Determined To Succeed

Day one-hundred-seventy.

Well, I can’t believe I am saying this but I truly survived a weekend. And not just a weekend, a weekend led by an evening event that had yummy (but horrible for you) appetizers – buffalo wings, fried egg roll thingies, etc. It’s strange but not only did I not gain any weight, I actually lost since the last time I wrote you guys. I am now officially at 245.8. That’s right, back within the last twenty or so pounds I need to lose to get back to my weight loss goal.  That is a huge relief, especially given my well-documented worry about the weekends and how I always seem to fall off the wagon somehow and gain a couple back over just a couple of days (folks, it really is that easy for me). So I now face this week on such a positive note. I face going to the gym today on the same positive note. That is awesome! I even have lunch picked out already – leftovers of a chicken breast which will be perfect after my workout. Score!

Now on to more pressing matters…

Did any of you happen to watch the Oscar nominations this morning? I know I did. The Academy Awards are like my holiday – my Super Bowl, World Series and my Wimbledon all rolled up with a great red carpet. I watched the nominations this morning and there were no huge surprises. OK, I was surprised TRUE GRIT received so many nominations. It was a fine film (and way better than I could make. Also, the girl in the film stole the picture and deserves her nomination) but it’s a remake and, in some scenes, word-for-word and shot-for-shot. Not terribly original. THE TOWN didn’t get nominated for Best Picture as expected (TRUE GRIT did) but TOY STORY 3 did and that makes me happy. It is truly the best film of 2010 and the only film to make me have open emotion in a theater. It was a beautiful story beautifully done and if you haven’t seen it you should.

Why do I bring up the Oscars today? Around this time of year I think about the Academy Awards and how the stars will look. OK. I don’t really, but I do often wonder how much they actually eat in real life. Last night I watched GREEN HORNET and Seth Rogan looks very svelte and very different from his KNOCKED UP/ZACK AND MIRI self. Is that a good thing? Sure, in Hollywoodland it is. I am sure he got that role because of how he lost weight to look more like a super hero (never mind that the actor who played Kato, Jay Chou, stole the movie).

I also noticed Mo’nique this morning. She looked appropriately radiant (especially at 5:30 AM Hollywood time) announcing the nominees. Again, she is another example of how an actor has lost weight and forged a new image for themselves. Is that bad? Certainly not, but I do wonder why it is that the culture of Hollywood is to lose weight and be rail thin (but not too emaciated since that is also bad) when most of the movie-going audience are real people with real weight and real weight issues. Did I like Seth Rogan more now that he’s shrunk? Nah. He’s still the same guy. And I’m sure Mo’Nique and Jennifer Hudson (both Oscar winners themselves) are still the same people even though both won the much sought-after statuette carrying a few extra pounds.

I do not know if I would ever survive Hollywood. I love eating. I really do. Yes, I know I need to lose this last twenty pounds but I can’t imagine being at the whim of an executive, agent or studio head that says I would need to lose another fifty on that if I want to be considered for a role in TRUER GRIT or KING’S SPEECH 2: THE REVENGE. That’s horseshit. people come in all shapes and sizes. Sure, these stars are the ones we adore and idolize but they come in all shapes and sizes, too. It shouldn’t just be the pretty ones that dominate our screens (TV, movie, computer or smartphone).

You bet your ass I will absolutely be glued to my TV the night of the Academy Awards, and I might even have a slice of pizza in my hand while watching Christian Bale accept his award for THE FIGHTER, but we are all fighters in this weight loss game so don’t lose sight of that. We may not look like Natalie Portman, Jesse Eisenberg, Javier Bardem, Nicole Kidman or James Franco but all of us on this weight loss journey are beautiful in our own ways and have the same amount of drive. We just use it to keep losing and maintaining weight. And that, my friends, is what it means to have TRUE GRIT.

