Even ugly girls like to dance

I don't know what's more difficult... remembering the past or trying to eat enough food to forget about it.

The decision to share my weight loss journey with our readers was a combined effort of both the editor, Barbara Van Reed, and myself. I knew it wasn't going to be easy; however, I hope it hasn't been a waste of paper and ink. More importantly; it hasn't been a waste of my time so I sincerely hope it wasn't a waste of our readers’.

I don't know what happened last summer to make my dream of being healthy and at peace with food such a passionate goal for me. The first time I had the surgery I had just turned 30 years-old; I'm now 62. So that wasn't the driving force. It wasn't because I had a specific event such as a wedding or reunion coming up in 2012. That too has already happened.

My school years were much like the quote from the movie Forrest Gump "Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get."

It was 1967 and like most of the female student body, I had a crush on the senior boy voted most popular. He was such a fine combination of sexy and handsome that it had to be nothing less than Divine intervention for Mr. Sean Connery to live just down the street from our house. (No that's not his real name but this is my story and I can dream, can't I?)

There'd been a flu epidemic spreading across the country and I had the misfortune to be one of those statistics that ended up in the hospital for five days with dehydration. Being the eternal optimist, I couldn't have been more grateful for the entire experience because, you guessed it, I'd lost 40 pounds and felt like it was worth every minute I spent in the bathroom.

My newly found self-confidence and weight loss was making for a more outgoing and happier member of the junior class. So you can imagine my excitement when Mr. Sean Connery called me and asked me to be his date for a special dance that was being held in two weeks at the YMCA. I know it's hard to believe that there was a moment in my life when I could be at a loss for words, but it took every brain cell I had just to get the word "yes" past my lips and into the phone.

For the next two weeks I was the envy of the other members of the female race at Earl Wooster Senior High. Sean would walk me to my classes and would sit with me at lunch. We'd talk about the dance and how excited he was to have me be his date. We passed notes in the hallway as he gave me the details of our date. He said he'd pick me up around 6 p.m. and asked what color I'd like to have my corsage. Suddenly, life was good even for the fat chick.

Friday night came and I was ready and waiting by 5 p.m. The phone rang at 6 and he explained that something had come up but he was sending a cab and we'd meet at the YMCA. That didn't set well with my mother and the cab was turned away when the driver arrived. I was sure life as I knew it had no further importance and would have gladly run away if Sean had just called me when he found out I wasn't going to be there. He didn't of course.

He didn't call on Friday nor did he call or come over to my house at any time during the weekend. On Monday I faded back in with the other invisible girls. By lunch time the rumors and comments were adding up like calories and fat grams at the Dairy Queen. Sean was so angry that I could have been choking on a cheeseburger and all he would've done was hand me a bottle of ketchup.

Mr. Sean, never stood-up for a date before, Connery had not only been stood up but had been stood up by a fat chick. And if that weren't bad enough, the YMCA sponsored dance was "Bring an Ugly Girl to a Dance." There were prizes given for the ugliest girl and special consideration for the guy who had the ugliest date. He thought he had the prizes in the bag.

Continued next week.