Mathoms, etc.

I saw Leonard Nimoy on The Colbert Report last week. He was promoting his book The Full Body Project. They're photographs of nude, plus-sized women. In one shot, he even posed the women ala "Nude Descending a Staircase". Brava to these women for allowing themselves to be photographed in the buff. Read Mr. Nimoy's New York Times interview.

Even Carson Kressley, my favorite of Queer Eye's Fab Five, has a new show 'How to Look Good Naked'. He's on a mission to help women feel good about their body types. Not all of us can be a size 0-2. I cringed when I heard my brother-in-law's sister berate her skinny niece for putting on weight. I couldn't believe my ears when a stick-thin server at my sister's 18th b-day party complained to a co-worker about how fat she is. People grumble about their weight all the time (myself included). And then I hear they had M&M's or brownies and fast food for dinner. Or they wolf down huge portions of food (again, not excluding myself here). Even though we know obesity causes all sorts of medical problems.

It's wonderful that there are people drawing attention to issues of weight, beauty, self image. There's a fine line however between accepting yourself for what you are, and just being content. It's so easy to love my overweight self, sit in front of the TV, eat junk food all day, and just SPREAD. Health and fitness should also be emphasized. Self-acceptance allows change. Self improvement should become the next step. Not quick fixes like diet pills, surgery, starvation, but through a healthier lifestyle. It's a constant struggle.