Wednesday, July 10, 2013

I've got a weight problem, I can't wait to eat!!!

I was going through some of my old blog posts today.  For no particular reason, other than killing some time; though in truth I was looking for one post in particular. I finally happened upon the post that I was looking for; one that I wrote more than two years ago called Morbidly Obese.
 
I wrote that post because of two separate incidents where I watched two rather large women devour food in a couple of restaurants that I was eating in when they decided to eat like "a couple of hogs slopping at a trough" (in my best Alabama twang, of course).
 
I was thinking of that post because of something I witnessed this past weekend at a local Piggly Wiggly.  If you're not familiar with Piggly Wiggly, it's a grocery store; and there are many of them here in South Carolina where I live.
Anyway, each Piggly Wiggly has a deli area where they serve hot food on a buffet.  Where I wouldn't necessarily be tempted to eat off a buffet at most any grocery store (or buffet in general); I must say that the food sold off the buffet at my local Piggly Wiggly is excellent.
 
The fried chicken, fried fish, macaroni and cheese, green beans, candied yams, fried okra, peach cobbler, hot rolls and sweet iced tea could have easily come off my mother's table.  The food is just that good.  So good, in fact, that there is always an ample line waiting to be served.
 
Sunday I was in the grocery store picking up a few items. I wasn't there for the buffet; but trust me, there were plenty of people that were. 
One particular customer stuck out in my mind, because she was very loud and very very big.  Without a doubt, she stood out to me because of her size. While I was walking by and lusting after that delicious looking fried chicken, she was placing her order.
 
A few minutes later when I was checking out, she was in the line ahead of me; and she had opened up her box of food in the line and she was standing there eating a chicken leg.
 
While that chicken looked damned good....and it did.  Nothing was so serious that she couldn't have waited until she got her big ass home to start eating that chicken........and licking her fingers, while waiting to check out.
While I will probably never see this woman again, I will certainly remember her as the big greedy woman who couldn't wait to get home to devour that yard bird she was chewing on in line.
I see a lot of overweight people, I know we all do.  You might be overweight yourself. After all, one in three Americans is overweight.  That's one hundred million big collard green eating people in this country.  That's a lot of big people.
Why are there so many overweight people in this country?!?
 
It would be easy.....and foolish to say that they're all just greedy like the woman I observed going at that yard bird; and the other two women from the previous post.
 
I don't believe that greed is the answer across the board, though I do believe it's the answer in many cases.
 
You don't usually become morbidly obese by mistake.  Usually there are a fork and knife involved and not a lot of exercise. Though there are times when health issues do contribute to this problem.
That said, this country seems to have a love affair with greed, both economically and psychologically; and I think that goes without saying.
 
 
In the last few years, a slew of "eating events" have cropped up around the country, dedicated to celebrating the man or woman that can eat the most hot dogs, pies, chicken wings, pizzas....what have you.
Is that a good thing?!? Is it pure entertainment or ultimately does that speak to the lower base desires of human nature?!?  In a world where people are starving and still others struggle to afford healthier foods, should we be celebrating gluttony?!?
When people around the world look at us from the outside looking in, I can understand just why they hate us. We're our own worst enemy.
It seems to me that healthier foods tend to be more expensive than fattening foods.  Fattening foods are usually inexpensive. I think that has something to do with much of what I see in my fellow Americans.  Not to mention the fact that healthier foods are not quite as tasty.
 One thing that happened as a result of that post I wrote back in January of 2011 was that one of my longtime blog mates took offense to the post. She expressed her dismay over the subject matter and how she felt it was mean spirited and never came back to my blog.

When I write these posts, I use a little humor to downplay the seriousness when speaking to each subject.  Though I may be passionate about the topic, I'm not trying to be mean spirited and I don't ever intend on hurting anyone's feelings.
I absolutely love to eat. 
 
I've got a weight problem, I can't wait to eat. 

I don't have a problem making that statement because it's absolutely true.  I make it a point to try and eat healthy foods for the most part and I exercise on a regular basis.  If I didn't exercise and eat healthy at least most of the time, I'd be overweight as well.
 

51 comments:

  1. Lol. I read some of the comments on your first post on this subject. It seems you offended a few people. Which is understandable. If you do a post about people with big heads, big headed people will get upset.

