And not listening. Tina is usually extremely perceptive and Monica knows this. If Monica wasn’t so wrapped up in herself it might dawn on her that Tina is behaving differently!
Perhaps Tina has become much more human than either realize (as has been conjectured previously on these very pages). Body self-consciousness is a very human trait.
It’s usually easier to manage, if only one person is going through a crisis or a moment of self-revelation on a single day. The other friend(s) can listen and respond appropriately.
Here, though, you’ve got two people, each in their own form of turmoil… neither is very well tuned in to the other right now. We saw something a bit like this after Shelly slashed Justin… both were talking, but they weren’t communicating effectively because each was on their own separate wavelength.
Or, maybe it’s just because Monica hasn’t had her coffee yet? Tina, hand over that mug (if you dare!) and have one yourself.
Monica doesn’t want the coffee she wants the cup to beat Tina with. Tina is so not listening to her and I don’t blame Monica a bit. After the 3 or 4th time explaining something I too am tempted to commit 1st to 3rd degree crimes upon the listener. The reason I don’t is filling out the paperwork takes a lot of time and where do you hide the bodies? Though for Monica it would not be a problem all it would take is a few poited remarks. (Another autodebit to the pun jar)
well, its the third time tina has said ‘skinny’ so I think she is entitled to go into a rage… :/
and, Tina started the ‘beat you with a coffee cup’ thing…
M’s mind is in ‘neutral’ while raging – she cannot see how pointless this subject is to Tina, who has *no idea* about how the human body is – she just uses it like you would use a car.. 🙂
I think when Monica is talking to a friend and they are being thick headed she looses it. She hopes her friends are on a similar level as she is. If It was anyone else that she does not know she would just say forget it and leave.
Some people just have a hard time perceiving that not fat can be just as unhealthy. Some are blessed with high metabolism. Or just busy lives or just aren’t emotional eaters. Some can’t imagine that just because you have an awesome shape, you aren’t necessary IN shape. This comic actually brought the realization to me. Not to say it was a big revelation. I think I always figured that.
And to be honest, I get disgusted at my flat tummied friend who wants to be as skinny as possible. She’s not anorexic, she just wants to stay the weight she was when she was a teen. And she can get there. But she looks perfect with 5-10 extra pounds. But it’s her body, so ok. LOL
However, it’s the vanity I dislike. When even an overweight friend talks about dieting, etc. I say, “So long as it’s for health. Don’t ever do it to look better. That’ll come, but never do anything other than to be healthy.”
So Monica is right. And yay for her for realizing. Well, let’s hold the yay until she does something about it. I realize all the time and never do a thing about it.
Oh! One more thing! LOL It does give me some vindication that Monica is going through what I am. That even skinny girls can be as unhealthy as me. That they have to work at being healthy too.
And yes, these are just drawings, but Paul seems to know about females and their different shapes, etc… So, I trust what he puts out there.
‘When even an overweight friend talks about dieting, etc. I say, “So long as it’s for health. Don’t ever do it to look better. That’ll come, but never do anything other than to be healthy.”’
Exactly. That’s what I told this girl. She is now anorexic and she’s even stopped having her period and she can’t stop exercising and not eating because she’s still so “fat”.
Not Preggers. THe mood swings do not start for the first two months. Then begin mildly. As the hormonal balance shifts they get largers depending on the person. Some never have it, some are the queen of the night incarnate. Mood swings happen to everyone. Women tend to be more demonstatable, men just act PO’d.
How do I know?? 4 kids, 4 grandkids. Lived through it all with my sanity relatively intact. Maybe I should change my user name to George Washington? There is this river near by and the british are massing!!!!
All I can say is just wait til the day comes that “skinny” and “healthy” both take a back seat to “still has a pulse”. Yeah, the doctor has successfully scared the crap out of me with some of my test results a few months ago. Made some serious changes to my diet and have been thinking more and more about getting some exercise before this sedentary lifestyle kills me.
Ah the perils of working tech support by day and gaming by night, heh. At least I’ve given up soda (drink flavored spring water now) and dont keep a constant stock of sweets in the house anymore. Baby steps.
Tina’s thought processes are definitely in a rut today.
Maybe some sort of PTSD? Spending a bunch of time stressing out about whether you’ve crossed the irrevocable “A sphinx is now going to rip me into bloody shreds” line, and then facing some world-changing revelations about your possible future… well, it would tend to leave one a bit discombobulated for a while, I suppose.
ugh, you should try caffeine junkies, they will eat soap if it advertises caffeine. it’s even worse when they are detoxing, the first day is fine, the second day they have a headache and the third day they are just plain out homicidal.
