Monday, April 19, 2010

Jenny Craig Diet Results, Week 3

This week on Jenny Craig I found myself feeling "deprived". I spoke with my counselor Kim about this and we came to the conclusion that if I wanted to I could have what she says some clients call "date night" where they go out to eat and have what they want (without going overboard) and adjust the rest of the food for the day accordingly. She also recommended that this should not be done within a day or so of weighing in as there may be an excess of sodium that may cause water to build up thus skewing the results. I must say that I do like the idea but I got a tongue lashing from Mr. B who says that it would be like an alcoholic "just having one" and that I shouldn't cheat. I can see his point of view insofar as it goes except that there's a difference in making healthy choices in a restaurant for 1 meal every week or two and going to a bar and getting shitfaced. I have never thought of my self as a food addict, more one that makes unhealthy choices in what I used to eat. One day (hopefully) I will be off of this Jenny Craig plan and will have to make decisions as to what I am eating without the simplicity of having everything pre-made. I am going to try the "date night" idea and if I go for my weigh-in and have not lost weight, but rather gained I will put an end to the practice.

Anyway... now for this week's results. I have lost another 4.6 pounds this week!! That brings the grand total to 19.6 pounds in 3 weeks!!!!

Check back in next week for the latest results!

Why Same-Sex MARRIAGE Matters

I came across this story this weekend. It is the story of two elderly gay gentlemen who have been in a committed relationship for twenty years. They had assiduously prepared all of the appropriate legal documents they thought were necessary to protect themselves in the event of one or the other becoming incapacitated. What follows next is a horrifying look into why these so-called "legal protections" do not qualify as equal to the protections that marriage affords.

The phrase 'read it and weep" takes on a painful meaning:


Clay and his partner of 20 years, Harold, lived in California. Clay and Harold made diligent efforts to protect their legal rights, and had their legal paperwork in place-wills, powers of attorney, and medical directives, all naming each other. Harold was 88 years old and in frail medical condition, but still living at home with Clay, 77, who was in good health.

One evening, Harold fell down the front steps of their home and was taken to the hospital. Based on their medical directives alone, Clay should have been consulted in Harold's care from the first moment. Tragically, county and health care workers instead refused to allow Clay to see Harold in the hospital. The county then ultimately went one step further by isolating the couple from each other, placing the men in separate nursing homes.

Ignoring Clay's significant role in Harold's life, the county continued to treat Harold like he had no family and went to court seeking the power to make financial decisions on his behalf. Outrageously, the county represented to the judge that Clay was merely Harold's "roommate." The court denied their efforts, but did grant the county limited access to one of Harold's bank accounts to pay for his care.

What happened next is even more chilling: without authority, without determining the value of Clay and Harold's possessions accumulated over the course of their 20 years together or making any effort to determine which items belonged to whom, the county took everything Harold and Clay owned and auctioned off all of their belongings. Adding further insult to grave injury, the county removed Clay from his home and confined him to a nursing home against his will. The county workers then terminated Clay and Harold's lease and surrendered the home they had shared for many years to the landlord.

Three months after he was hospitalized, Harold died in the nursing home. Because of the county's actions, Clay missed the final months he should have had with his partner of 20 years. Compounding this tragedy, Clay has literally nothing left of the home he had shared with Harold or the life he was living up until the day that Harold fell, because he has been unable to recover any of his property. The only memento Clay has is a photo album that Harold painstakingly put together for Clay during the last three months of his life.

This disgraceful story puts an end to the right-wing/conservative bromide that marriage for same-sex couples isn't necessary because they can have all the legal protections they need by using the laws already on the books.

This should not have happened!