    Anyway, I don't give a whole lot of thought to obesity. Some people are just going to be big(er) people. I do, however, find people eating in inappropriate places, like on the checkout line at the grocery store, to be very annoying. I mean do I really have to hear you snorting and slurping and chewing while I'm riding the city bus?!

    Do I need to hear you smacking your lips while you walk down the street eating a Big Mac?! If you ask me inappropriateness is just as big a problem as obesity. And way more annoying.

    Btw, Reggie, those eating contests have been going on for a very long time. Nothing new about it. I think that sort of thing started with pie eating contests.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Trust me Val, that's not the first time I've offended someone with one of my posts. I'm sure that given the hundreds of blog posts I've written over the years, I've offended just about everyone at least once.

      I suppose I care due to my own health issues. Diabetes killed my father and his mother, my grandmother.

      If I don't eat right and exercise, the simple fact of the matter is that I will die far sooner than if I didn't.

      I hate to see or hear boorish or piglike behavior from anyone.

      Have you noticed all of the television shows devoted to gluttony now?!? Where the host goes here and there eating like a damned dog?!?

      Delete
    2. I actually like those shows, Reggie. Lol. I live vicariously though those shows since I'm not much of a cook, yet.

      Yep, diabetes is at epidemic levels in this country. So, if you already know you have family history of it then you really have to take action.

      Delete
    3. I've been trying to do just that for the last several years Val.

      I wonder though if one day age doesn't catch up with me and doom me to a miserable death.

      Delete
  2. No problem with your article, Reg ... look at it this way ... money ... moooneeey ... poisoned people need health care (jobs) ... and medication (jobs) ... and a very large casket (jobs) ... and so on ...

    ReplyDelete
  3. I didn't think the post was mean spirited. I think we are a nation of over eaters.I've gained a few pounds myself and I got them because I was eating too damned much. A lot of people live in denial Reg.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 'Da Nile ain't just a river in Egypt BayouCreole.

      I didn't intend the post to be mean spirited. There were times in the post and in my comments (as always) I was trying to be a little funny.

      But my intent wasn't to hurt anyone's feelings. I think that the problem was that the offended party was trying to make the post about herself.......I wasn't. The post was about the two gluttonous women I was talking about in my post.

      Delete
  4. I remember that first post. I come from a family of obese people. If they're not morbidly obese, they're super morbidly obese. I'm by far the smallest in the family, and I have to work hard and be real disciplined to stay just below the obese mark on the BMI chart.

    Some people are just naturally predisposed to be larger. I'm one of them. My family is full of them. But it's still not an excuse to be obese. The vast majority of those that are don't have medical conditions, at least not before they put on that weight. Chemicals and additives also play a large part. They not only extend shelf life and add color and flavor, they're full of crap that is extremely unhealthy. Try looking up the definitions of all those scientific words on the labels of pretty much everything prepackaged. I watched a documentary on obesity and food before and it was astonishing. Major corporations put in decades of money and science to make their food as addictive as possible. There's a reason why you can't eat just one Pringle. There's a reason little girls and boys are hitting puberty much much younger than before. The levels of additives, preservatives, chemicals, hormones, and whatever else in a single chicken leg is obscene. Nothing will be done about this because these huge conglomerates have money and politicians on their side. Even the public would rather eat a tasty disgusting porkchop knowing full well what's in it than a dry salad. What makes it worse is that instead of attacking this issue head on and forcing people to take responsibility for their own actions, our society would rather accommodate this gluttonous behavior by calling it an "illness" and classifying them as a protected disability group. Being fat and unwilling to change that should not be held in the same regard as a person missing their legs. And that's what it boils down to. I may get flamed for saying this, but most---and I mean MOST--overweight/obese/fat people are that way because they choose to be. They'd rather eat than workout. They'd rather lay around instead of moving. They'll choose something fried over something fresh. Call that offensive, but don't call it a lie.

    Also, as an FYI, the US was just knocked out of the #1 spot for fattest country in the world this week. We've been beat out by Mexico.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LakiSwirl there are some very very large people on the paternal side of my family. Not only are they large, but many of them are tall too. I'm over six feet tall and I have an aunt taller than me. None of those tall relatives are anywhere near as slim as I am. But they don't eat healthy, nor do they exercise on a regular basis. Most of the older members on that side of my family die far younger than they should.