Wow, Tina you’re normally not this dense. Maybe it’s just because the conglomerate has spent so long trying to act human and as such has latched onto the societal idea that skinny=perfection and if you’re skinny you don’t need to worry about taking care of yourself. Maybe they just think that for humans, skinny is the ideal and they don’t get why a human would want to improve if they’re already at that ideal.
no.. Tina is not saying much, and you have a caffeine deprived girl getting manic about body issues, getting madder about the repeated ‘skinny’ word… 😮 😮
Been there myself once, GF moaning about ’em, I say something casual, she goes nuts.. time to make a quick exit!!!!
As someone who’s been skinny-out-of-shape most of my life I can relate to M’s frustration here. I’ve had many a similar debate with friends, especially overweight friends, when I say things like “I need to exercise more.” Growing up I just had a really high metabolism which kept me skinny, I just never utilized it to my full benefit. Now that I’m 30, I’m starting to feel (and show) it, and I’m wishing I’d started getting healthy sooner…
Its never too late to start. 🙂 Metabolically and functionally, 17 or 70 muscle works the same way. 🙂
Of course as we age we lose much of the bulky, fast twitch muscle fiber due to natural processes, but you can still obtain good strength over time otherwise.
As I have seen a few comment already, it’s just a matter of starting and then not stopping.
And it’s as much fun to explain that “yep, I’m overweight by this government BMI crap, and I’m not EVER gonna be under a size 10 with these hips – but since I survive triathalons just fine and all my other numbers are stellar, I do NOT “need” to lose weight!” Wish people would just get that health is the Good Thing, and weight is just how you look!
Sooooo, Tina. You guys wanted to come down to the monkey cage and get your jollies torturing all the souls trapped in all those screeching, sentient apes.
I dunno…at least my fat-out-of-shape hasn’t involved any negative numbers from the doctor (other than poundage) until very recently. I managed to be overweight (or obese if you ask some people) with a very healthy blood pressure and low cholesterol numbers for a long time.
Now I have to lose weight until I’m not-as-fat-out-of-shape or maybe not-as-fat-in-shape so I won’t develop cholesterol problems or diabetes. 🙁
Tina- give the coffee mug to Monica let yourself be beaten to death, causing the sugar, lard and caffeine drug stall you operate to close and Monica will be thrown in the slammer put on a restricted diet and the only thing to do is a hour in the exercise yard. The only problem as soon as its ‘lights out’ she would poit to the nearest Crispy Creme…
It certainly would be a puzzling situation for the police. If they succeeded in identifying her, they’d have to explain how a woman previously reported as dead (years ago) has just been killed. If not they’d have a dead “Jane Doe”.
In either case there’s a question as to what the inevitable autopsy would report. We don’t know for sure just how alive, sorta-dead, or mostly-dead Tina’s body actually is.
The alleged killer might get off, on the grounds that s/he could not possibly have just killed a person whose body had clearly been dead for some time… or might be convicted of killing a mysterious “Jane Doe” whose brain showed some signs of dementia but who was otherwise healthy.
Dave- you got a point,and there are lots of evidence of ‘deceased’ people successfully masking their identity for years from the government and their acqaintences until they slip-up. Maybe I should not have used the word ‘death’ but the term ‘irreparbly damaged the operational status of the shell’, we don’t want these ‘things’ set free, like belly-belly-belly… isn’t there enough problems with Nudge on the loose?
I’m sure at the crime scene the police would question any witnesses and they would swear they just bought their morning frappa-crappa-chino from a ‘living’ Tina who is now face down with a coffee mug shoved up her a**. Any volunteers to check the mug for fingerprints?
Justa Wud Turner: I dont think that would happen, more like one of the demons would break through, and give M a fright…
or even another challenge from Phix, she gets a very briused eye, yells about WTH this pain is.. to be suprised by phix, saying ” hey pumkin! you managed to resist it all! there’s a good ‘present’ comin your way…:)”
We know her body isn’t “dead” enough to freak out the folks working at the hospital. Remember…she had to be taken there for her broken arm and came out with a cast. I have yet to meet a single medical professional who does not at a minimum check blood pressure and heart rate no matter what the nature of the concern. 🙂
@Julie: Don’t know if you’ll see this or not – didn’t get a chance to reply til after the new post. But….
