CELEBRATING CHRISTMAS YEAR ROUND: YES. THIS WAS ME.

Thursday, February 7, 2013

YES. THIS WAS ME.

Last night a friend sent me these - the first 6 - photos. I used to belong to the Manuscriptors Guild of Houston and these were taken during and after a meeting when we'd all go out for coffee. The ones with the tv tray were at a friend's house. The friend was giving me a ride home and we stopped at his house for something he needed to locate (who knows what - can't recall) where I had tea and thumbed through a book. Anyway, my friend sent me these via email. OMG! I was shocked to see them because I had TRIED to forget I was EVER this large. But photos don't lie. And the sad thing IS, I KNOW what I weighed then - a 'charming 305 pounds. Yes, I lost a LOT of weight once I joined Bally's later that same year. And I KEPT it off for a long time, gaining back to 260 just before I started my new weight loss 'campaign last May 8th. But it made me so sad to realize how much I disliked myself then. The last picture? It was taken this morning just before I headed for Barnes and Noble. My housemate took it. He does better with head shots than full body shots, right? LOL! I do not intend to EVER gain weight again. These photos from my past will be my strength and my reminder of how miserable I was. Finally, I need to say THANK YOU to those of you - my sweet Blogger friends - who continue encouraging me and allowing me to share my progress and my journey! I appreciate you more than you know! You keep me going!

8 comments:

vivian said...: Kai.. you are pretty! you dont know that? take my word for it.
xoxo; February 7, 2013 at 6:33 PM
lori ventimiglia said...: Kai,
You look amazing. I am inspired by you!; February 7, 2013 at 7:37 PM
creativedawn said...: Oh my goodness, Kai...YOU are my HEROINE! I admire your perseverance...your ability to overcome the odds! I just have to say that you looked beautiful - unhealthy, but beautiful. It is the same beauty I see in your recent headshot! Bless you for getting healthy and I pray that you continue to stay healthy!
You are A W E S O M E !; February 8, 2013 at 4:49 AM
kandeland said...: amazing! it's good for you to see those pictures to really show yourself how you are kicking serious ass! awesome Kai! xo; February 8, 2013 at 12:47 PM
Barbara Anne said...: Your lovely complexion is apparent in each of the photos but the photo taken yesterday is the best.

Applause for your determination to feel better and healthier so you can enjoy life and your family for as long as possible! Well done on the weight loss you've accomplished and best wishes for the goal you've set for yourself!

Cheers and hugs for you!!!!; February 8, 2013 at 1:40 PM
CatieAn said...: kai--you are amazing and always beautiful.; February 9, 2013 at 11:54 PM
Susan @ Blackberry Creek said...: You've come a long way, Baby. I'm very proud of you, you gorgeous thing.; February 12, 2013 at 12:26 PM
Hopewell Creek Designs said...: I am so proud of you. I know how hard it is to lose weight,because I start over everyday haha...no really I do and then screw up.Oh and by the way you have beautiful skin!! I love the close up photo your room mate took <3; March 13, 2013 at 7:40 AM

