Guess What??? I Have A Neck

Yes it's true.....it is not a rumor......Donna has a neck......I found it only recently......below my chin and above my shoulders....that thing that apparently holds my head in place......I also am feeling a hint of a collar bone....yes an honest to goodness collar bone. My face has become more oval or I guess less round.  I am enjoying seeing my toes and my ankles look like normal ankles. My waist is getting smaller (well not sure I should use the word smaller but not as big as it has been).  My pants are sliding up past my waist when I sit down because there is less to keep them in place and are sliding down when I stand up.  My bra slides up my back too because there are less rolls holding it down. Today, it was cold when I was leaving for my meeting,  I ended up wearing my weigh-in shorts under my jeans....something I would not have been able to do before. The ass and thighs have not gotten the message yet.....but they will eventually.

Last week, I ate only veggies for dinner a few nights.  In fact last week, I ate more veggies then I can ever remember eating. I did have one night during the week when I had to fight the urge to dive into the Valentines Day cookies Jenn was making for work.  The smell of them was nothing but torture!!!! On Saturday, I spent a lot of the day very busy.  I only ate a small amount of food.  I woke up at 3:00 AM and was hungry,  I had to convince myself to stay under my covers and not go out and raid the refrigerator.  I am not normally a middle of the night eater but last night I could hear the food calling me.  I finally fell back to sleep without entering the kitchen.  I woke up hungry but was going to my weigh-in and didn't want to chance messing with my weight.  I was down a little.....enough to hit the 45 pound mark. I was hoping for more but am OK with the small loss because I messed up and a couple of times during the week ate LESS than half of what I was allowed also I had a few weeks of big losses and that can't continue week after week.  Bottom line is I was focused on the 45 pound goal which I hit.

Jenn had me hold a 17 pound bag of dog food and said "picture carrying almost 3 of these around all day".  I had a hard time carrying just the one !!! So I have taken 180 pounds of pressure off my poor knees, I have lost 180 stick of butter or 180 quarter pounders.

Today, when I got another 5 pound star I heard someone say "She is on fire."  That was nice to hear.  And I have to be careful now......people are starting to notice the weight coming off .  This is where I have had an issue before and start to get cocky and not play by the rules.  Not this time though......next stop 50 pounds and another WW charm for my key chain .......I am thinking maybe a Pandora bracelet for all my WW charms might be in my future.

Yes, I still have a long long long way to go but as of now I can stop thinking "we need to get table because I was afraid of fitting in a booth" or "am I going to break that chair?" .....yesterday I sat in a seat at a play and had plenty of room to play with......these may not be big issues for normal people but for me they are all steps in the right direction.  My knees will never be 100% but they can be less painful.

When I was at the play yesterday I had to stand up to let people pass.......I had to keep pulling my pants up....it was pretty funny that I had to grab them quickly before anyone saw my underwear.....LOL....not such a bad problem to have is it?

So on to the next 5 pounds.....the big 50......I am hoping to hit that within a few weeks......maybe then I will take another FB profile picture.....I updated my old one last week but have lost almost 30 pounds since that picture was taken.....

OK time to go cook the brussel sprouts, cabbage and make some more WW Banana Chocolate Chip muffins and start another week in the battle to become a healthier me........

I Can See Clearly Now.......

I got into the shower this morning and things looked great.....by things I mean the shower curtain liner, the walls, shampoo, etc. I was confused.....why did things look crystal clear?????

Yes, you guessed it.....I got in the shower with my glasses on.....ugh.

What happened to my eyesight?  Did it start going downhill around the same time my boobs started heading south??

I was driving somewhere the other day and the sunlight hit my legs.  And what did it see?  Ugh.....I had missed a section while shaving my legs.  Why did I miss a spot?  Because I can't see in the shower.

I quickly I rectified the situation but lord knows what else I missed and who might have seen me with that unsightly patch.

Note to self: inspect legs carefully before exiting the shower......double check the pits too!!

I used to get up in the morning take a shower thrown on a little make up blow dry my hair and off I would go.