Several have mentioned Tina is ‘close enough to alive’ to foolhospital people and equipment – but just a few days ago we saw her walk into a a pharmacy and JediMindTrick the pharmacist and/or the insurance rep on the phone to get meds for Becky. How do we know she didn’t JediMindTrick the hospital ER team setting her broken arm? The Xray tech? The medical records clerk? Etc…etc….Maybe even as far back as the Mexico City morgue?
Considering that when Monica’s demons left her for a moment to show her what life would be like without them she looked just like Tina when she is vacant. I think the Body is very much alive and the brain is doing autopilot. The demons are her sentience not her life support.
I’m sympathising with Monica again. Me = short girl (sans big rack, sadly) who was always skinny-out of shape until two years ago. Being in shape is awesome! Tell Monica to try pole dancing (fitness), worked for me!
You know, I can relate to M’s reaction here. I’m SO damn tired of having to tell people the same thing ten or twelve times without it ever managing to sink through their skulls. Sometimes I think it should be lawful and legal to just call it a wrap at three times and sink the nearest heavy object through their skulls, instead…
Last panel is CRYING OUT to be a (de)motivational poster…. or at least be put on one of those coffee mugs that can hold an entire third of a large pot by itself 😀
Ha! I know this argument. I’ve always been given the “Oh, but you’re so skinny!” thing. Yeah, I don’t gain fat easily, but just as fat doesn’t always mean out-of-shape; skinny doesn’t always mean in-shape. I’m struggling with the exact same thing right now – high cholesterol outta nowhere, crappy food intake, and no excercise. Gotta change my lifestyle, but DAMN if I have any idea how.
A few tips:
1. Don’t count calories. If you eat right and exercise, the calories will take care of themselves.
2. When in doubt, eat like our paleolithic ancestors – veggies, fruit, lean meat.
3. Be persistent but not heroic in your exercise.
4. The best exercise is the one you’ll do.
5. This is all simple, but not easy.
If you eat mostly at restaurants and fast-food places, try to replace at least some of this with your own cooking. You can pick the starting ingredients yourself, and avoid much of the “hidden” fat and sugar in commercially prepared foods. Use herbs and spicesto add savor, in place of butter and oily sauces.
Blood cholesterol depends not only on the cholesterol in your diet (actually a minor contributor!) but on saturated-fat intake as well… animal fat and artificially-hydrogenated cooking oils. Our modern diet has far more of these than the paleolithic hunter-gatherer diet kermit alluded to. Cutting down on these, and substituting unsaturated vegetable/seed oils high in omega-3 fatty acids can make a big difference.
Exercise… gradual and pervasive is better than occasional binges of desperate overwork (and less likely to cause injuries!). Walking or riding a bicycle to nearby stores or appointments is a great way to start. Skip the elevator, take the stairs. If you’re an office worker, get out of your chair more often and walk through the building… a few laps, and up and down the stairs if possible. Go for a 20-minute walk each morning or evening. If your employer offers any sort of during-the-workday exercise program, try it out after you’ve been walking more actively for a month or two.
Use alcohol only in moderation, or cut it out entirely. Ditto with sugary beverages such as soda, and even fruit juice. Diets rich in processed, quickly-digested carbohydrates like these are a big contributor to “metabolic syndrome”, which includes high blood cholesterol and triglycerides, diabetes, and weight gain.
And everything Dave added is true…unless you’re insulin resistant like me. Then your body over-produces insulin…which goes into the liver and gets turned into the bad cholesterol you’ve been warned about. And what produces so much insulin, you ask?
Carbs…all of them (not just the sugars, but the fibers too). If you are insulin resistant, and you reduce your carb intake (which can put restrictions on your veggie and fruit intake), you are more likely to see happier cholesterol numbers. 🙂
(I’d kill for mashed potatoes right about now…but that’s another story.)
sounds like you need a low carb, high protein diet…
and dont believe those moaners who say it is ‘dangerous’ – they didn’t bother to do it properly!!
DO NOT cut out all carbs! Drink *gallons* of water! 🙂
I always read the full label, it may say ‘low fat’ but the carbs are high..
if the carbs are about 40, but the protein more than 20, that will balance out..
BUT dont do it without advice from your doctor! 🙂
A number of years ago, I had a bit of heart trouble, some small vessel constriction that gave me some angina. Because of that, I had a stretch of cardiac rehab. They put me on a low-fat, “cholesterol free” diet, and had me in the rehab gym in the hospital. My bloodwork went to hell. Then I had a car accident and broke my neck, and developed post-surgical type II diabetes as a complication. The dieticians made my diet still stricter, according to government guidelines for diabetics.
