Thar she blows! She blow-w-ws!
Latest photos below.
There's a whale sanctuary offshore here (the Pelagos Sanctuary) and there are regular whale-watching tours over the summer. Whales like this part of the Mediterranean, the Ligurian Sea, possibly because it's a bit cooler than other parts. In fact, there used to be a town nearby in Roman times called Costa Balenae, i.e. Whale Coast.
The whale rangers (if that's the right name for them) insist that there is a white whale out there, too. Although, they say it's actually somewhat pinkish rather than the pure white of the legendary whale of Herman Melville's outstanding story.
Since only the rangers seem to have spotted it, and we all know the tradition that sailors tell tall tales, I keep an open mind.
(By the way, if you haven't read Melville's Moby-Dick I invite you to do so. Or reread it. In my opinion, it's the finest novel in the English language.)
I mention this as (a) it's in the news and (b) I want to talk about slimming as I keep being asked about my regime and (c) I'm tired of being a pink whale myself.
I've mentioned this before but when I really need to get weight off I use the Slimming World healthy eating plan.
In brief, you can eat loads and, ideally, you'll eat a wide, healthy range of foods, enough to keep you full (which is where most diets fail) but obviously you'll cut down on (but you don't need to eliminate) the fermented and processed sugars (like cheese, bread, alcohol, chocolate ...) and fats (bacon rind, butter, you know the stuff). There are plenty of substitutes for sugars and fats. This tends to get me a pound or two off each week on average (0.5 - 1 kg) and so after a few weeks or months that makes quite a difference.
My problem is that I got very overweight after my leg was damaged in 2018 and then, just as I was walking properly again, the pandemic came and locked us all indoors. By the end of 2020 I was huge and so losing the 30 kilos (5 stone) I needed to takes time. Every time I go away I lose some control of what I eat. For instance, I went away for four weeks in May/June and, two months later, I am still trying to get back to where I was before I went. Ideally, I want to get to my perfect weight and then it doesn't matter so much if I gain a bit after going out for a pizza with friends or going on holiday as it'll not then take months to get back to target.
I've got about 30lb (13 kg) to lose at the moment.
So here are my honest Pink Whale photos. Tonight, in a newish dusty pink tee-shirt, accompanied by my blue whale (whom I am going to call Baloney), I look like this with no shaping undergarments. Yes, that's my bust in a normal underwired bra, no enhancement, and that's my tummy now.
And me in 2022. Not as big but not slim either.
Anyway, that's me being a pink whale.
If you see any other pink whale, just be glad it's not those pink elephants again.
(These animated psychedelic pachyderms are, of course, from Disney's 1941 classic, Dumbo; another masterpiece.)
Sue x
