to force food on you. Guess what? You do NOT have to accept it. That does not mean that you can't ever eat any goodies--sure you can--but make sure it's on your terms, not someone else's. I'm not sure why our friends and family like to push food at us, especially when they know we are trying to make life-long dietary changes. Some possible reasons can be found here . When someone insists on your taking an unwanted food (for whatever reason), one of the best responses I have discovered: "It looks good, but I must decline because it's not in my plan for today. But I'd love to take a small piece home for later." That way, you can save the food f...

Come, let us have some tea and continue to talk about happy things. --Chaim Potok Just a diet tip, which works very well for me, that I'd like to pass along. Perhaps it will work for you. I drink decaffeinated flavored hot tea year round, even on hot days. A big mug of hot tea can keep the wolf (true hunger) at bay, at least for a short time. In addition, if I have a craving, often hot tea will stop it or, at the very least, keep me from bingeing on the desired food. It is true that thirst can often masquerade as hunger, so keeping hydrated can help. However, I find plain water boring and diet soda too bubbly, and I'm not overly fond of iced tea, but I love coffee and hot tea. Sometimes I even combine them. A caveat: for every day, either use artificial sweetner or nothing; otherwise, you're sabotaging your efforts. Oh, and if you're an iced tea lover, avoid sweetened commercial iced teas--they tend to be filled with sugar. At the very least, check out th...

Family is the most important thing in the world. --Princess Diana I'm asking the Macedonian community for help. I tried Googling, but I found nothing. Himzo, a friend who lives in my city, has lost contact with his sister. He has provided the following info (also see above image for diacritical marks): Her name: Dzuli (or Juli) Ramizi Ifeta Address: Gorije Paliciste City/Country: Tetovo, Macedonia If you have access to a Tetovo phonebook, Himzo would very much appreciate having his sister's information so that he can get in touch with her. If you find the phone number and complete address, please email me here . If you are my Facebook friend, send me the info via private message. Thanks!

America's health care system is in crisis precisely because we systematically neglect wellness and prevention. --Tom Harkin It seems as though some insurance plans are now paying for weight-loss programs, but why not help the medical community by setting up preventive programs that could work toward preventing obesity in the first place? How about maintenance programs for those who have recently lost weight and reached goal weight? Children, it would seem, are at the most risk for obesity, and reaching them at an early age is crucial. Besides, the younger they are, the easier kids adapt to gradual changes in their diet, although I would not support a program that would embarrass and/or demean them in any way. In addition, older people who were thin in childhood and early adulthood can also begin gaining weight in middle age and eventually become obese. Why wait until someone becomes obese before intervention? Why not start an adult education and screening program, designed especial...

Beauty is worse than wine, it intoxicates both the holder and beholder. --Aldous Huxley Not much to say today, but I find the above quote interesting. I assume that Huxley is referring to physical beauty, which, as we all know, fades with age. But inner beauty can age like a fine wine, reserved for sipping (as opposed to chugging) or a exquisite piece of chocolate, reserved for savoring in small bites. I have never been classically beautiful--perhaps "cute" might have been a better description and that, of course, no longer applies. After a certain age, "cuteness" simply does not exist. But you know what? It hardly matters. As one ages, outer beauty and cuteness become less important and definitely less relevant. It must be a terrible burden to have once been beautiful and built a life around that beauty and then slowly watch it fade--I wouldn't want to wish that on anyone. My goal now is to find and enhance an inner beauty and build on that, while taking care o...

The best road to progress is freedom's road. --John F. Kennedy Today is the 235th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America, still a relatively young nation. On this day, we should give thanks for our freedoms; even as we travel abroad, we should keep our America close to our hearts, although she may sometimes disappoint and some of our fellow citizens may cause us scratch our heads. We don't have special plans for this holiday--we often spend holidays by ourselves. Here's a poem by Julia A. Moore: Fourth of July Fourth of July, how sweet it sounds, As every year it rolls around. It brings active joy to boy and man, This glorious day throughout our land. We hail this day with joy and pride, And speak of our forefathers who died; Who fought for liberty in days of yore, And drove the British from our shore. We, as descendants of that race, Should not now our land disgrace. Arise, freeman, arise once more, Be earnest as in the days of yore. Have a great day!

Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other. --Abraham Lincoln How well does Weight Watchers do in helping their members manage maintenance? I know for a fact that Weight Watchers offers a good maintenance program for its graduates, a.k.a. Lifetime members, but why do so many members fail at maintenance and, as a consequence, end up returning again and again to WW to lose the weight they have regained? To understand WW members' frustration, one just has to go on this posting on Weight Watchers' Facebook. When Consumer Reports rated the best diet programs, the editors rated Weight Watchers as the second best program, basing their opinion on the fact the fact that soup, high in sodium, was offered as a menu option to help dieters to stave off hunger. Never mind that this was just a sample menu among many other sample menus. In other words, Consumer Reports was splitting hairs and needed to justify selecting another progr...

Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm. --Winston Churchill Today on Facebook, Weight Watchers posted the following: “Fall seven times, stand up eight.” Over 200 people commented, some agreeing with the comment and others having difficulties getting back to the program. It doesn't matter what diet program one is on--it isn't easy staying the course every single day, day after day. Some days are just plain crazy busy, and yet others are filled with food traps, sometimes ones we set ourselves. Yesterday, I was hungry all day; eating healthy snacks didn't seem to help. I wanted something with carbs and fat, so, at Ruby Tuesday's, I ordered the cheddar mashed potatoes as a side. It wasn't a wrong choice, per se, but it wasn't a wise choice because I know that mashed potatoes, my Achilles Heel, kicks up the old nasty hunger meter. I ended up using 11 extra points--again, not wrong, but possibly unwise, given the upc...

Jennifer, Rhia, and Jerry ________________________ Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children. --Alex Haley Jerry and I spent the day at the National Aquarium in Baltimore with our granddaughter Rhia. What fun! We saw sharks, dolphins, jellyfish, and a rain forest, among other sights. We saw Dora the Explorer and her friend Diego in a 4-D adventure film, the 4th dimension having to do with smells, vibrations, and splashing water on the audience, which Rhia did not appreciate. Her exact words: "This is NOT acceptable!" Ease up, sweetie. It's just water... But, overall, it was great fun, and by day's end everyone was duly worn out. The hook, line, and sinker of the day: we actually bought the above photograph along with an entire photo package, no doubt overpriced. Gotcha! How can you say "no" when the photo includes your precious grand baby? Later!

Jennifer with baby Henry (twin Owen was asleep) ____________________________ Any pitcher who might throw at me should know I'm not giving up my day job or trying to get anyone else's job. I just can't think of anything cooler than being one of the boys of summer! --Garth Brooks Yesterday was like a holiday; we went to Mark's (my brother-in-law) for crabs, ham, fruit salad watermelon, and babies, both new and older. We saw two-year Sean for the first time since 2009 (other than on Facebook)--how he has grown, and so smart, too! Lots of blond hair and big brown eyes. In the above photo (sorry about the poor quality; it's a cell phone image), I'm holding a very content and happy Henry. I later held Owen, but no pic of that. Owen is smaller of the two, but other than that, they are identical twins, perhaps mirror image! Cute as buttons. Later, Jerry and I met Harvey and Charlie in Baltimore for the O's game; Unfortunately, the St. Louis Cardinals soundly beat th...

NOTE TO HCG SPAMMERS: Nice try, but save your energy. I'm not allowing comments with links to HCG (or any other diet site) on this post or any other post. In the middle ages, people took potions for their ailments. In the 19th century they took snake oil. Citizens of today's shiny, technological age are too modern for that. They take antioxidants and extract of cactus instead. --Charles Krauthammer First of all, I want to say up front that, for the most part, I respect Dr. Oz immensely. He offers a lot of good medical information and explains it in a way that the non-medical community can understand. However, he's wrong for advocating HCG injections for weight loss, at least until the protocols have been tested further. HCG, a hormone found in the urine of pregnant women, has not been approved by the FDA as a weight loss drug. Indeed, since 1975, the FDA has required the following statement to appear on HCG labels and advertisments: HCG has not been demonstrat...

You've got IT , so flaunt it! --The webmaster No matter what weight, age, race, ethic group, sex, sexual orientation, etc., sometimes we just need to strut our stuff. Even if we don't feel especially outstanding in any significant way, at times we need to present ourselves to the world in the way we want to be seen. As an overweight older person, I want to present myself in the best light possible; I'm not going to wear a belly-exposing tee-shirt or shorts that expose my butt cheeks or crack. I'm going to wear clothes that minimize my physical weaknesses, for example, my large upper arms and my bustiness (yes, I see that as a weakness and a burden I have endured since age 12). On the other hand, I like my legs and don't mind showing a little upper leg. I also love jewelry, mostly stone necklaces and ostentatious bling rings with huge stones, the bigger, the better, most of them fake or inexpensive stones. The point is: we should flaunt those attribut...