I was eating cheese made of oil, and darned little of that, eggs poured out of a carton that tasted like fried styrofoam, ground turkey and skinless chicken, turkey bacon once in a while, cholesterol-free whipped butter-like spread…the list goes on. I was also eating the recommended servings of grains and pasta, which they said were “good for me” according to the government.
My blood sugar was awful, my A1C was 9.5, my cholesterol was terrible…HDL around 20, LDL around 350, trigs were around 45. They tried me on every statin, but I’m allergic to them. They tried cutting everything out of my diet, so I was on no-fat, no cholesterol…and it got worse.
Then my cardiologist wanted me to do the Ornish plan — go Vegan and meditate — to fix my numbers. I told him to blow it out his ear, did my own research, threw out all the plastic food, cut my carbs to about 50-100g a day, and eat bacon, real eggs, real cheese, butter, and real meat. Veggies, I eat when I feel like it. I stay away from most fruit because it sends my blood sugar through the ceiling. I have as little added sugar as possible, and use erythritol as a sweetener (allergic to nutrasweet, stevia tastes bitter to me, and don’t like splenda).
My HDL now is 90+, LDL is around 223, my trigs are 24. (Those numbers are good. The LDL is still a little high, but not evil high.) My doctor wishes he had my HDL. I’ve lost 50 lbs and I don’t feel deprived a bit. The exercise I get these days is a bit of Cane-Fu when the weather is nice.
One of the things I found in my research was the movie “Fat Head”, that debunks a lot of “Supersize Me” and tells the truth about food. (Free on Hulu.)
This strip reminds me of the episode of The Supersizers covering the 20s. That was when dieting first started and between a partying lifestyle and lack of knowledge of nutrients, people were generally thin but unhealthy.
i find it hilarious that this situation is happening, Monica and her Boyfriend have had the exact same conversation as this one with Monica being in Tina’s spot saying ‘but i’m skinny’ while her boyfriend explained that she’s not healthy.
Does anyone else miss the bar? I kinda sorta wanna see it again for nostalgia’s sake…
(And yes, I’m fully aware that I could just click back to an earlier strip… I would like to see it in anew, in a strip I haven’t read yet because it hasn’t been drawn yet… :p)
This is the problem fat people have, too. People assume fat = out of shape, even if you’re healthier than a skinny person. Monica’s just getting it from the other side, poor girl.
Discussion (96) ¬
Out of shape and GRUMPY!
And not listening. Tina is usually extremely perceptive and Monica knows this. If Monica wasn’t so wrapped up in herself it might dawn on her that Tina is behaving differently!
Perhaps Tina has become much more human than either realize (as has been conjectured previously on these very pages). Body self-consciousness is a very human trait.
It’s usually easier to manage, if only one person is going through a crisis or a moment of self-revelation on a single day. The other friend(s) can listen and respond appropriately.
Here, though, you’ve got two people, each in their own form of turmoil… neither is very well tuned in to the other right now. We saw something a bit like this after Shelly slashed Justin… both were talking, but they weren’t communicating effectively because each was on their own separate wavelength.
Or, maybe it’s just because Monica hasn’t had her coffee yet? Tina, hand over that mug (if you dare!) and have one yourself.
Monica doesn’t want the coffee she wants the cup to beat Tina with. Tina is so not listening to her and I don’t blame Monica a bit. After the 3 or 4th time explaining something I too am tempted to commit 1st to 3rd degree crimes upon the listener. The reason I don’t is filling out the paperwork takes a lot of time and where do you hide the bodies? Though for Monica it would not be a problem all it would take is a few poited remarks. (Another autodebit to the pun jar)
Where do you hide the bodies?
I can’t answer that, but remember that a friend will help you move. A real friend will help you move a body.
I was tagged as a “real friend” when I bought my current car and noted that the trunk was big enough for two adults to fit inside. 😛
well, its the third time tina has said ‘skinny’ so I think she is entitled to go into a rage… :/
and, Tina started the ‘beat you with a coffee cup’ thing…
M’s mind is in ‘neutral’ while raging – she cannot see how pointless this subject is to Tina, who has *no idea* about how the human body is – she just uses it like you would use a car.. 🙂
I think when Monica is talking to a friend and they are being thick headed she looses it. She hopes her friends are on a similar level as she is. If It was anyone else that she does not know she would just say forget it and leave.
Some people just have a hard time perceiving that not fat can be just as unhealthy. Some are blessed with high metabolism. Or just busy lives or just aren’t emotional eaters. Some can’t imagine that just because you have an awesome shape, you aren’t necessary IN shape. This comic actually brought the realization to me. Not to say it was a big revelation. I think I always figured that.
