I’m in a new book club with some friends from program and we’ve chosen our first book: Invisible Acts of Power by Caroline Myss. I’m about 1/3 of the way through it, and so far I’m really liking it. The book is all about service - and you know how much of a proponent of service I am! So I get to pat myself on the back as I read along. Heh. But seriously, it’s a great read so far and I’m learning a lot of new things about chakras. Before this week, I don’t know that I knew anything, really, about chakras at all. I love all this new age-y type stuff, though, so I’m soaking it all in. I have a feeling I’ll want to buy a book devoted solely to chakras once I’m done this one.

Our bookclub meeting is in less than two weeks - I will be sure to check back in afterwards to tell you how it went. I’m very interested to hear other people’s take on the book, and the insights they gained from it. I’ll share mine in more depth at that time as well.

This obesity map I found on CNN just makes me sad. What will that map look like in 10 or 20 years from now? Completely red? I sure hope not. It scares me to think how unhealthy our nation is, as a whole. And I’m saddened thinking about how many untreated food addicts are out there, floundering around, trying to figure out what’s wrong with them. The dramatic increase in hydrogenated oils in our food supply in recent years plays a large part in this problem. Most people just buy what’s on the shelves in the stores without giving too much thought about the ingredients. That choice is proving to be fatal, as the food industry does not have our best interests at heart. There’s one thing on their minds and that is the almighty dollar. The more addictive they can make a food, the more it will sell. It’s like a group of people in the industry suddenly realized 20 years ago that there are certain foods that are highly addictive like sugar, white flour, and hydrogenated oils, and said, “Let’s load our foods up with these - we’ll sell more of them!” And they did. Now our country is paying the price for that greed, and I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to go back.

I read something I really needed to this morning… and as I sat there letting the message of the reading sink in, I realized a good friend would also benefit from reading it. So this is dedicated to my friend, she knows who she is.

I learn honest through dishonesty, tolerance through intolerance, patience through impatience. -Anonymous

Sometimes we have to see ourselves in action before our character defects become glaring enough to do something about them. While we may abhor our dishonesty, intolerance, impatience and our other selfish traits, without them we wouldn’t know the joy of having them replaced with honesty, tolerance, and patience.

God is willing to help us with our shortcomings, but the amount of help we get is related to how sincere we are in asking for them to be removed. When we are thoroughly dismayed by our attitudes and actions, we are closer to being entirely ready to have God remove our defects of character.

Today I’ll pay special attention to recogninzing my character defects so I can learn from them.

I really love the second line in the reading where we’re reminded that if we didn’t have the defects, we wouldn’t recognize the joy of living with the corresponding asset. And I do believe that our character defects are only assets gone awry over the years. They all served us for a time - we needed them at some point to feel safe, but today they just don’t serve me any more. I know better, healthier ways to stay safe that don’t involve engaging in compulsive behaviors - what a gift that is.

I weighed this morning because I forgot yesterday. I’m down another pound, which puts me at 160.8. That means I have officially lost 120 pounds. Holy moly!

The ironic thing is, I’ve been feeling fat lately… I don’t know if it’s just because my body is shifting again (it does this every few months) or what, but it’s annoying. I also desperately need to get into a good exercise routine to firm up things. There’s just too much loose stuff for my liking. I wonder if I’ll ever be truly happy with my body? Man, I hope so.

WebMD is reporting on a new study about the different types of alcoholics. The findings broke the alcoholics into five different types. This study now gives proof to something the people in 12-step fellowships have known for some time: to qualify as an alcoholic, you don’t have to be one of those stereotypical falling down, living in the gutter, can’t hold a job type drunks. In fact, the lowest percentage of alcoholics fall into that classification.

Here are the five alcoholic types as defined by this study:

The young adult subtype accounts for about 32 percent of U.S. alcoholics. They’re young adults who rarely seek help for alcohol dependence. About 24 years old, they became alcoholics by age 20, on average. They drink less frequently than other alcoholics, but they tend to binge drink when they drink. This is the largest subtype.

The young antisocial subtype comprises 21 percent of U.S. alcoholics. They are 26 years old, on average. More than half have antisocial personality disorder. They tended to start drinking at 15 and became alcoholics by 18 — earlier than other subtypes. They are
more likely to smoke tobacco and pot. The young antisocial subtype and the young adult subtype don’t overlap, Moss tells WebMD.

The functional subtype accounts for about 19 percent of U.S. alcoholics. They’re generally middle-aged, working adults who tend to have stable relationships, more education, and higher incomes than other alcoholics. They tend to drink every other day, often consuming five or more drinks on drinking days.

The intermediate familial subtype makes up nearly 19 percent of U.S. alcoholics. Nearly half have close relatives who are alcoholics. Alcoholics in this subtype typically began drinking by 17 and became alcoholics in their early 30s.

The chronic severe subtype is the rarest subtype, accounting for about 9 percent of U.S. alcoholics. This subtype mainly includes men, has the highest divorce rate, and frequently includes users of illicit drugs.

See? Only 9% of all alcoholics fall into the category of what a lot of people think of when they hear the word alcoholic.