Let's Go Out to the Lobby!

It occurred to me today while waiting in line for popcorn and a Coke Zero at the movies that the movie theatre concession stand may be one of the last great overlooked sources of fattening goods. Large boxes of candy. Icees. Ice Cream. Nachos. Pretzel Bites with dipping cheeze. Huge buckets of soda and even bigger bags of popcorn.

I always loved Ellen DeGeneres' stand up bit about the movies being the only place where it is acceptable to sit in the dark and shovel food into your mouth like you are starving to death. It's even cool to drop it down the front of your shirt- no one can see you.



Every so often the news flings a story at us about movie theatre popcorn and how bad it is for us, but it's still there. And it hasn't gotten any littler. I mean, the small popcorn is SO small, and the large popcorn is SO LARGE. The "deals" make it even more expensive for you to eat a smaller popcorn and drink a smaller soda. It's cheaper to get a combo with twice as much food! The movie theatre makes the bulk of their money off of concessions regardless if you are gaining in bulk by eating them.

Don't think I am preaching to you, folks. I love movie theatre popcorn. It is the ULTIMATE treat, especially when it is hot and fresh! Today's popcorn was so salty I cursed myself for giving in and will now be retaining water for a month thanks to a momentary lapse in willpower. But the saltiness also kept me from eating the entire bag. So, win win?

And now movie theatres are offering pizza and flatbread sandwiches to go with your nachos and hot dogs. What are we eating here? This can't be any good for us. But if we had healthier selections, would we want them? I remember how gross air popped popcorn tastes compared to the bad stuff. And I would rather have peanut butter cups than carrot sticks.

I wish I could think of some really great alternatives. . .like excellent dark chocolate and fresh, non processed popcorn with no golden flavoring. Really great frozen yogurts with fresh fruit. And no Raisinettes. I hate Raisinettes.

Any ideas, readers? Or do you go to a movie theatre that has some legit program in place? Lemmeknow.

Surrogates and how we feel about ourselves. . .or I am my own Robot.

This weekend my boyfriend and I went to see the Bruce Willis thriller "Surrogates", which was pretty fantastic. And pretty freaky. And pretty most importantly, it made me think- and we all know that thinking leads to blogging. :)

In a nutshell, the movie takes place in the not so distant future in a world where everyone uses robots to do their everyday business. These robots are called surrogates, like the title, and are controlled by their owners with their mind in a contraption called a stem chair. These surrogates are supposed to be you, only better. Bruce Willis' surrogate had hair and no wrinkles, his wife was a beautiful blond with no scars and zero body issues. Some people took it to a whole different level: a hot female surrogate who had been murdered was in reality a big burly dude. The movie was frightening in it's commentary on how the human race is interacting with each other, or not interacting, by first using the Internet and chat rooms and things like facebook and MySpace, and leading to things like the use of surrogates.

I don't REALLY think that we will use robots as people in the future. I mean, not really. The fact that we could possibly have this technology is a little scary, but we all like being ourselves in the flesh, don't we?

And that's what got me thinking.

During the movie, I notice there wasn't a single surrogate that was fat. Or ugly. Or real looking. Everyone had high sculpted cheek bones and washboard abs, fabulous clothes and perfect hair. The world is already drifting towards the "fix what you have" phenomenon of plastic surgery. Botox and Juvederm injections are the norm for Hollywood elite and soccer moms. Reality shows like "Dr. 90210" and "Addicted to Beauty" make getting a boob job look like going through the drive through at McDonald's. All this fixing of ourselves through extreme methods has become so normal.

I wondered if surrogates really became a reality what would happen to us as people? Would we end up being the rolley polley fat people like in the movie "Wall-E" who forget how to walk and take care of ourselves without the use of computers? Or will we become the vanity obsessed creatures like the people in "Surrogates"?

I know that we all want that pill or that diet or that medical procedure that is going to give us everything that we have ever wanted, from younger looking skin to being that thin gorgeous super model. The only way to make our "dreams into reality", in reality, is hard work. Sweat. Making wise choices. To change your outward appearance, you have to make those changes inside too.

Everyday when I look in the mirror, I try to love what I see. It isn't always easy- I have days where nothing fits or my boobs look too big or I see a forming wrinkle and I wig out. But then I take a deep breath. I go for a run or pop in a workout DVD. I decide to pass on the donut and drink a health shake instead, have that extra glass of water. I try to make the healthy decision that will make me feel good inside, and that feel good radiates on the outside of my body.

I may not be the thinnest, but I am healthy. I may not be the youngest, but I never will be the youngest. I'm not a perfect robot. But I love this perfectly imperfect person that I am becoming very much.