And to be honest, I get disgusted at my flat tummied friend who wants to be as skinny as possible. She’s not anorexic, she just wants to stay the weight she was when she was a teen. And she can get there. But she looks perfect with 5-10 extra pounds. But it’s her body, so ok. LOL
However, it’s the vanity I dislike. When even an overweight friend talks about dieting, etc. I say, “So long as it’s for health. Don’t ever do it to look better. That’ll come, but never do anything other than to be healthy.”
So Monica is right. And yay for her for realizing. Well, let’s hold the yay until she does something about it. I realize all the time and never do a thing about it.
Oh! One more thing! LOL It does give me some vindication that Monica is going through what I am. That even skinny girls can be as unhealthy as me. That they have to work at being healthy too.
And yes, these are just drawings, but Paul seems to know about females and their different shapes, etc… So, I trust what he puts out there.
‘When even an overweight friend talks about dieting, etc. I say, “So long as it’s for health. Don’t ever do it to look better. That’ll come, but never do anything other than to be healthy.”’
Exactly. That’s what I told this girl. She is now anorexic and she’s even stopped having her period and she can’t stop exercising and not eating because she’s still so “fat”.
Preggers- I’ve seen this before too… and it hasn’t even BEGAN to get ugly…
Not Preggers. THe mood swings do not start for the first two months. Then begin mildly. As the hormonal balance shifts they get largers depending on the person. Some never have it, some are the queen of the night incarnate. Mood swings happen to everyone. Women tend to be more demonstatable, men just act PO’d.
How do I know?? 4 kids, 4 grandkids. Lived through it all with my sanity relatively intact. Maybe I should change my user name to George Washington? There is this river near by and the british are massing!!!!
Ahhh, Sgt. Howard has had just one thing on his mind since sometime last week. Nothing seems to daunt his thesis.
I’d like “skinny-healthy” too.
I’d settle for hefty-healthy.
I’ll take “healthy”.
I’ll take a pack of Newports.
Well played sir 🙂
Since I’ve never in my life been “skinny” and don’t think it would work on my body…I’ll just take “healthy” too. 🙂
I’m right there with ya.
All I can say is just wait til the day comes that “skinny” and “healthy” both take a back seat to “still has a pulse”. Yeah, the doctor has successfully scared the crap out of me with some of my test results a few months ago. Made some serious changes to my diet and have been thinking more and more about getting some exercise before this sedentary lifestyle kills me.
Ah the perils of working tech support by day and gaming by night, heh. At least I’ve given up soda (drink flavored spring water now) and dont keep a constant stock of sweets in the house anymore. Baby steps.
Well…beating the crap out of Tina would be a good work out.
Agreed. I think I wouldn’t mind jumping in on that action but uhh… Girl Fight upcoming perhaps and then they can both get in a good workout!
Nah. They are both so out of shape, they’ed get pooped before getting a workout.
Still worth it to watch 😀
yes because nothing says attractive like a wardrobe malfunction while caving in your friends face with a coffee mug. maniacal laugh is optional.
Tina’s thought processes are definitely in a rut today.
Maybe some sort of PTSD? Spending a bunch of time stressing out about whether you’ve crossed the irrevocable “A sphinx is now going to rip me into bloody shreds” line, and then facing some world-changing revelations about your possible future… well, it would tend to leave one a bit discombobulated for a while, I suppose.
I think it’s her muffin-top she’s thinking of.
What would a demon collective know about cholesterol anyway.
It’s just down the shelf from the info on Dark Matter.
Why, to better torture their hosts with Guilt laughing about it and using it after Gluttony has done Her thing.
Heh. NOW they’re acting like real friends.
Hah, true enough. I’ve lost count of the times I’d threatened violence against my friends because they weren’t listening to me.
Panel 3 is to treasure… though I always
thought Demon’s (even collectives) were
meant to scare Humans… not the other
way round…
Eli. (still lurking).
No. Tina is witnessing the sight of a coffee addict who is needing their fix. It’s the 4rd most frighting things in the universe.
ugh, you should try caffeine junkies, they will eat soap if it advertises caffeine. it’s even worse when they are detoxing, the first day is fine, the second day they have a headache and the third day they are just plain out homicidal.
Pretty sure that’s what nerf-dweller is talking about.
They can get desperate, too!
http://www.the-whiteboard.com/autotwb1047.html
Meh…she can’t drink the coffee if she’s using the cup to beat Tina though…
no prob!!!