Now, I grab for my glasses.  I line up the variety of vitamins and pills I need to take.  I shower.  I put on a lot of make-up. Do you have any idea how hard it is to put on make-up when you can't see it because you can't wear your glasses?   I take a lot of time fixing my hair (oh and I guess they are right that hair runs in cycles because mine is now thicker than it has been in years).  What I used to do in minutes now takes an hour.  And you have seen the finished product......so are you now scratching you head saying......"and that is what she looks like after all that work???"

It figures that as I start to get healthy other  parts of me I wasn't worried about are falling apart.

This morning at my weekly meeting, my leader was asking members about how much weight they had lost.  She then mentioned "the new and improved Donna who was scaring everyone in the class".  We all laughed and I said "I am scaring my family too!!!!"

I am finally feeling the weight coming off.  I feel like I am in a zone and am so afraid I will fall out of it. As of today, I have lost 44.4 pounds.  I am hoping next week to lose that .6 pounds to get to 45 pounds.  Then I can focus on 50. I am moving around a lot easier than before for me that is but still have a long long way to go.

The hard part is when you are as heavy as I have been.......it takes time for people to notice.....not that is should matter to anyone but me but I am shallow and don't mind people asking me if I have lost weight.  Maybe by the time I take off another 40-50 it will be more evident.    

The reflection in the mirror is improving.....when I have my glasses on that is.........

Lose Weight Gain Confidence.......Another Stand Up Comedy Performance...

I don't know what is happening to me.......

In just about every situation I can think of I hate being the center of attention..... I sit in the back row......I gravitate to people I know......I try not to stand out.......

But then I go to my Weight Watcher meeting and this other person I do not know shows up......it is me but willing to get up in front of the class and carry on.......is this the real Donna????

This morning I arrived at my meeting at 9:02.....I weighed in and had another good loss.....I was able to earn another 5 pound star. I was afraid I would miss getting my new star.......

So I ran into the meeting room yelling "I need to get my star!!! I need to get my star!!!"  I ran right up to the front of the room......who the hell do I think I am???

Everyone in the class laughed......I then did my stand up about how great I felt, apologizing for not wearing my make-up since I woke up late and on and on........the people in my class kept laughing, clapping and cheering.  I think I have lost my mind with my weight.

Lord help my class when I hit goal......I may never leave the front of the room.......LOL.

My self-confidence is soaring up while the scale is going down.

41.8 pounds gone.......while sticking to focusing on 5 pounds at a time next up 45 pounds and then I get my 50 pound charm.  They might want to duct tape my mouth.....not to keep food from going in but to keep me quiet......if I show up with my own microphone my class should run for the nearest exit.......

Most of you would not recognize the Donna who shows up on Sunday morning at my meeting.......maybe I can have someone video tape the lunatic who appears pretending to be me and you can see what I mean......

Although most people know I have a great sense of humor but on Sunday I act like I am at the comedy store.......

I am having fun.......although I have a long long way to go.....this is the lightest I have been in 9 years......anything before that was a blur as I don't know how I got from "normal" 30 years ago to the person  who weighed 53 pounds more than I do now at my all time high ( I had dropped a few pounds on my own before starting WW).......

This week I gave up soda and drank more water.....which is great.......except........I was peeing every friggin hour.....I was told my body would adjust to all the water I am consuming......I sure hope it does soon.......I need to sleep and not be up half the night........

Picture a slightly smaller Donna, tired from lack of sleep, water logged and thinking she is the funniest person she has ever met........note I said she has ever met.......everyone else might be thinking.....hhhhhmmmmm......

Goodbye soda.......goodbye cheese......I will miss you.......but I am liking me more which makes it all worth while.......

Gaining A Sense of Humor While Losing Weight......I Guess I Can Be Funny.....

My sense of humor is not for everyone.......it can be sarcastic and I guess at times New Yorkerish (is there such a word?).  As I am losing weight, I am gaining my sense of humor back.  Last weeks entry about the weight on my driver's license got a lot of positive feedback and laughs.  I love to laugh and love to make people laugh.  I do occasionally use "off color" language to make a point and I know that can bother some people but I have to be me and if the word fits I use it.

