Yesterday on the way to lunch, Haley informed me that I really needed to wear a lighter color pink shirt with my skirt. I said, "Well since this is such an emergency, do you think the principal will let me run home and change?" She said, "I was just telling you because I thought you would want to know." Kids are hilarious!

We went to watch the cheerleading competition, and my girls did a great job. There was one elementary school that looked like they were a college team. I had no idea that elementary girls could do so much. It was incredible.

We also attended Marriage Rocks, which was a fun date night event at a big church in town. There was singing, skits, a game show, etc. We enjoyed ourselves. We topped off the night with Olive Garden. Mmmmm! There are a few Italian restaurants I like better, but they are more pricy, and this was our first date, so we have strong memories.

Howard Stern responds to critics about Gabourey Sidibe *Part 1*

I don't even have words.

Ready for the Weekend!!!

I started making out the official schedule for our "Staycation" in Louisville yesterday. It is going to be great. Today, I am going to make some phone calls to make reservations. It is certainly centered around a "foodie" theme. There have been so many restaurants I have wanted to visit, but just not had the opportunity to do so. I am also going to catch up on my New Year's BAKING RESOLUTION!!! I need to make three things! HH and the neighbors of my condo should love me.

I am also looking forward to April because I won't be teaching GED any. I have learned a lot in cooking classes, but have not been able to make HH many meals at all. He has been such a good trooper about it. I know I will be taking more classes in April, but without GED on top of it, more cooking will be in order. It will be great to be reintroduced to my kitchen again.

I forgot to post last night about how upset I got at the parents at the game last night. The kids lost the game, and the parents were awful. I mean the things that came out of their mouths I could never imagine saying to my child. It is an elementary school basketball game....it is not like next month's rent is riding on the outcome. There is one boy in particular that I am very fond of named Clarence. He comes to my room when he is in trouble (but it is really that his teacher can't manage the class, he is always fine with me), so we have a bond. Clarence is a big boy, and I am proud of him for exercising, and I can tell that it takes a good deal of effort for him to move up and down the court, but he does. He does it pretty well for that matter. His mom was saying all kinds of nasty things like, "What do I have to threaten you with in order to make you play better?" I could go on and on. The parents kept saying how the kids "just gave up," and the like. On the way home HH and I were talking, and I said I wanted our kids to participate in Upward Sports, which is a Christian based sports team where more emphasis is placed on having fun, learning a sport, showing good sportsmanship, and in general just celebrating the small milestones along the way. VERY. LOW. PRESSURE.

I have to get hoping on HH's two other things for St. Patrick's Day. One is easy, the other one involves a trip to the craft store. I'll post pictures later.

Skirt Frenzy Continued....

I love this wrap that can go with so many dresses. I didn't have it tied for most of the day. This dress is super comfy too.

It's the end of the day, and Jerry had yet another creative pose again. He is a bull in this one. Another student remarked that I take lots of pictures of Jerry, and I said it was because of all the creative poses he does.

This is today's outfit. I got approval from Haley in my room as this being the best outfit I have worn so far. Cooking class was cancelled tonight, so we went to the basketball game tonight. It feels great to relax.

I found out a lady at work had gastric bypass about the same time I had the DS. It's nice to have someone who has walked in my shoes.

Trucking Along

This week is going by, and I'm trying to stay on top of things.

I started a new GED class last night. This one has thirteen people. It is not the largest class I've done (24), but it does make me feel like I can't teach them all adequately because their math needs are so different. One lady asked if she had to take the book home, or if she could just leave it here. This is right after I finish assigning HOMEWORK out of the book. When I say she needs to take it with her, she mouths, "F*CK." I'm not holding out too high of hopes that she will be passing at the end of the month. HH dropped me off, so we didn't have to leave a car downtown. This is the place where my car got broken into and laptop was stolen. I haven't had a desire to go back there since. I did get to see one of the guys I used to work with. He said he missed my efficiency. That made me feel really good.

I just purchased tickets for HH and I to see David Copperfield. I am pumped because he typically only does Vegas, but he has a show in Muncie, Indiana in May on a Sunday. We are so there!