{chug chug chug} { ahhhhh… }
M goes bash, bash!!!! 😀
Is Monica gonna have to smack a demon?
Shelly and Connie entrance in 5 … 4 … 3 …
Get’er Monica!! XD
Wow, Tina you’re normally not this dense. Maybe it’s just because the conglomerate has spent so long trying to act human and as such has latched onto the societal idea that skinny=perfection and if you’re skinny you don’t need to worry about taking care of yourself. Maybe they just think that for humans, skinny is the ideal and they don’t get why a human would want to improve if they’re already at that ideal.
Or… maybe they’re just messing with her. XD
Monica, Tina IS NOT HUMAN. Don’t expect her to understand human things. Demons don’t get out of shape.
Actually – see this strip and the next.
Tina is VERY aware of body issues.
nah.. about as aware as the guy who wonders why its getting hard to get in the car… nah, it *cannot* be that pizza I just gulped down… ??
All I have to say to that is:
BELLY BELLY BELLY BELLY
Monica thinks that she is the one maintaining a recognizable outer shape by squeezing into clothes.
I think she has no idea just how out of shape Tina will fall when trying the all-natural. Or was that all-unnatural?
I’m wondering now if Nudge was the crucial element that held the whole coven together inside Tina. Without her, they seem to be coming apart.
no.. Tina is not saying much, and you have a caffeine deprived girl getting manic about body issues, getting madder about the repeated ‘skinny’ word… 😮 😮
Been there myself once, GF moaning about ’em, I say something casual, she goes nuts.. time to make a quick exit!!!!
I don’t see what her problem is… She’s skinny, jeesh.
You, sir or madam, win.
As someone who’s been skinny-out-of-shape most of my life I can relate to M’s frustration here. I’ve had many a similar debate with friends, especially overweight friends, when I say things like “I need to exercise more.” Growing up I just had a really high metabolism which kept me skinny, I just never utilized it to my full benefit. Now that I’m 30, I’m starting to feel (and show) it, and I’m wishing I’d started getting healthy sooner…
Its never too late to start. 🙂 Metabolically and functionally, 17 or 70 muscle works the same way. 🙂
Of course as we age we lose much of the bulky, fast twitch muscle fiber due to natural processes, but you can still obtain good strength over time otherwise.
As I have seen a few comment already, it’s just a matter of starting and then not stopping.
And it’s as much fun to explain that “yep, I’m overweight by this government BMI crap, and I’m not EVER gonna be under a size 10 with these hips – but since I survive triathalons just fine and all my other numbers are stellar, I do NOT “need” to lose weight!” Wish people would just get that health is the Good Thing, and weight is just how you look!
And on top of all that she’s as cuddly as a honey badger.
Sooooo, Tina. You guys wanted to come down to the monkey cage and get your jollies torturing all the souls trapped in all those screeching, sentient apes.
How’s that vacation working out for you?
trouble is, the brain of most of those type of girls think they are a hippo… 🙁
illiad- And hippos my man are dangerous critters!
I’ll go on record as saying that I’d still rather be “skinny-out-of-shape” than “fat-out-of-shape.”
I dunno…at least my fat-out-of-shape hasn’t involved any negative numbers from the doctor (other than poundage) until very recently. I managed to be overweight (or obese if you ask some people) with a very healthy blood pressure and low cholesterol numbers for a long time.
Now I have to lose weight until I’m not-as-fat-out-of-shape or maybe not-as-fat-in-shape so I won’t develop cholesterol problems or diabetes. 🙁
lucky you!! thing is, as you get older, its’s not so easy for your body to keep it that way though…
Tina- give the coffee mug to Monica let yourself be beaten to death, causing the sugar, lard and caffeine drug stall you operate to close and Monica will be thrown in the slammer put on a restricted diet and the only thing to do is a hour in the exercise yard. The only problem as soon as its ‘lights out’ she would poit to the nearest Crispy Creme…
I’m not sure anyone can be held for the murder of Tina Guzman.
It certainly would be a puzzling situation for the police. If they succeeded in identifying her, they’d have to explain how a woman previously reported as dead (years ago) has just been killed. If not they’d have a dead “Jane Doe”.
In either case there’s a question as to what the inevitable autopsy would report. We don’t know for sure just how alive, sorta-dead, or mostly-dead Tina’s body actually is.
The alleged killer might get off, on the grounds that s/he could not possibly have just killed a person whose body had clearly been dead for some time… or might be convicted of killing a mysterious “Jane Doe” whose brain showed some signs of dementia but who was otherwise healthy.