Today at my Weight Watcher meeting, I had to get up to get another 5 pound star.  My leader asked me how it felt?  I then broke into a 2 minute stand up comedy routine.  Everything from I wore make-up to the meetings for everyone else's benefit, to telling them about my goal to weigh less than what it says on my driver's license so I will no longer appear on "wanted" posters for the FBI to how much more confident I was feeling.....so basically I just rambled on and on.  They laughed and applauded when I was done and I then had the nerve to bow to their applause.  OK have I lost my mind or found myself???

I didn't even get into getting my face waxed so my face looked thinner and I stopped looking like one of the Smith Brothers.

My older brother can be my toughest critic but also will heap on the praise when warranted.  He called me yesterday to say last weeks blog was one of the funniest he had read and called me Erma Bombeck.  Comparing me to her was a HUGE compliment!!!!

So if I feel this way after losing 37.2 pounds what the hell am I going to be like when I hit 50 or 75 pounds??? This could be scary for everyone I know.......LOL.

To think I have taken almost 150 pounds of pressure off my poor knees (4 pounds of pressure for each pound) and I have lost the equivalent of 150 sticks of butter or quarter pounders (which ever you prefer to use for comparison) is amazing even to me......but while losing this weight and I know I have so much more to go........I am seeing changes in me......more than just physical but mental and emotional and in confidence.....so it is not just about the number on the scale it is about the transformation I am going through.

So when I hit 50 pounds gone or 75 pounds gone, I will have to update my stand up routine in order to keep my Sunday morning friends entertained. But I have time to work on the new material.

I have to say that while I was standing up there thinking I was a cross between Joan Rivers and Roseann Barr........inside my head there was a voice saying"what the hell are you doing???"......you know what I was doing????? I was being the old me.......someone I haven't seen for a while.......in fact I hardly recognize her.....but she sure is more fun to be around.......

PS I have to continue to thank my friends and family for their support....

This week I went to lunch with 2 co-workers who helped me when I panicked about eating out by finding me a lunch I could eat.

My friend, Crickett, once again found something I could use......a magnetic pad that I can hang on the fridge where I can plan my meals for the week.

And Jenn.....yes there is always Jenn......reminding me to track.......encouraging me.......being positive and supportive......I don't know if I would have been this successful without her.

My Driver's License Weight.....

One of the first things I had to  when I moved from New York to South Carolina was get a drivers license.

I walked confidently into Dept of Motor Vehicles (or DMV (that's what we called it in NY) in  SC it is listed under the Dept of Public Safety) ready to get my SC license.  Eye test took a few tries.  The lady who took my picture asked if I liked it or wanted a retake.......that was the first hint I was no longer in New York...LOL....a retake in NY is unheard of !!! But also on the application the normal questions sex, height, hair color, eye color and weight.......WHAT.......weight?????????????  In New York, you did not have your weight on your drivers license.  What the hell did they need my weight for??? If a police officer pulled me over was he going to pull out a scale and check my weight?????

So I did what I am sure the majority of ladies do........I lied!!!! Yes, I admit I did not put my true weight on the application.  I did get nervous......I was waiting for the lady taking care of me to either laugh or wheel out the doctor scale and tell me to step up or announce over the loud speaker "Guess what Donna Pizzolongo wants us to believe she weighs??" and then break into laughter like the Peanut's characters.....

But it gets worse.....now I have my CWP (Concealed Weapon Permit.....OK no comments about gun permits and hating the 2nd amendment please....this is my personal decision) anyway.....guess what weight they use....yes my drivers license weight!!

Then I got my Utah permit (OK it allows me to carry concealed in more states.......another personal decision).....guess what weight they use......you got it.

I know I have been asked for my license at stores and other places as a form of ID like when I went to vote....I haven't  heard any snickers as I walk away or seen my picture hanging up in the post office for lying about my weight but I can assure you that once I am below that darn number......I will be getting a new license free from the lie that has existed for the last 15 years.....