      By the way, I whole heartedly agree with your assessment on both the things that have been done to our foods and the attitudes of the people that are obese. We could all stand to look in the mirror and understand who has the power to change that condition.

      My BMI usually stays around 24, but I work at it. I exercise regularly and end up eating shit I'd rather laugh at than stick in my pie hole. Sure I'd rather eat a cheeseburger and some fries, but if I do......there are ramifications to that.....so instead, I will have a salad or something grilled or broiled with some steamed vegetables.

      Who in the hell do those Mexicans think they are?!? Don't they know that we're far fatter and lazier than they are.....or we used to be at least. Clearly we need to do better.

      I don't mind telling you that I'm damned angry about that.

      Delete
    2. I'm not a fan of the BMI system to try and judge whether someone is obese or overweight or not. About a month ago, my husband went to get a checkup. He's 6'5" tall and his weight was at 215. According to the BMI, he's considered overweight, yet he looks very slender. Someone would wonder, "Where is the fat?" According to the BMI, relative to my height, I would have to weigh 140 pounds to be in the normal (not overweight range). It doesn't really seem feasible considering how large my breasts are. I have been exercising (though not as much due to a few recent medical complications) and still continue to eat healthy. Yet I don't see being 140 as realistic for me. I'd rather go on how I'm feeling rather than just trying to get to a number.

      I don't understand how people can just stuff their faces. I tend to get full rather quickly. Even now, certain things I used to be able to eat I can no longer really enjoy because my taste buds have changed.

      When I would go to IHOP my favorite thing to eat would be the Stuffed French Toast. Yet the last time when I went, it just seemed entirely too sweet and too much. I just couldn't do it. It takes time to change one's eating habits but once you started leaning towards eating healthier, the stuff you used to eat will seem a bit too rich or too much for your system to handle.

      I still can't get behind diet drinks, though.

      Delete
    3. Wow...the U.S. is now the 2nd fattest? Who would have thought it was possible?

      Delete
    4. Like I said, I'm over six feet tall and my BMI is around 24 this time of year, but it creeps to 25 and above during the winter time. I usually exercise fairly regularly and I'm been called "slim" or "skinny" since I was a youngster. I wonder about the whole BMI thing too.

      There was a time when I went to IHOP that I would order steak and eggs and now I just go with the omelet with the spinach, mushrooms and tomatoes. All things being equal, I'd rather eat the damned steak!!!

      I don't always eat healthy though, once a month a cheeseburger or a nice medium rare steak will find it's way into my pie hole....it happens.

      Delete
    5. Sometimes it's not good to be #1 No Labels.

      Delete
    6. Yeah I'm like Laki (Surprise Surprise since our lives are like mirrors) I am definitely predisposed to being overweight. And to stay thin I eat like a toddler and have to stay very active.

      I however did not find anything offensive about your post. And when I do get a little pudgy I'm EXTRA careful about not doing "fat" things (like eating chicken at the checkout - which I'd never!)

      Delete
    7. I didn't want to offend anyone DianaBoss. But when I write these posts, I rarely write about anything that doesn't end up rubbing someone's rhubarb the wrong way.

      There are a lot of overweight people in my family and diabetes runs rampant. I try to eat healthy and exercise regularly because of that fact.

      Delete
    8. http://blogs.plos.org/obesitypanacea/2012/02/10/why-the-body-mass-index-bmi-is-a-poor-measure-of-your-health/

      Interesting view, indeed...

      Delete
  5. You raise a serious issue, Reggie. I'm glad you posted it. I'll tell you, last November I was in Paris, and I remember, the first morning I went to a restaurant in the food court near where I was staying, and I got some breakfast. My meal was child-sized, in my opinion. I wondered where the rest of the meal was. I was pretty sure I'd have to order something else to fill my stomach. Even the large coffee was, to me, a small coffee that was only half full. But, since stomachs tend to shrink or expand based on the amount of food we eat, it didn't take long for me to realize the small portions were filling me up. In Paris I only saw one obese woman and she was from America. I knew she was American because she asked a waiter where there a Taco Bell was. I mean, how do you go to Paris and then want to go to a Taco Bell? I ate small meals every day I was there, and when I came back to the States, I was turned off by the sight of the food portions that are normal for us Americans. I lost 15 lbs within a month, but then I got back to eating the way ewe eat and I gained it back. its a cultural thing. My sister is big, and all my female cousins are obese.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. C'mon Daij who goes to Paris to go to Taco Hell?!? That doesn't even make sense.

