Category: In the News

must keep eating

I just heard in the news that there’s a woman who must eat every 15 minutes to stay alive.  She eats up to 60 small meals a day, consuming between 5,000 and 8,000 calories per day, yet she cannot gain any weight.   She gets excited if she gains even one pound.  She wears size triple zero clothes.  The doctors say it’s a condition called NPS.

I wonder if I have some type of eating disorder, because I often feel the need to eat big, fattening meals, and I’m unable to lose weight.  🙂  If only there was some important doctor who could offer me some advice…

great quote about France’s soccer boycott

I don’t keep up with soccer (football / futbol), but mixed in with other sports news today I heard of something unusual regarding the 2010 FIFA World Cup.  The players from France’s soccer team boycotted their practice because one of their players was kicked off the team for inappropriate behavior during a game.  If they truly believe they were treated wrongly and unfairly, I could see boycotting a game to make a protest.  I’m not sure how much it helps to boycott your own practices…

France’s coach, Raymond Domenech, was tasked with the job of trying to get his players to practice and be prepared for their match.  Today he said publicly:

“I tried to convince them that what they were doing was an aberration, an imbecility, a stupidity without name.”

I’m pretty sure that’s not the best motivational speech I’ve ever heard.  Maybe something was lost in translation…

how not to relieve shoulder pain

Over the years, people have done countless stupid things.  You could fill a blog documenting such things and never run out of content (and I’m sure somebody is trying).  Albert Einstein supposedly said, “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not even sure about the universe.”   I’ve also heard it said that “the 2 most common elements in the universe are hydrogen and stupidity.”  I’m not going to argue with that.  I suppose stupidity is limitless because imagination is limitless.  Some people use their imagination for good, while some people use it to invent new ways of being stupid.

The reason I’m thinking of that is because of something I heard in the news this week.  A woman in Michigan hurt her shoulder trying to keep her 80-pound Labrador from fighting with her Chihuahuas, and she was unemployed and couldn’t afford to get health care because she had no health insurance.   The pain supposedly became too much to bear, so she became desperate.  The hospital wouldn’t treat her unless it was an emergency, so she borrowed a gun and shot her shoulder, so the hospital would be required to treat her.  On TV, she said she figured this would be better than the pain she was currently dealing with.  Before shooting herself, she put pillows in front of and behind her shoulder, along with an ice pack.

Her plan backfired, though, because the bullet missed all of the affected areas, so the doctors in the emergency room didn’t have to work on her previous problem.   So now she has the shoulder pain and a gunshot wound to deal with.  Afterward, she said, “It didn’t take the pain away.  I figured it would take the pain away from the rotator cuff, where at least I could focus on something else, and maybe they would fix me, you know.  I guess I should have shot a little lower and got the bone and the artery.”  I’m not sure she learned her lesson…

Is it fun to be fat?

Apparently some people really enjoy being fat.  There are a number of bloggers who call themselves “gainers” and document their quest to get fatter.  One blogger named Peter is 5’8″ and 250 pounds, and he is trying to gain more weight.  He has said:

“I love how my weight feels when I run, falling and shaking my body shortly after each step… The only thing I love more than being fat, is getting fatter.”

Uhh… He has also explained that “it feels natural to be fat”.  I don’t know about that, but I have experienced weight gain myself, and it was all natural.  I didn’t have to take any supplements or follow any special non-workout routines.  It just happened.

Peter has also said:

“I talk with many men who are much larger than I am, about their bodies and why they grew so large. They talk about the satisfaction of being full like some people talk about how good they feel after a hard workout or something. Being fat is just what makes them happy.”

Here’s where I think he’s confused (among other things) — I can understand the satisfaction of being full.  When I demolish a pizza buffet and then sit around talking with my friends, it feels good.  That feeling does make you happy.  But being fat doesn’t make me happy.  That’s the difference.  I’m slightly overweight because I love to eat, but I don’t like being fat.  I enjoy playing sports, and hiking, and being able to go places that require walking, without being out of breath all the time.

It’s possible to eat a lot and not be fat, if you maintain a high metabolism.  Then you get to enjoy eating AND enjoy physical activities.  I realize some people may not care about physical activities, so being in good health may not matter so much to them.   But when people get to the point that they get out of breath from tying their shoes, I don’t see how that’s enjoyable.  And then there’s the added health issues of being obese, which aren’t fun at all.

So my conclusion (not that you asked, but you’re still reading), is that it’s not fun to be fat.   But it is very enjoyable to eat, as evidenced by the numerous food conversations we have had here on this blog, particularly our Buffet o’ Bacon series.