We just don’t know enough about Tina to predict.
Dave- you got a point,and there are lots of evidence of ‘deceased’ people successfully masking their identity for years from the government and their acqaintences until they slip-up. Maybe I should not have used the word ‘death’ but the term ‘irreparbly damaged the operational status of the shell’, we don’t want these ‘things’ set free, like belly-belly-belly… isn’t there enough problems with Nudge on the loose?
I’m sure at the crime scene the police would question any witnesses and they would swear they just bought their morning frappa-crappa-chino from a ‘living’ Tina who is now face down with a coffee mug shoved up her a**. Any volunteers to check the mug for fingerprints?
Justa Wud Turner: I dont think that would happen, more like one of the demons would break through, and give M a fright…
or even another challenge from Phix, she gets a very briused eye, yells about WTH this pain is.. to be suprised by phix, saying ” hey pumkin! you managed to resist it all! there’s a good ‘present’ comin your way…:)”
We know her body isn’t “dead” enough to freak out the folks working at the hospital. Remember…she had to be taken there for her broken arm and came out with a cast. I have yet to meet a single medical professional who does not at a minimum check blood pressure and heart rate no matter what the nature of the concern. 🙂
I do believe thats the APO perception field…
Last time I was in for a blood pressuire check I fell asleep…
@Julie: Don’t know if you’ll see this or not – didn’t get a chance to reply til after the new post. But….
Several have mentioned Tina is ‘close enough to alive’ to foolhospital people and equipment – but just a few days ago we saw her walk into a a pharmacy and JediMindTrick the pharmacist and/or the insurance rep on the phone to get meds for Becky. How do we know she didn’t JediMindTrick the hospital ER team setting her broken arm? The Xray tech? The medical records clerk? Etc…etc….Maybe even as far back as the Mexico City morgue?
Considering that when Monica’s demons left her for a moment to show her what life would be like without them she looked just like Tina when she is vacant. I think the Body is very much alive and the brain is doing autopilot. The demons are her sentience not her life support.
Sorry I can’t find the page but someone did several days ago.
I’m sympathising with Monica again. Me = short girl (sans big rack, sadly) who was always skinny-out of shape until two years ago. Being in shape is awesome! Tell Monica to try pole dancing (fitness), worked for me!
Gymnastic activities like pole dancing may be difficult, if not dangerous for her attributes.
You know, I can relate to M’s reaction here. I’m SO damn tired of having to tell people the same thing ten or twelve times without it ever managing to sink through their skulls. Sometimes I think it should be lawful and legal to just call it a wrap at three times and sink the nearest heavy object through their skulls, instead…
skinny does not equal healthy…. in fact too much skinng is very much the poster child for very much not healthy…
PS just got the Shelly and companion in the forrest print.. excellent stuff thankyou…
Last panel is CRYING OUT to be a (de)motivational poster…. or at least be put on one of those coffee mugs that can hold an entire third of a large pot by itself 😀
Ha! I know this argument. I’ve always been given the “Oh, but you’re so skinny!” thing. Yeah, I don’t gain fat easily, but just as fat doesn’t always mean out-of-shape; skinny doesn’t always mean in-shape. I’m struggling with the exact same thing right now – high cholesterol outta nowhere, crappy food intake, and no excercise. Gotta change my lifestyle, but DAMN if I have any idea how.
A few tips:
1. Don’t count calories. If you eat right and exercise, the calories will take care of themselves.
2. When in doubt, eat like our paleolithic ancestors – veggies, fruit, lean meat.
3. Be persistent but not heroic in your exercise.
4. The best exercise is the one you’ll do.
5. This is all simple, but not easy.
kermit’s tips are very good ones!
To elaborate a bit…
If you eat mostly at restaurants and fast-food places, try to replace at least some of this with your own cooking. You can pick the starting ingredients yourself, and avoid much of the “hidden” fat and sugar in commercially prepared foods. Use herbs and spicesto add savor, in place of butter and oily sauces.
Blood cholesterol depends not only on the cholesterol in your diet (actually a minor contributor!) but on saturated-fat intake as well… animal fat and artificially-hydrogenated cooking oils. Our modern diet has far more of these than the paleolithic hunter-gatherer diet kermit alluded to. Cutting down on these, and substituting unsaturated vegetable/seed oils high in omega-3 fatty acids can make a big difference.