Never Make Impulse Purchases...

Or you end up bringing home a CASE of Thin Mints!!!

Second dress...I love this one! HH doesn't care for the irregularity of the pattern, but I like it a lot! :)

Salt in the Wounds...

My student teacher starts talking to me about her bias towards morbidly obese people today on our planning. SERIOUSLY. She worked as a director of an after school program for two years, and pretty much made big generalizations about how lazy all fat people were. How she had so little sympathy for them watching the garbage they shuffled into their mouth, and not trying to help themselves. She went on and on.

I didn't know what to say today that didn't involve dropping several F bombs. I am going to try to simmer down, but this needs to be addressed. Any suggestions?

HH took a picture of us on Saturday night while waiting for our dinner guests.

Here is my creation based off what I saw at the Love Actually Blog. This is a great resource. I'm not too creative, but I love their ideas. HH loved the candy inside the pot of gold!

I told you all I've really been getting into the skirts and dresses thing. This is what I wore yesterday. I love maxi dresses. They look very nice, yet it feels like you are wearing pajamas all day long. This picture was taken at the very end of the day, so I know I look a bit tired.

We wrapped up one GED class last night, and a new one begins on Wednesday. There were at least fifty people out in the main area when a teenager comes in just swinging nunchucks (the real big things) for a few minutes. Finally he makes eye contact with the librarian and says, "What, I can't have these in here?" Of course the librarian says no, and fortunately he leaves. All my students certified except the two boys who put zero effort into showing up or doing any homework.

HH did a good job of explaining the "diet coke relationships." On the show Ruby (Style Network), she has been on again-off again with Deeny for eight and a half years. That is a really long time. Denny is very fit. What finally drove him away the last time? She just couldn't lose the weight. Ruby's closest friends (and myself watching) think he is a snake with other motives.

I had my own "diet coke" relationship years ago. His name was Nate. We always were doing things together, and I had just enough "hope" that more would eventually develop. After over a year, one day he asked me to do something after church, to which I replied, "No." He pressed further to see if I had another obligation, etc, only to find out I didn't. I said to him, "We've been friends for over a year, and you have had long enough to decide if you like me." I severed our relationship, and looking back it was the most emotionally healthy thing for me to do.

The body image process is still just that...a process. I was encouraging a girl who had been losing weight in the "Biggest Loser" competition at our school. I was saying how she had to about be at goal. She said she needed to lose 53 more pounds, because she really wanted to reach 150. I had no idea that I was sixty pounds smaller than her. I still have a lot to work on in this regard.

"Diet Coke relationships"

This is a guest post written by Tiffany's husband-the one who she calls "HH".

The other evening, Tiffany and I were watching a reality TV show in which the main character (a woman who was recovering from obesity) was in the midst of a very involved relationship with a certain man. They flirted; they had fun together; they shared all kinds of deep, personal things with each other.

So they're dating, right?

Wrong.

Oh. So they're just friends?

No. Not exactly...

Then what are they?

Even they do not know! Seriously. They have no word for what they are. They are "more than friends". But they do not want to date each other. At least they don't think so. Yet. Maybe.

If these people were categorizing their relationship on facebook, they would have chosen the "it's complicated" option-know what I mean?

Tiffany was confused about these people, to say the least. How could they not know the nature of their relationship, she wondered. But unlike many of the mysteries of the universe, I actually had an answer to this question.

"I know what that guy is to her", I said.

"Really? What?"

"He's a Diet Coke".

Diet Coke relationships are unfamiliar to people with full emotional health, but I am not one of those people. So I can speak from personal experience, for the benefit of those that (happily) are unfamiliar with Diet Coke Relationships.

A Diet Coke is not as good as a regular Coke, but it tastes almost as good. It makes a reasonable substitute for Coke, when you can't get anything better. And because it has no calories, you don't feel that you're responsible for quite as much as when you drink real Coke. If you get really practiced at drinking Diet Coke, you actually begin to convince yourself that it tastes just as good. This is self-delusion, of course, but it works to the benefit of the drinker. Diet Coke is better for you, after all.

