Terry,

I, for one, really appreciate the words of wisdom from somebody in the field. So, please, keep lecturing!!

Your comments about the Atkins diet are really right-on. Especially, why does losing 10 pounds have to screw up your body so badly?

Yeah, it does take time to prepare good healthy meals. But it doesn't have to be a gourmet feast each time. There is a huge website http://allrecipes.com/ that has lots of recipes that have even been judged by the readers. I've acquired lots of new recipes that are good & fast (plus, you can print them out for a recipe card, scale down the quantities, etc.)

I, for one, think that making time for myself is worth it. It's a message that I give myself - I'm worth the extra 30-45 minutes to prepare a meal rather than going through the fast food drive through (I eat fast food about once every 5 years).

I've also found a little market that sells organic. Heaven! If you haven't had organic apples, melons, squash, even zucchini & lettuce, you're really missing out. It's hard to go back to a conventional, waxy apple once you've had a juicy crisp organic! After awhile, you can taste the chemicals - especially in root vegetables like carrots. Yeah, it costs a little more. But, like the beauty product, "I'm worth it."