      I have a whole boatload of overweight relatives, people I love. It bothers me because I've already lost family members to obesity related diseases that should have been around decades longer.

      Truth be told, I like to eat too.

      Delete
  6. LMAO......by george OMG Reggie you have resized my thursday. There is a "PIGGLY WIGGLY" well the name says it all. I so wanna visit that venue.

    The pictures in this post lord god why would any one put their body under duress lile that? Unless the disposition is due to a genetic disease by which it would be difficult in some cases to control.

    I personally like to keep my weight at moderately healthy level and luckily in my family folk arent on the large side so seems I may have escaped the fat gene phew.



    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Now don't hate on Piggly Wiggly BareFoot Countessa!! I'm big on the pig!!

      Delete
    2. LOL reggie I aint hating B.C loves her some crispy bacon too :)

      Delete
    3. While I don't eat a lot of pork. I will say that the only thing better than some bacon is twice as much bacon.

      Delete
    4. Sounds good....With all the trimmings and a huge side of ketchup. A bacon butty never fails to quench hunger pangs

      Delete
    5. Yeah bacon does that for me too.....but hold the ketchup.

      Delete
  7. It's funny that you mention Piggly Wiggly. From my hometown, that was the first place that I worked at. It was (and still is) the only grocery store in our small town. If you don't want to pay the higher prices for convenience, then you have to go about five more minutes to get to the Super Wal-Mart.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There was a Piggly Wiggly in the small town in Alabama I'm from too No Labels.....and we've got a Super Walmart too.

      I guess there are a slew of small southern towns just like ours.

      Delete
    2. I miss Super Wal-Mart. Around my area, none of them stay open past 10.

      Delete
    3. Yeah, ya know I don't know if any of the ones around me here in South Carolina stay open 24 hours like the one in my hometown in Alabama.

      Delete
  8. Like Dr. Oz says I don't care about how you look I care about what it is doing to your organs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. GayteKeeper the obesity epidemic is serious. The American Medical Association has classified obesity as a disease. To me that's just silly.

      We're forever labeling everything it seems. The simple facts are that we eat more often than we used to. We intake far more calories than we used to. We've infused our foods with addictives that make us fatter and less healthy; and they make this shit really really good. We don't exercise as much as we used to. Our games and the jobs we work are less active than they used to be. It is what it is and I don't see how it's gonna get any better anytime soon.

      Maybe we'll eat ourselves into extinction?!?

      Delete
  9. Insightful & hilarious entry, Reginald.

    For some people food reps different things: comfort, control, indulgence, reward, even a substitute for sex. You can't take those things away w/out a serious revolt. The key is self-discipline. Once one can actively develop that muscle & continue to exercise it well, ALL vices can be managed, whether that vice be smoking, drinking, drugging, promiscuity, and yes, even over-eating.

    One.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I absolutely agree with what you're saying Moanerplicity. What's sad is that some people act like controlling their eating is completely out of their control.

      Like the entire bag of chips MUST go into their piehole.

      Delete
  10. Vаluable info. Luckу me I found your wеb sіtе aсcіdentally, and I аm ѕhоcκed why
    this twist of fate did nοt tοoκ
    place іn adѵance! I booκmarked it.


    Also visit mу site ... foodie tours san francisco

    ReplyDelete
  11. Like a drug addict, a pimp, a gambler, a con artist. Like someone that has complete disregard for the rules that society places on us. Someone that will not conform. Because they won't or can't matters not to us.

    If we toe the line, we conform, we work every day, dress appropriately, try to eat healthy, and exercise, and try to look and behave as close to the ideal as possible.

    Then why should you disregard everything. Your health, your looks. Why should you just be different and not care??? Be something that you know society frowns upon. How dare you! How dare you be so different! So fat!

