As a child at summer camp, I would be forced to take a swimming test in the lake to assess my abilities. Lifeguards would determine how far out we were permitted to swim and then brand us with a beaded bracelet, color coded, just to be safe. The swim test was the sort of thing for which I would take 2 full milligrams of Klonopin today. The beach was expansive, and a far walk from where we were to leave our things and assemble for our tests. Woody Allen would probably liken this to something reminiscent of a holocaust procession to the showers. Fat, shirtless, exposed for a walk to my death. I was to tread water for ten minutes, and swim twenty laps. The ten minutes felt like an eternity. The laps were unthinkable. The water was cold and I could barely breathe. If you fell short of these goals, you would get only limited access to the water, and could not go kayaking. I loved kayaking, but I would always strive for a goal just shy, and make do with a canoe.

I don't know about you but I make most of the purchasing decisions in my household. Not that my husband cannot do it, but come on, he does not want to buy clothes for the kids, groceries, etc.  And I am not alone, women purchase or influence the purchases of 80% of all consumer goods -- trillions of dollars per year.   That is a lot of spending power!  So how can we take this purchasing power and save the environment? 

Kirstie Alley is m-a-a-a-d about rumors (and heavily-edited pics) that suggest she regained the 75 pounds she lost on the Jenny Craig plan. “When I wasn't the Jenny Craig spokesperson anymore, I gained about 10 pounds…but I have since taken it off,” she says. “I’m going to litigate.” Whoa. Three years of fat jokes and now she’s ready to sue? Maybe that’s because Kirstie is planning to roll out her own diet next year.