It's starting to feel like that permanent record we all supposedly have from kindergarten that follows us through life!!

Well, my goal this year is to finally weigh less than the lie on my driver's license!!!  I think I can do this.....I am only   .6 of a pound from being down 35 pounds ( I hoping to reach that goal next week).

I have a long way to go to get to that drivers license weight....LOL..... you must be wondering what the hell weight I put down....I will never tell....or not until I am way below that weight.

But hopefully this time next year the Dept of Motor Vehicles, SLED,  the FBI and any other government agency that might have a copy of my driver's license, CWP or Utah permit will all be happy to know I am no longer being dishonest about my weight......until then I will drive very slowly and obey all traffic laws to the nth degree.

I am sure right now you would all love to see my drivers license....well not a chance pal.....it is between me, the DMV and God........

New Year, New Reslutions, New Underwear.......

Well, 2014 ended with some positives.....weight loss, enjoyable holidays, Bob well enough to travel to NY to visit his family and a lot of focus on Chapter 3.  I wrote a lot in the two books I am working on......one fiction and one non-fiction. I have stuck with my Rosetta Stone lessons and am actually starting to understand Italian.  My list of firsts I am trying to do has been going well too!!

2015......
The New Year started quietly.  Just watching the ball drop in New York on TV.  I didn't mind starting the year in this manner......I actually enjoyed it.

My resolutions may come off as selfish and maybe they are......most of them are about your truly....

1, Continue to focus on weight loss is first on my list.  I have been more successful the last 3 1/2 months of 2014 then I have been in years!!

2.  Setting aside a specific time for writing each week.  If I want to try and get published then I need to get serious and dedicated to weekly writing.

3.  Continue to try new things as often as possible.  The more I do means I will have more material for my book "The :List" (that is the working title).

4.  Try new meal ideas.

5.  Continue to work on my independence......table for one......going to events as a single......getting used to a world with it  just being me.

6.  Continued focus on Chapter 3.....Chapter 3.....Chapter 3.

7.  And this should have been first on this list......more time with family and friends, more laughter, more time having fun, also knowing that my job is important but it is not my life.  I love my job but need to know when to stop for the day and that it my problem that I have a hard time letting go and need to realize somethings can be done tomorrow......

Well, I think that is sufficient list of resolutions....don't you agree??

As my weight loss progresses I can feel it in my clothes.  I have some tops in smaller sizes so I am able to get by and loose tops are not  too bad to wear.  My pants are getting looser too and that can be a problem.  I am not going to buy new slacks yet.  I will get a few new pairs when I lose another maybe 30 pounds or so.  But underwear......I had to break down and buy some new ones.....in a smaller size......OK they still might be confused with a small parachute but they are smaller folks!!!!!!! Although my ass doesn't appear any smaller you know what I saw today when I looked down at the ground????? Ready..... my toes......yes my toes......which means my stomach is not longer blocking my view of my feet......OK the boobs still take up part of the view but I could see my pretty painted toes. So since my stomach is going down in size there is less to hold those undies in place.  No, I am not shopping at Victoria Secret for the unmentionables....I order them online but a smaller size is a smaller size.  And did you know undies can come in colors other than black and beige??? Yes they come in navy and pink and prints...LOL....and yes I have all of those now.

One last thing.......I really love my Sunday Weight Watcher meeting......I love that I do not know anyone in the class but have formed friendships.  Today, I went early because historically the first meeting for the new year is usually very crowded.  I walked in the door 15 minutes early and was greeted by a group of members yelling Happy New Year which made me laugh. During the meeting I admitted to being a "cheese addict" and announced to the group I had to buy new underwear due to my weight loss which made everyone laugh.  Then I hear a person at the meeting talking about doing a triathlon and another about races she has done.  I said I can't wait for the day I can do a 5K.  The lady who does triathlons said to me....."When you are ready I will do it with you!!".....I started to cry......not tears of sadness....they were tears of happiness....someone believed in me and was willing to reach out to me.  Toward the end of the class I raised my hand and gave a synopsis of the meeting from the time I walked in.....everyone laughed and agreed it was what makes the Sunday group special.  My leader said she had seen me get teary and was glad to know why and that it was for a good reason.  As I was leaving the meeting I heard others talking about the class doing a 5K together....I am getting scared but do believe one day I will be ready to take those steps......in 2015???? I am not sure.....but you never know.......

