Dear Notmyself:

Even though I'm not a triple digits loser, all of us on this forum have similar emotional issues about our size and calling attention to it. There are so many wonderful and supportive folks here. Please stick around and get to know them. You will never regret it.

I have/had no real problem asking for no bun,extra vegetable sides instead of fries, no croûtons in restaurants. (and it's getting much more acceptable now) I couldn't care less what the wait people there think of me, since I may well never see them again. Plus, I'm a generous tipper, if they cheerfully accommodate my wishes.

The place I do have trouble is when I eat in my father's retirement community dining room, where they pride themselves on their "Healthy Strides" program, meaning low fat. At first I tried to hide what I was doing. But as time went on, I started getting angry, and now bring my own salad dressing , splenda sweetener, etc. and the heck with what their nutritionists think is "healthy". I'm sure they think I'm weird, but then I think that they are weird, too.

I'm trying to save my life by getting my weight, cholesterol, and blood pressure levels down. For that I can ignore funny looks from people serving me food. One other thought: What do you think they think when they see an overweight person chowing down on a burger with bun and french fries?

All best,

Kay