WHAT I'M READING

MOLOKA'I BY ALAN BRENNERT - Rachel is only seven years old when she's torn from her family and isolated in an area of Hawaii reserved for people with Leprosy. This is a very sad, yet very beautifully written account, spanning the years from the late 1800s to the mid 1900s. While the story is a novel, it's based on truth, and as I read, I paused and researched some of what I was reading. I learned so much about Leprosy and how what MOST of the characters in this book actually had compared to the Biblical depiction of the condition. Reaffirmed through not only Rachel's history, but the history and stories of those condemned to live separate from their families and ostracized from mainstream society, was one constant: people learn to live with what they are given. Some retreat, some thrive, some give up. But regardless of circumstances, like Rachel, the fabulously real focal character of Brennert's book, they endure. Moloka'i is 388 pages of wonder. Parts of it will forever haunt me. Parts will bring me to tears years from now. But I will NOT forget it.
THE BUDDHA IN THE ATTIC - At a scant 129 pages, this compact book holds so much intense emotion I could not read it as quickly as I wanted. I had to stop, chew, swallow, and wait for each nuance of each chapter to digest. Narrated by a single (unknown) woman of Japanese heritage, THE BUDDHA IN THE ATTIC is the story of Japanese women pre-WWII, who came to America as promised wives to Japanese men. They arrived with hopes and dreams, fear and excitement, memories and momentos. Each woman carried a different past into her new present. But all carried ONE thing in common - a photo of her husband-to-be. Suffice it to say, all were NOT what the pictures OR the letters promised. This story is a quick moving account of what happened once the women arrived until which time they found themselves in the middle of the second world war and all the fear and prejudice and change it brought. Though the reader never learns the name of the narrator or gets to focus on any one woman, somehow the overview of ALL the women is sufficient to move the story along easily and interestingly. I loved it. I really, really LOVED it!
Noah's Wife 5500 BCE by T.K. Thorne - I've read a lot of novels based on the Bible's Noah. This book is VERY differnt in that it centers almost solely around the woman who was Noah's partner. In this version she is Na'amah, a girl with Asperger's Syndrome, a branch of Autism. I am not quite finished reading this but I had to add it here in hopes that some of you will also read it. Beautifully written, VERY interesting take on the familiar story, and - regardless of the fact that I KNOW how it ends, I am enthralled with this writer's clever portrayal of one who was, in previous versions, all but ignored. BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL BOOK!
Scars by Cheryl Rainfield - OMG! I read this straight through, shivering, crying, remembering ...! The main character, Khendra, is in therapy for sexual abuse which began at age 2. The problem is - her mind is supressing the identity of her abuser. A WORSE problem? Her abuser is trailing her; leaving threats and insidious messages. Khendra also cuts herself. This relieves the pain inside yet leaves physical scars meant to soothe the emotional ones. This book is one you will read until you gasp for air and realize you haven't been breathing! PLEASE, if you want to understand the methods of a predator and the agony of a person being abused, read this book. It isn't pretty. It isn't happy. But it's REAL. And it MAY just help YOU help someone else one day.
Watersmeet by Ellen Jensen Abbott - This book is well over 300 pages and I read it all, but STILL don't know how I feel about it. Let's just say I wish I had been the editor because her premise was awesome. Her execution? Well ...! The story is about a young woman who lives in a society where she and many others are outcasts because of a ruler's mandate. She ends up finding her father, a leader in another realm, and comes to terms with her anger, prejudices, etc. Am I making it sound compelling? NO? Good, because most of it isn't. The author has some really good segments through the book, but there's so much convoluted yakking & silliness in places, it distracts a reader from the good parts. I would not buy this one if I were you! Just my opinion.
Impossible by Nancy Werlin - (Young Adult) If you like to delve into the realm of faeries (and I DO) and want a bit of mystery, puzzle solving, and 'real life' tossed in, along with amazingly good writing, this is the right book. I own several by the author, but so far have read only IMPOSSIBLE. Despite my strong aversion to ANYTHING that even smells of romance novels, I loved this story. The 'romance' was a focal point in the story, but NOT, by any means THE story. This writer knows her stuff! THUMBS UP!
Reckless by Cornelia Funke - the author of the Inkheart trilogy wrote this very strange novel. It's meant to be a take on the Snow White mirror thing, but it jumps around WAY too much and not necessarily in a good way. Her IDEA is magnificent. Her execution left me cold.
The Poison Diaries by Maryrose Wood, Duchess of Northumberland - I picked up this book about the daughter of a man who heals with plants, the man himself, and a very mysterious young man who's called Weed. Read straight through it because I absolutely COULD NOT put it down!
Folly by Marthe Jocelyn - a rather down-in-the-mouth YA book that seems to focus more on building UP to a 'surprise' ending than on anything else. Didn't HATE it. Also didn't LOVE it.
Dark Song by Gale Giles - a girl finds out her family has been living a lie and the lie changes everything, including who she becomes. I couldn't put it down!
Plain Kate by Erin Bow - a young girl who has learned to carve from her father suddenly finds herself an orphan, accused of using a 'witch-blade' by the superstitious town folks. A good story with so many twists!
Stolen by Lucy Christopher - young adult but not just for kids! Very intense story of a young girl who is kidnapped right out from under her parents' noses at an airport. Extremely suspenseful! Very good!
The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter, the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry - for those of you familiar with the author, three words: TYPICAL DAVE BARRY! For those unfamilar, three words: FUNNY, FUNNY, FUNNY! A VERY quick read!
Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman - There is NO doubt in my mind why this was a HUGE bestseller! I LOVED IT!
The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenhauf - a mystery as well as a beautiful story
The Sisters from Hardscrabble Bay by Beverly Jensen - Heartbreakingly wonderful
Knitting by Anne Bartlett - set in Australia, this follows two women and a homeless man's personal journeys - a comforting book!
The Outside Boy by Jeanine Cummins - About Irish 'Travellers' or Gypsies - SOOOOOO GOOD!