Recently I posted about the advantages of Online Friends. Online friends is the term I use for people online with whom I actually communicate via the net. I know who they are, and they know who I am.

There are also people online, rather famous people. People I know, but who don’t have any idea who I am. I call these people “my imaginary friends”.

Here I mention three of them, who I find are imaginary friends worth having.

One of my imaginary friends is Gary Taubes, the science reporter who has university degrees from Harvard, from Stanford, and from Columbia….and not just easy degrees, but in Physics, Aerospace Engineering, and Journalism.

I’ve read his two books, Good Calories Bad Calories (2007) , and Why We Get Fat And What To Do About It (2011), plus I’ve watched his university lectures on YouTube.  As a result of this, I’m convinced Taubes is an intellectual Genius.

Another of my imaginary friends is Tom Naughton, the comedian and writer who produced the movie “Fathead”. I got it from Amazon and watched it several times; watched his YouTube lecture; and have read his blog. As a result of this, I know that Naughton is both intelligent and amusing.

A third imaginary friend is Brad Pilon, a bodybuilder who wrote the e-book, Eat Stop Eat, about the subject of Intermittent Fasting. I bought that book, and read it.  I’ve also watched all of his YouTube videos, and read his blog. As a result of this, I think Pilon is articulate with muscles.

So, recently I saw an online connection between these three people. Tom Naughton did an excellent interview of Gary Taubes. For those interested, it can be found at:

Tom Naughton’s Interview With Gary Taubes

Then, imagine my surprise when Tom Naughton wrote a blog about Intermittent Fasting and mentioned that he had Brad Pilon’s YouTube video.

I suddenly realized….My Imaginary Friends are playing together.

I’m looking forward to an opportunity to “talk” about all of the aspects of diets and dieting that are of interest to me, without censorship by others.

Here, there will only be self-censorship, based on my own personal values and needs, rather than the values or needs of others. After a lifetime spent working to fit into the worlds of others, I find this to be a rather unique opportunity.

As I share my viewpoint about Dieting as a Hobby, some of the subjects I plan to cover here, although not in that order, nor in any particularly organized manner, are…

Weight-loss and maintenance of that weight-loss.
Individual Diets.
Dieting tools.
Dieting organizations.
Differences between Diets.
Food and its allure.
Exercise, or physical activity, as involved with dieting.
Therapy.
The concept of Eating Disorders, and those individual behaviors which are so labeled,
................................              including Anexoria, bulimia, binge disorder, chew and spit.

Writing has always been part of my life, even another one of my Hobbies.
Many years ago, I studied creative writing. I even wrote a couple of romantic novels,
which went unpublished, and a small collection of rejection letters to go with them.
I put that Hobby aside after careful consideration of a Thought that was threaded
through my many ‘how to write fiction’ books. That Thought was that the only reason
to Write was because one had something one needed to say.

After an inner search, I realized that there really wasn’t anything I needed to say.
So I stopped writing as a hobby, and basically limited myself to work-related writing.
Although, I must admit that as a family law attorney, some of my client Declarations
that were filed with the Court were rather fine examples of creative writing.

Now, at this time in my life, I do find that I have something to say.
I Plan to say it here. 

There are many advantages to having Online Friends.
The basic requirement is access to a personal computer.
Location is not a barrier, nor are time-differences.

Age differences between adults; issues of personal appearance;
and differences in health or even grooming habits
tend to be smoothed away.

What remains is the core of the human being.
It is the very essence of a person that gets shared online.

That sense of anonymity that comes with online sharing,
gives even timid people more courage to speak their minds.
And access to a search engine will lead us to others who share common interests.

We can make friends easily and quickly online,
because we aren’t hindered by the daily conventions of society.
We can talk only about the things that interest us,
with people we like, whenever we choose to do so,
and we can totally ignore conversations that aren’t of personal interest.

Online friendships take as much or as little time as one prefers.
Which is usually not the case with in-person friendships.
“Real” life friendships must be nurtured
by meetings, dinners, parties, and get-togethers.
All of these events take time and effort,

For example, if I have people over for dinner,
I have to have a clean house, buy special food, prepare it,
present it in an attractive way, and clean up after.
I have to dress appropriately, and be present all during the event
during which I must spend time visiting with everyone invited,
and the conversation will include subjects in which I’m not interested,
and perhaps would even rather avoid.

For example, if I attend a birthday party,
I have to select, buy and wrap an appropriate gift.
I then dress up, drive there, and spend a specific amount of time being
sociable with the other guests, some of whom I might not know or like,
including the friends and family members of my host/hostess,
involving myself in discussions about things that are of little interest to me.

Then…of course….as someone who continually diets,
the entire food issue is to be considered.
What will they serve? What will I choose to eat?
Can I satisfy the individual rules of my diet and still please my hostess?
Online friendships simply skip the whole process.

I love the convenience of Online Friends

                         
If I wanted people to see me fat, I would have stayed fat.

That’s one of the many reasons I did what it took to lose from 271 lbs down to 115 lbs, and continue the struggle to maintain
my weight-loss. Sometimes I share former fat information with personal acquaintances in real life, and sometimes I don't. It depends on the situation and on my mood.

However, I don't share fat pictures of myself with the general public. Morbidly obese people all look pretty much the same, because no matter where you carry fat, there are only so many places on the body to do so.

Photoshop is so common now, that a fat picture is PROOF of nothing. There is also an element of Freak Show or Circus Fat lady, in the fascination people seem to have in looking at "Before" pictures.

I feel that if anyone needs the "Inspiration" of seeing a Before picture, they can look in the mirror, or watch a weight-loss show on television.

People who knew me fat will remember what I looked like. People who didn't can look in the mirror or watch “The Biggest Loser”. I’m not here to sell a product, only to share my ideas and my life.

During the fat phases of my life, I wore primarily tent dresses and caftans. Below is a music video of California Dreamin' by the Mamas and the Papas.Visualize a fat version of my face on the body of Mama Cass.

I am an Experiment of One,
I continually learn new things about myself, and reaffirm things I’ve previously learned…but had forgotten.

Although we share many commonalities, each of us is different. We are genetically different, as we each have a different blend of ancestors.

Each of us has different life experiences, and many of us have cultural differences. We have different educational backgrounds, and my hierarchy of values will not necessarily match yours.

Because we are different people, what works for me, might not work for you, and vice versa. Each of us is an Experiment of One.

We don’t all have the same likes and dislikes, or the same tastes….even regarding food. It’s not a one-size-fits-all world, and that includes dieting, This means the kind of diet that will be a “good fit” for you, might not work for me at all.

My own Diets, or Food Plans continually fluctuate, due to my many experiments with various diets and food plans. Part of my ongoing Maintenance is a search for a Way of Eating with which I can live comfortably, while staying inside my Maintenance weight range.

My favorite diet would be one where I could eat ALL of EVERYTHING I like, ANYTIME I want, while keeping my weight inside the blue or green areas of my Weight Maintenance Range. Since that diet does not exist, I continually experiment with a variety of diets and food plans.

Are you conducting your own Experiment-of-one?