I have taken note that I have not updated my blog since August of 2009 and deemed that I should do so before the year ends. Lack of updating has not been because yours truly had nothing to rant or rave about but rather was due to my laziness. I must confess that by nature I am a very lazy person; particularly, when it comes to updating and/or maintaining a journal or a facsimile of same such as a blog. Today while I have several subjects buzzing around in my head, I do not find myself inclined or prepared to expound on any of them. Therefore, I will end the year writing on a somewhat wistful note regarding the overindulgence many of us did over the holidays. Yes folks, it is that time of year when many of us are once again resolving to join a gym or start dieting in order to lose some poundage and obtain a healthier and shapelier physique.
Along those lines, I have just read an amusing article by Dan Fletcher in the January 11, 2010 issue of Time magazine. To paraphrase-be wary as dubious diets have roped in the well-intentioned for generations! William the Conqueror, after becoming too fat to ride his horse, devised an alcohol only diet in 1087. He died later that year; still being fat, after falling drunk off his horse. In 1820 Presbyterian minister Sylvester Graham touted the vegetarian Graham Diet. This was promoted as a cure for not just obesity but also masturbation. Tapeworm pills were marketed as a diet alternative in the 1900s. In 1903 nutritionist Horace Fletcher, also known as the Great Masticator, advised that one should choose their food exactly 32 times and then spit it out. Dr. George Harrop pioneered a skim milk and banana regimen. In the 1960s Dr. Herman Taller was touting his "Calories Don't Count" diet, which let followers binge provided they chased their meals with vegetable oil. In 1966 the Sleeping Beauty diet which advertised that weight loss could be achieved by means of sedation was a hit. While low-carob diets like Atkins and South Beach have earned some doctors approval and millions of followers, other modern diets are considered far-fetched. The cabbage soup diet promised that one could lose 10 pounds in a week. More challenging is the lemonade diet, which requires the brave to subside on a concoction of lemon juice, maple syrup, red pepper, and hot water for 10 days.
I confess that I need and should lose 20 to 25 pounds. However, after considering some of these diets, I am inclined to adopt the William the Conqueror diet; and since I am not an equestrian; I will herewith prepare myself a stiff drink. Wishing everyone a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year!!!
This blog was composed using Dragon Naturally Speaking software. I love this software. Most of the time, it interprets my dictation correctly and saves me mucho tedious (one figure, hunt and peck) typing.