Many modern relationships are like Diet Coke. In these relationships, men and women relate to each other on a deep, personal level. They talk to one another about all subjects, and offer each other great amounts of emotional nourishment. They comfort each other, share all the details of their lives with each other, and give each other all sorts of encouragement and praise. In fact, they do all the things that dating couples do-with notable exceptions. They don't kiss, say they're dating, or plan their futures together.

So if you're in a "Diet Coke relationship", you will find that your relational needs are being met-almost. And "almost" is as close as you're ever going to get from that relationship. Usually, every Diet Coke relationship has one partner who wishes that it was more than that. But he/she is wishing in vain. The other partner will never consent, even though the feelings between them are strong. The reason for this brings us to another feature of the Diet Coke relationship:

Diet Coke relationships allow the participants to have most of the benefits of a dating relatonship, but without the commitment or responsibility of a real boyfriend/girlfriend. Diet Coke relationships don't turn into real dating relationships because one partner finds it so much more comfortable to keep things as the are. But they rarely revert to being mere friendships, because one partner wants more than that.

But there is an even bigger problem here than having a real relationship dangled just out of your reach. As I said before, prolonged exposure to Diet Coke causes a person to start thinking that it tastes as good as regular Coke. Given the option, such a person might continue to drink Diet Coke, even when regular Coke is available. Just so, the members of a Diet Coke relationship may continue to spend time on each other, even though they might have a shot at a real relatonship with someone else. Furthermore, they may take enough comfort in their relationship with each otherto discourage them from seeking out a real relationship with anyone else. But here is where my analogy breaks down, for Diet Coke is a healthier substitute for regular Coke. But Diet Coke relationships are less satisfying versions of real relaionships. The one gives you taste without unwanted calories; the other gives you just enough pleasure to prevent you from getting the emotional nourishment you need.

When I first met Tiffany, I was in one of these relationships. Speaking as a man, I believe that from a biblical perspective, I was to blame for letting this situation develop. Miss R. and I had known each other for years, and we meant a lot to each other, but she had long since made it clear to me that she was not interested in dating. When she said that, I should have just left the whole thing alone. But I did not, and the result was a Diet Coke relationship. She was my Diet Coke, and I was hers. I still wonder if I somehow kept her from forming a healthy relational bond with someone else during that time.

When Tiffany found out about Miss R, I told her that she was my friend. That was true, and it sounded innocent enough. But Tiffany was perceptive enough to sense the Diet Coke-ness about this whole arrangement. Maybe I wasn't "dating" Miss R, but she could still be rightly seen as a rival. And Tiffany didn't like that at all.

So she did the best thing she could have done for me. She asked me to choose between Miss R. and her. The one could continue to have my attentions, and the other I would never see again.

Praise be to God, I chose the real thing.

When I told Miss R. about this, I received a confirmation that both Tiffany and I had made the right decision. Miss R. reacted exactly as a woman could be expeced to react WHEN HER BOYFRIEND LEAVES HER FOR ANOTHER WOMAN. Sure, maybe Miss R. was never my girlfriend, but the bond between us was stronger than any two friends' should have been. If I was to have a successful relationship with Tiffany, that bond had to be severed. Thank God it was.

So here is my advice to all of you who are single: Don't settle for Diet Coke! Have friendships. Date. But never settle for a friendship in the hope that it will develop into a dating relationship. And never foster a close friendship with someone who you know wants to date you. No matter how much they say they are satisfied with friendship, they are lying-perhaps even to themselves. This will cost you some pain in the short term-but in the long run, you and all your beverage-themed relationships will benefit from it.

This is HH, signing off.

A Change Is Happening...

It started a few weeks ago when I said I was going to stop dressing like a vagabond at work. I started wearing skirts. I have lots of nice clothing, I just got lazy with what I was wearing. It has been a short time period, but I really like wearing skirts/dresses a lot. I feel so pretty when I am wearing one. Now, that is all I want to wear! I am really enjoying looking so cute and feeling so feminine. I bought several new outfits from my favorite store, Cato, this weekend. I will have HH take some pictures of me so I can post them.



"I feel pretty....Oh so pretty...." :)