Hi Kate and smidgie ! Welcome ! I'm sorry I missed your postings - never got an e-mail on them....
Kate, Where I live in Brazil is not that exotic... I live in Rio which is a huge city, not unlike every other huge city in the world (never been to Chicago, so I couldn't make a comparison...). We do have more vegetation than most American cities I've been to, but nothing like the jungle most people tend to imagine when they think of Brazil. The jungle is way up north and frankly I've never been near it and don't plan to. As you know, we are a 'third world country' and this basically means that the poor are really poor and that a large portion of the population in the poorer areas have no access to basic things like good education and health care. That's not the case of Rio, though. Here we live a very good life, with access to everything you could possibly want, just like in the US or in Europe (I've lived in Miami and London, so I can make a good comparison here...). The difference is that labor here is really cheap so most middle class people can afford to have cooks, nannies, drivers... Anyway, I don't think that's a good description of my country, but again it's a huge country and it would be very hard to describe it in a few words...
You are right about men losing weight easier than women. When my DH decides to go on a diet (other than Atkins) he loses weight so fast, it's not fair at all !
Now, smidgie how is it to live in Alaska ? Is it really that cold all the time or is this something we are led to believe (like that Brazil is in the middle of the jungle)? It's great to know that you had a good experience with you daughter l-carbing! This is something I'm very curious about - l-carbing and kids... And you are so right in encouraging her to enjoy the summer. I'm really afraid of having my girls thinking about their weight all the time. They are so young and sometimes I hear them talking to each other (they are twins) and one will say something like "I'm thinner than you". They are already assimilating that thinner = better....
Well, let me get some work done.
Talk to you all later !
Take care.
Ana