Happy New Year and see you next week......

So How Did I Do This Week????

OK let's just get it over with.........I was up at the scale this week......but not much at all and definitely much less than I could have been or have been other years.  I am still down a lot from Thanksgiving which means I met my goal of weighing less at the end of the year than I did at the end of November.  I am calling it  a victory for me!!!

On Monday, Jenn and I went to see "It's A Wonderful Life" on the big screen at the Nickelodeon Theatre.  We only purchased plain popcorn and brought our own popcorn topping. Nothing like seeing a Christmas classic in a movie house vs. on TV.

Jenn and I did our annual day before Christmas Eve dinner.  We went to the Cowboy Brazilian Steakhouse. It was one of those places where they come around with the meat on skewers and you can say yes or no. I tried a variety of meats but not too much and asked for small portions. I made wise choices at the salad bar and stayed away from the potato's, rice, rolls and high calorie salad dressings.  I also passed on dessert.  But I did have 2 drinks and that was what put me over my daily allowance of points and put me into using some of my weekly points.


My Christmas Eve strategy worked......for the most part.  I was not able to find turkey salami (I have seen it before) but did use turkey pepperoni in the antipasto along with roasted peppers, black and green olives...... mozzarella, fresh provolone and genoa salami.  I only ate the pepperoni, fresh mozzarella, roasted peppers and olives and passed on the provolone and salami.  There was also blue cheese dip to die for......I put it at the other end of the table with assorted crackers.  Closer to me was the fat free cottage cheese mixed with dry ranch dip with celery in lieu of chips or crackers.  I did have a few pizza bagels but passed on the potato skins.  I had one yes one baked clam.  Instead of the hot dogs wrapped in bacon and covered with brown sugar and butter......I had fat free turkey hot dogs wrapped in turkey bacon with nothing else on top of it.  I did indulge in 2 chocolate chip cookies and had one drink of vodka and low fat fruit punch (15 calories per 16 oz serving). Overall  not too bad!!


Christmas Day, I made stuffed shells for dinner.  I had 4 of them and took my time savoring each bite.  They were yummy!!!!



We cleaned out the fridge of any temptations known as Christmas leftovers. The biggest issue for me was the cookies.......I love the cookies we make at Christmas.  On Christmas Eve, I sent my sister's family home with my favorites....thumbprints.  I also sent the pinwheels....another favorite.  But we still had so many cookies left.  Yesterday, Jenn and I packed them up in two big disposable trays and took them to the Oliver Gospel Mission.  They were delighted for the donation and I was delighted to have the cookies that scream my name gone.  It was also nice to think of them being served for dessert last night to some homeless people.

I did track everything....and I mean everything!!!

I had been reading a lot of entries on the Weight Watchers page on FB and those entries gave me the courage to go to my weigh in this morning. After the meeting, I bought a few new things such as the Power Foods book, the starter kit (which included plates, benito box, a cookbook and a bunch of coupons), two bowls which have a variety of measurements and some of the snacks (pretzel bars, chocolate shakes and sour cream popped snacks).  I think that is a good start for 2015.

While I wasn't perfect this week......I wasn't very bad either.  And we are now past the worst of the holidays......I am not a big New Year's Eve or New Years Day person so I am not concerned as much about this week.

I have ambitious goals for 2015.....but I am not sharing them with you......LOL.  I will of course let you know when I have accomplished them....LOL!!!!

I wish you all a Very Happy New Year filled with only the good things that life has to offer.  And as we say at Weight Watchers.....you can expect to see less of me next year......