    And so we dislike that which is different. That which does not conform. Conform like we do. After all , why should they have all the fun? :))

    Don't hate me Reg, just my theory, just my theory...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DesertFlower this isn't an indictment against overweight people. It's their business what they do. We all know that there will always be people that are either self destructive or aren't interested in societies dictates.

      No one has to conform, we live in a free society. Don't hate me DesertFlower, just my theory, just my theory.

      Delete
  12. Of course it's an indictment! Of course it is! and its okay! I do it all the time also. It'sonly human.

    But you have to look beyond...

    Why should we not indict and criticize a morbidly obese person who so gluttonously eats the chicken at the checkout? Like, who does that?

    It denotes lack of controls, no self discipline, as you say, disinterest of societies dictates,gluttony, and yes, in society that is self destructive.

    Self destructive to self and to the "normal" ones that have to see and live with this!

    My question is, if all of these conditions have a medical and or mental reason. Why aren't we as a society doing more to address these conditions in a medical way!

    Has morbid obesity and it's causes been really studied and researched in depth. I don't think so, not really.

    Because merely telling an obese person, such as the photos you posted, to "control" their diet, is like telling a fish to stop eating. A fish will eat until it explodes because they simply don't possess the mechanism to feel full and stop!

    These are medical conditions. But society isn't addressing them in this manner.

    So are other addictions, and how many rehabs that don't cost a fortune are available?

    It's entirely natural to blame the victim, completely,we wouldn't be human if we didn't, and I do it too.

    But then I catch myself and realize that it's a medical condition. And one for which there is very little assistance available.

    Jes sayin' Reggie, jes sayin' ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm sorry, but I don't agree with that point of view DesertFlower. We're gonna have to agree to disagree; because in almost all instances obesity is something that can be controlled.

      But once again, this isn't an indictment of obese people.

      Sometimes I wonder just who was accountable for what before we had labels.

      Sometimes the simple truth is that it is what it is DesertFlower.

      Delete
    2. Cool, fair enough, we'll agree to disagree! Long as you don't expel me for having an opposing view ;)

      Delete
    3. I don't believe in that.

      I don't believe that everyone that comes to my blog agrees with me, nor should they. The purpose in this and all my posts is to discuss or express opinions.

      I firmly believe that opinions are like assholes, we've all got them and everyone seems to think that everyone elses stinks but theirs. But I'm of the opinion that all opinions are valid.......even if they're pinheaded.

      Thanks for taking the time to express yourself. I always value each and every point of view.

      Delete
  13. I simply could nοt depart your ѕite priоr to suggeѕting that I extremеly loved the uѕual information а pеrѕon ѕupply to your visіtors?
    Ӏѕ goіng tο be
    agaіn regularly to сheсk up оn new
    postѕ

    Alѕo νisіt my page; hcg diet weight loss product

    ReplyDelete
  14. I have lots of views on obese people and think they should be publicly flogged. My question is ... who is the black guy with the morbidly obese white woman?! And the black lady with the heavy on ass? photoshop?

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hello there! Do you know if they make any plugins to safeguard against hackers?

    I'm kinda paranoid about losing everything I've worked hard
    on. Any suggestions?

    Feel free to surf to my web page: weight loss tips

    ReplyDelete
  16. I can defintely appreciate this post. That's another problem we have in America: everything little truth hurts everyone's feelings and too many people have started sugar coating everything to make swallowing the truth easier, which only leads to enabling poor behaviours and actions. I commend your honesty and find it refreshing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sometimes the truth hurts, but we all need to hear the truth sometimes.

      Delete
  17. Eating healthy is extremely expensive. I do 80% of my shopping at Earth Fare (an organic, natural food grocery store). The only reason I can afford to shop there is due to my poor health and my FSA account.

    My weight goes up and down depending on what meds I'm taking.

    There is a reason why every obese is obese. I try not to judge because I have experienced both sides of that coin.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can understand that too. But most of the people in this country that are obese Mlvlatina....or better yet, morbidly obese are obese for an entirely different reason. Eating healthy is expensive compared to the prices of fast fatty foods....that tend to be far less expensive.

      Health problems run rampant in my family. That's why I've made the choice of a lifestyle change, in order to rectify my own issues.

      But yes, there are two sides to every coin.

      Delete