How many of you went to your 20-year high school reunion? Show of hands…anyone…anyone…Bueller…Bueller… Two years ago in August was my 20th anniversary of graduating high school and I didn’t go primarily because, one, it was expensive, and two, because of Facebook. Yes, that nifty little thing called Facebook connected me with so many wonderful people from those days I thought it would be unnecessary to attend.

Well, that was then and this is now.

Recently I learned that good ‘ol Kenwood Academy was hosting an all-class 40-year reunion today, actually held at the school. You know, just like in the movies. In “Superman III,” “Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion,” “Zack and Miri,” and so many more the heroes go back to their respective high schools and the wackiness ensued from there. I always secretly thought that was cool since I was nerdy enough to like certain aspects of my schooling particularly the bricks and mortar that made up my “homes away from home.”

So it was with (mild) reckless abandon that I quickly packed a bag and headed to Chicago today to attend tonight’s festivities. Another thing that is making me happy is the fact that the monies collected actually go to programs at the school, not some cheesy banquet hall, hotel or other facility (and it’s cheaper – God, I am getting old).

Now as you guys know, Chicago food hits you as soon as you get off the plane, but I was good and avoided the temptations of my sweet home Chicago Chicago-style hot dogs (and no offense intended toward my friends in and around Philly. Hot dogs, Italian Beef sandwiches, pizza and Chinese food is all different – and better – here, like when you guys get a cheesesteak from your favorite places). However, I didn’t avoid that temptation for long and had a couple, with everything, fries and (sigh) a Coke.

But it was goooooooooooood!

OK, with the craving for hot dogs out of my system I have to both go for a workout today AND avoid over-indulgence. The latter shouldn’t be too hard, although I do want to eat before I get to the reunion which is tonight because I need to avoid the sweet food temptations of my old neighborhood (Harold’s Chicken or Valois anyone?) as well as the foods being served at the reunion, itself. While I am sure the food will be good, I get in trouble with all-you-could-eat situations like that and want to avoid that if I can.

So where is the middle ground?

Middle ground (and I don’t know why but Middle Earth somehow came to my mind – my PRECIOUS!!!) comes in the form of egg rolls from my favorite place in the world right now for Chinese food. It’s on Michigan Avenue downtown called Sixty-Five Seafood and they have egg rolls, bbq pork noodles, kung pao chicken and pepper steak to die for. They are PRECIOUS!!!!

This means I will be swinging by there later today for a combination late lunch/grab some hometown egg rolls/stave off the other bad foods run. I am so looking forward to it. Then I will be off to the reunion.

I am feeling a bit goofy today. I feel younger. I think about so many things from those many long-put-away days from 1984 – 1988 especially food, when I ate whatever I wanted seemingly without consequence. I think about what I wanted to do in life. I think about where I’d thought I’d be…

…I think about my mom, JoAnn (and you can bet your bottom dollar I will be swinging by the park where I spread her ashes to say HI).

Most of all I think about time and how precious (no reference intended…this time) a gift it is. I may be slightly more than two decades removed from gym period, english class, history, driver’s ed, biology and (ick), trigonometry, but I nowe have a grasp on one thing I didn’t back then – myself and how I eat. I want to be around for a good, long time and losing the weight I did has dramatically helped me prolong my life. It helped me not goive into the self-fulling prophecies of obesity – poor quality of life, immobility and potential sudden medical “episodes” like strokes and heart attacks. It also helped me become more active so I can enjoy things I never could before – like even sitting on a plane, in the middle seat (it was what was available) and not have to worry if I’d be making people uncomfortable on either side, and dancing and bopping to my favorite 80s songs from time to time (I hope they play some tonight).

That is why I am no longer worried about food when I come home. Sure it’s better (it’s always better in your hometown) but nothing – NOTHING – is better than the taste of adding years and quality to your own life.

Now, bring on that reunion and let’s “Wang Chung” tonight, and I will tell Clark Kent, Romy and Michelle, Zack, Miri and Ferris you say HI.