I'm Overweight and My Boyfriend's Not. Big Freaking Deal | Love Sex - Yahoo! Shine

"I'm Overweight and My Boyfriend's Not. Big Freaking Deal | Love Sex - Yahoo! Shine: My boyfriend Ali is 5'10" with friendly blue eyes, a dimpled smile and a fit, muscular body. He's someone you'd expect to see with a really hot, thin woman...not an overweight girl like me.

We've been dating for 18 months, and wherever we go—whether we're walking hand in hand through the mall, airport or down the street in his hometown (Glasgow, Scotland) or mine (San Jose, California)—we get confused looks that say, He can do better than her!"

You're Either Too Skinny or Too Fat But You're Never Right...

Between the ages of 21 and now (58) my weight has varied a lot. I've been 100 lbs, I've been 220. Now I'm at an all right weight; my doctor is reasonable (maybe her being female has something to do with that, I don't know) and realizes that a post menopausal woman who's struggled with weight literally her entire life isn't, nor should be, 98 lbs. She'll be satisfied, as will I, if I lose between 15 and 20 pounds. I'm working on it and already have lost a few. I'm not "on a diet" but watch I don't overeat, eat small meals throughout the day, protein, lots of iced drinks and water, of course no sodas. Just basic "works for me" stuff.

So, I've been all these contrasting weights all my life, and no matter what my weight, someone, somewhere, always had a comment to make! Sometimes, even strangers! I was too skinny: what's wrong with me, I need to put on weight, I'd look better and would have boobs if I gained weight, etc. Or, I'm too fat, what's wrong with me, why don't I lose some weight, just use will power, etc.

Weight. Something others feel is perfectly acceptable to comment on, even if they don't know you (though whether they do or not is none of their business.) Weight. Something that is always, always, never good enough. If you were a size 20 and got down to a 12, not good enough. Someone else will come along and tell you, unasked, what they think of your weight. A size 5, too skinny, not good enough.

Now I feel pretty comfortable although I want to lose and that's my own business. I'm not depressed about it or beat myself up. And -- maybe this comes from age -- when someone does make a comment about my weight I say, politely, it's none of their business, and I ask them why they're concerned. That usually shuts them up, after a few stammerings about "just trying to help" and "concerned about your health," etc. Sometimes it's a "Wow, don't be so defensive." Feh. You brought it up.

I just remember that, no matter what weight I or you may be, there's always someone who thinks you're not the right weight. You can't satisfy everyone, and you shouldn't try to satisfy anyone, except yourself. :)

In Pursuit of my Inner Pin-up: What's Wrong With Our Bodies, Anyway?

Great post about the female body image and expectations, then and now:In Pursuit of my Inner Pin-up: What's Wrong With Our Bodies, Anyway?

Study: Women with large breasts are smarter - by Terrence Aym - Helium

Study: Women with large breasts are smarter - by Terrence Aym - Helium


Do we even want to go here?

Jane Russell, star of '40s and '50s films, dies (AP) - The 83rd Annual Academy Awards� - Yahoo! Movies

Jane Russell, star of '40s and '50s films, dies (AP) - Rest in peace, Ms. Russell.

This is a clip from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, with Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell. In this scene, Russell (who was a sultry brunette) is pretending to be Marilyn Monroe's character.




Here is Russell singing "My Resistance is Low," with Hoagy Carmichael from The Las Vegas Story.

The Traveling Red Dress on The Bloggess Blog

Photo by Karen Wolword, via the Bloggess

I love this blog: The Bloggess; I found it thanks to Deirdre O'Lavery of The Interstellar Housewife, a blog I also love. The dress is beautiful, and I agree that it's impractical, and very very red, but I would wear it! Bloggess writes, of the poppy red dress:

For one thing, it’s not sensible.  It’s impractical.  It’s bright red and vibrant and shocking and “inappropriate for a woman my age”.  And I have no shoes to go with it.  And I have no place to wear it.

I'd find a place to wear it, and one thing about getting older, once you realize you're not going to wake up one morning and suddenly find yourself magically 21 again, (or a size 9) you say "fuck it" and do what you damn well please. There's more to the article than just the red dress; it's also about what the red dress inspires.  Anyway, the entire blog is witty, funny and check it out.

The Shake Weight

That's right, I bought one! And it's great. Silly, but great. I use it in the morning, and work out on the bike/elliptical thing in the evening.

I bought it at Target, which was good; I didn't have to order it and wait, etc. It comes with a short DVD which is easy to follow. Six minutes or so, really, and you can really feel it as you work out with it! It doesn't use batteries or anything; it's just the one weight that you, well, shake.

The advertising proudly announces that the Shake Weight has been featured on the Ellen DeGeneres show. Well, yes, it has, but not exactly what you'd think; this is pretty funny. I love Queen Latifah's handling of the thing:

Still, the thing works, and that's all I care about. I don't feel ripped off or anyting, it's easy to use, and that's what matters to me when it comes to things like this.

Love Your Thighs

Searching for vintage ads and images for my
Pulp Jello blog (nice plug, huh?) I found a blog I like called Formerly Fun. I really liked this post:
"> Ode to Thighs, with great vintage pics as well as a terrific poem.

Plus Size Lingerie

Sinai, who has a few blogs (2 devoted to animals, one for dogs, the other for cats) and Strange Days,a paranormal and other esoteric matters type blog, has a post about a site that offers nice, lovely, pretty, full figure lingerie. Go to Strange Days and follow the link from there.