Texas is one of the states with greater than 60% obesity and skyrocketing Type 2 Diabetes. I noticed on a visit to the New England states that I saw thin people everywhere. It was odd for me to see that, very noticeable. The only thin groups I see around here are Asians and people from the Middle East.

The trend in elementary schools, promoted by the teachers, is food rewards for everything. This is especially annoying to me since my kid is a Type 1 diabetic. A school "party" for every possible holiday means chips, dips, sodas, and cookies or cup cakes. Every possible holiday party means the first day of class, Halloween, the day before Thanksgiving break, President's Day, Martin Luther King, Easter, Kwanza (sorry don't know the spelling), the first day before Spring Break, Cinco De Mayo, the first day of Spring, the first day of Winter, the last day of class, and I don't remember what else. When the classes do well at something, they win pizza and ice cream parties. When individuals do well, they win candy from the teachers surprise box. This is an almost daily event. My kid brings his "rewards" home since he isn't allowed to eat them. I put them in the trash. They always do make sure they have a diet soda for him when the parties happen. My kid is in the 5th grade and I discovered this school problem the day he started junior kindergarten.

I also learned this weekend something I was completely unaware of. I have always lived in a population with a large variety of races, religions, and nationalities. A friend heard a statistic on the radio so asked me this question: What do you think the African American Population and the Hispanic Population of the US is? I gave complete answer that was truly my best guess based on where I have always lived: 26% African American, 34% Hispanic, 30% Caucasion, and 10% everything else. I was shocked when this person told me that greater than 80% of Americans are Caucasion according to the report he heard. He couldn't believe it either. I had to think back to the time I drove through downtown Hot Springs Arkansas and was amazed to see nothing but white people standing everywhere. There are cultural differences in eating so perhaps part of the reason for the high rate of obesity and Type 2 diabetes in Texas is due to the particular culture that exists here.

In addition to it not occurring to me that the students might have felt bad, it also didn't occur to me that this teacher could have started some girl on the path to an eating disorder.

I apologize to the world for these things not occuring to me. A few of you sound a little hostile toward me for posting it so I guess you are tired of what appears to you to be the insensitive people in this world. Trust me that I do not make it a habit to be insensitive and neither does the teacher in question. We just both screwed up this time. He has turned kids off of drugs, off of inappropriate sex, and on to education. Many who would have ended up on the streets or as mothers by the age of 13 now talk of going to college. (Texas is also a hot spot for early teen motherhood; guess you guys don't see much of that either.)