I am really going to China! And I found out I'll be spending a few days in South Korea too! I am so excited!! It'll be about a two week business trip, so I won't get to see all the sights, but I won't have to pay for the hotels and airfare, either! I just found out it's about a SIXTEEN hour flight from DC to Beijing. Ugh! I have always hated long flights, mostly because I am SO uncomfortable for SO LONG. I know I still have a ways to go before there is tons of wiggle room in an airplane seat, but I know that this flight is going to be way more comfortable now that it would have been 70+ pounds ago!

One thing I am nervous about is eating. I've never been to China before and everyone (including another post-op I know whose gone recently) has been warning me that the food is terrible over there. This weekend, I stocked up on protein bars--enough for two each day--just in case I can't eat anything. I also bought some instant regular oatmeal and I'm going to try and pack my unflavored Unjury protein to mix with it--although I'm a bit nervous about packing ziplock baggies of white powder in my suitcase. I've been debating packing the whole freaking 5 lb container, just so it looks more legit. I'm nervous about the food agreeing with me--especially when high sugar for sure makes me vomit--I can just see me having to high tail it out of some important meeting because I ate "sugar rice" or some such Chinese delicacy and now have to puke. I also want to be a good guest and not offend anyone's meal or cooking by refusing it. Fortunately, I have a few days in China with one of my company's employee's who is stationed there, so I'll have a few days to trouble shoot this before all the craziness starts (I hope).

In other news, my highly annoying pattern of losing a pound a day for several days, followed by a several day plateau has been consistent. I lost a pound today after being stuck at the same weight for the last 5 days. I know I shouldn't complain because this is nothing compared to what others are going through (plateau wise), but it is so irritating because these pound a day days get me so hyped up and then it's like 3-7 days of "failure". And, I am so dang impatient to loose the weight. I know my goal is 165, but I really, really just want to be moving into another size range now. I've been hovering at size 22 for FOREVER it seems like. My closet has had size ranges from 20-30 in it, and I want to be moving into the range where NOTHING I own fits, because then I'll really, really, really feel like this surgery did something that I could never have done on my own (I say this partly tongue in cheek because I have NEVER lost 70+ pounds in one stretch before. Ever. So, already this surgery has been excellent).

The lowest I've ever weighed since middle school is 238ish, which I weighed at the tail-end of a year's worth of Weight Watchers in 1999. I am only 16 pounds away from that, which is amazing! Even now, looking through old photos of myself, I can see that my face now is smaller than it is in almost all of those old pictures. :)

My best friend from law school got engaged last month and is planning a 2007 wedding--finally a wedding I can look forward to! I know that by then I will have lost the bulk (if not all) of my excess weight and will be able to wear a regular bridesmaid dress like a regular old bridesmaid! Maybe I will even be planning my OWN wedding then--(hint, hint, Mr. Right--anytime now!).

And finally, my hair. Good god, MUST it continue to fall out? I have really thin hair to begin with and now the top part of my scalp is half nekkid! I have been getting my protein in (although the Dr. said i should try upping it to 80-100g/day, which I haven't been getting) and I've been taking my biotin and still it keeps coming out. I keep threatening to shave my head, but my hair just isn't listening! I even went out and bought a wig the other day (although it looks too fake on for me to consider wearing it for real). Sadly, I've looked ahead to the 6 month post op boards and they are finally getting their hair loss under control. Two more months of this--AHH! This, by the way, is what "no hair" looks like--in case you are wondering.

Feel free to freak out with me!