Small things I am told that in the United States the word 'small' is going out of use. A man, apparently, went into a shop in the U.S.A. and asked for a small tube of toothpaste as he was staying only a night or two and did not want a big tube. The assistant said that they had large, huge, gigantic, enormous, etc, but no small ones. Is this true? Is it also true that in the U.S.A., when you go out for a meal, they always serve up at least twice as much as you can possibly eat? We have a public house (bar?) near us like that.
I don't know about the U.S. but have noticed Canada is going the way of everything "super-sized"....Of course, this fits my theory of why many Canadians are also becoming "super-sized" and it is not a pretty picture!! I have gotten used to ordering meals when I've had to go out and requesting that half of it be placed in a take-home container before I ever start to eat! Now that is ridiculous! Of course, on the other side of that situation is the high-classed, pricey establishments that overcharge you for a sprig of asparagus...go figure?!
I don't think that I have ever been in such a place. It is such a long time that I last ate out that I have almost completely forgotten what it is like. My printer is on the blink, so it will be a further six months before I can think about it. I am trying to reduce my food intake but it is hard.
LOL...sorry Philip...shouldn't laugh but welcome to the calorie reduction club...it seems to hit all of us in the middle years!! And, boy, does it suck!! Maybe the high-classed restaurant is the way to go...they only give you minimal servings so there isn't alot of calories to shovel in and you don't get alot so there's no temptation to try and clean your plate... Speaking of which, did your parents ever tell you that you should eat everything on your plate because of the starving kids in China?
There was no difficulty with my eating everything on my plate when I was younger - it was wartime. We were on rations here and they were quite tiny, I seem to recall. Everyone was quite slim in those days. I remember the bombs coming down. They used to whistle (not a happy tune) and if you hear the blast then you were still alive. I also remember the milkman coming round in his horse and milkcart and a tank going up the road and shrapnel on the road the following morning, still hot. And a row of houses which was there one Sunday morning, but on the following Sunday morning it wasn't. I am not too desparately fat yet but I am going that way a bit. I don't get sufficient exercise, that is the main trouble. These games are very entertaining and quite nerve wracking at times.
I forgot to mention 'set aside'. We have a fair bit of country now which is not grown on at all. It is great for the dogs and I suppose it helps in keeping food production down when we don't need it all. Why we can't just give it away, I don't know. Perhaps that would cause more overpopulation, or perhaps the shipping costs would be prohibitive, I don't know. No doubt there is a good reason for it.
Never heard of what, Hataz? Super-sizing everything? Of course, on that topic, there is a group of overweight people trying to put pressure on the airline industry to build bigger seats on their planes so that they can fit their "super-sized" butts in them... To my way of thinking, when your butt expands enough that it no longer fits into the average seat then it is time to stop the food train and get off! I know that takes will-power and determination, both character traits that are in short supply nowadays, but I think that it is healthier for you in the long run...
hahaha, I'm still relatively fit and I don't have a pot belly...yet Grey, kindly watch the mouth. This is your second warning. Continue that up, and you'll loose posting priveleges for a week.
Super-sizing meals is the way fast food franchizes make more money...I think they may be getting quite a sum from all the weight loss and doctors here who treat poeple who have lost that old characteristic called self- control and responsibility.
True, Billie, we were just watching a show about how everyone wants to blame their weight on their genetics but the reality is that 90% of obese people don't practice self-control and discipline over what they can control in their lives...By that I mean that some of us will never look like Calista Flockheart but you can still look good for your built and height. I mean even in my youth and when I was a real skinny minny, I never took smaller than a size 10 dress and while I have moved up a couple of dress sizes in the 20 years since, I have never stopped trying to keep it under control for health reasons, etc. Nowadays too many people eat like there is no tomorrow and say it's not their fault when their extra-large jogging pants start to look like tights....
Why don't you ask for a half or a quarter of the normal size and offer to pay less in money. I am sure that 'they' would disagree. I can't remember the wartime ration - can anyone?
We still have the "small" size of a lot of things around here... I think for the toothpaste it might have been called something like "personal" sized toothpaste as I've NEVER heard of a "small" size of toothpaste when it comes to labeling. I've never heard of "huge" "gigantic" or "enormous" sizes of toothpaste either though. I HAVE heard of "economy size" and "jumbo" though. For drinks at fast food places a lot of places do NOT offer a size called "small" for their drinks, the normal small size drink is labeled "regular" then comes "large" and "extra-large" and often something larger than that with some name that company made up. "Ultra-mega-huge-humoungoid-super-duper-uber-size it!" Restaraunts around here often have servings about twice the size of what you really need to eat, but I enjoy that as I ask for a "to go" take out food box and take half my meal home as leftovers so that's TWO yummy meals I didn't have to cook! About fat people... sometimes it IS about metabolism and not so much restraint/will power. I developed a severe and SUDDEN weight problem when I was bedridden for about 2-3 years unable to move much or exercise at ALL. I got well enough to start dieting and at the recommended 1200 calories a day I was STILL gaining about 20 pounds ever 6 months, and I was on that resrticted calorie diet for about a YEAR! Now I'm on a different kind of diet than changes your metabolism by what you eat, your body doesn't have carbohydrates (grains and sugars mostly) to burn so it switches to burning your stored fat. Now I've been stubborn and been on this new diet for almost 7 months now and lost over 50 pounds, which has been great for my joints and energy level. Sorry to rant so long but sometimes it bothers me when people think that MOST overweight people get there and stay there just by overeating and that losing weight would be as simple as not eating so much!
It is harder to lose weight when you get older. As you say, Fay, it is a question of metabolism. I am afraid that I saw myself side on in a mirror the other day and it frightened me. I only eat, basically, three times a day - porridge for breakfast, one course for dinner (a normal course) and a sandwich for tea and that is it. I don't know why I don't lose weight? Never mind, no-one is going to cast me as James Bond now - I believe that he had (has?) a sell-by date.
True Faeluna....I am totally aware that weight is a terrible struggle for many people and I didn't want to make it sound like I thought all obesity was from laziness...I'm heavier than I would like to be and I struggle with it alot and find that even though I eat less than a 1/4 of what I used to eat 20 years ago I have more trouble stabilizing my weight than I used to. On the other hand I know that I, and most of the people I know, have problems not with genetics but with learning portion control.. plus finding the time in our busy society to get more exercise...alas, here I sit (again!) at a computer screen!
Sorry folks... I did not intend to imply fat only results from lack of self disipline, for I myself am having a hard time trying to lose the weight I've put on since my back injury. At a recent dr visit in birmingham, I was told to lose somebody and my back would get a lot better. I said " Help me". He said "That too".