Exercise… gradual and pervasive is better than occasional binges of desperate overwork (and less likely to cause injuries!). Walking or riding a bicycle to nearby stores or appointments is a great way to start. Skip the elevator, take the stairs. If you’re an office worker, get out of your chair more often and walk through the building… a few laps, and up and down the stairs if possible. Go for a 20-minute walk each morning or evening. If your employer offers any sort of during-the-workday exercise program, try it out after you’ve been walking more actively for a month or two.
Use alcohol only in moderation, or cut it out entirely. Ditto with sugary beverages such as soda, and even fruit juice. Diets rich in processed, quickly-digested carbohydrates like these are a big contributor to “metabolic syndrome”, which includes high blood cholesterol and triglycerides, diabetes, and weight gain.
And everything Dave added is true…unless you’re insulin resistant like me. Then your body over-produces insulin…which goes into the liver and gets turned into the bad cholesterol you’ve been warned about. And what produces so much insulin, you ask?
Carbs…all of them (not just the sugars, but the fibers too). If you are insulin resistant, and you reduce your carb intake (which can put restrictions on your veggie and fruit intake), you are more likely to see happier cholesterol numbers. 🙂
(I’d kill for mashed potatoes right about now…but that’s another story.)
sounds like you need a low carb, high protein diet…
and dont believe those moaners who say it is ‘dangerous’ – they didn’t bother to do it properly!!
DO NOT cut out all carbs! Drink *gallons* of water! 🙂
I always read the full label, it may say ‘low fat’ but the carbs are high..
if the carbs are about 40, but the protein more than 20, that will balance out..
BUT dont do it without advice from your doctor! 🙂
A number of years ago, I had a bit of heart trouble, some small vessel constriction that gave me some angina. Because of that, I had a stretch of cardiac rehab. They put me on a low-fat, “cholesterol free” diet, and had me in the rehab gym in the hospital. My bloodwork went to hell. Then I had a car accident and broke my neck, and developed post-surgical type II diabetes as a complication. The dieticians made my diet still stricter, according to government guidelines for diabetics.
I was eating cheese made of oil, and darned little of that, eggs poured out of a carton that tasted like fried styrofoam, ground turkey and skinless chicken, turkey bacon once in a while, cholesterol-free whipped butter-like spread…the list goes on. I was also eating the recommended servings of grains and pasta, which they said were “good for me” according to the government.
My blood sugar was awful, my A1C was 9.5, my cholesterol was terrible…HDL around 20, LDL around 350, trigs were around 45. They tried me on every statin, but I’m allergic to them. They tried cutting everything out of my diet, so I was on no-fat, no cholesterol…and it got worse.
Then my cardiologist wanted me to do the Ornish plan — go Vegan and meditate — to fix my numbers. I told him to blow it out his ear, did my own research, threw out all the plastic food, cut my carbs to about 50-100g a day, and eat bacon, real eggs, real cheese, butter, and real meat. Veggies, I eat when I feel like it. I stay away from most fruit because it sends my blood sugar through the ceiling. I have as little added sugar as possible, and use erythritol as a sweetener (allergic to nutrasweet, stevia tastes bitter to me, and don’t like splenda).
My HDL now is 90+, LDL is around 223, my trigs are 24. (Those numbers are good. The LDL is still a little high, but not evil high.) My doctor wishes he had my HDL. I’ve lost 50 lbs and I don’t feel deprived a bit. The exercise I get these days is a bit of Cane-Fu when the weather is nice.
One of the things I found in my research was the movie “Fat Head”, that debunks a lot of “Supersize Me” and tells the truth about food. (Free on Hulu.)
This strip reminds me of the episode of The Supersizers covering the 20s. That was when dieting first started and between a partying lifestyle and lack of knowledge of nutrients, people were generally thin but unhealthy.
Um … didn’t she put Daren through something like this in the past?
Here’s Mona’s take; “GIMME COFFEE AND ONLY ONE PERSON WILL GET HURT!!!” 8-o
i find it hilarious that this situation is happening, Monica and her Boyfriend have had the exact same conversation as this one with Monica being in Tina’s spot saying ‘but i’m skinny’ while her boyfriend explained that she’s not healthy.
That was a good laugh. Thanks Paul, I needed that.
*random post*
Does anyone else miss the bar? I kinda sorta wanna see it again for nostalgia’s sake…
(And yes, I’m fully aware that I could just click back to an earlier strip… I would like to see it in anew, in a strip I haven’t read yet because it hasn’t been drawn yet… :p)
This is the problem fat people have, too. People assume fat = out of shape, even if you’re healthier than a skinny person. Monica’s just getting it from the other side, poor girl.