My Girls

Every thursday night I hang out with my girls. My '8 Gothic Vaginas' and I all gather to spend some time out of the house and away from kids (mostly away from kids-- nursing/ young babies are allowed) and have good old-fashioned GIRL talks.

This started over 5 years ago, when a few girlfriends and I started to play volleyball once a week. We started inviting other friends, introducing friends to new people only we knew, and just having fun in general. We played volleyball for almost a year before we got a bit tired of it and started doing other things.

Now, 5 years later, we're still going strong. The members have changed a few times-- some new ones, some seasoned veterans, some have started new chapters in the places they moved to. But, once a GV, always a GV.

The 8GVs who were at the "DEATH BY CHOCOLATE" night, with film-crew for the X-Weighted show. Yes, we all have 'cult' shirts. We don't WEAR them for much ANYTHING else but GV nights, but they make us laugh.

Last night we were going to meet at Moxies for dessert, and then head to the movie 'BABY MAMA". I needed to pick up a book I'm reading, so the carpool of girls I was with and I stopped in at Chapters first. We ended up taking too long, and missed dessert, but no matter, since there's enough calories in that butter on theatre popcorn for me not to feel like I missed out on something!!!

The movie was really funny-- much funnier than I first thought it would be. There were 10 of us last night- a good group of girls. (missed you DJo-- where WERE you-- having a baby?! :) )

And then the Cranston girls drove back home after stopping at another store for a LOT of laughs and a LOT of advice. In true GV fashion, (we somewhat take turns on this--) someone broke down and cried during conversation, (last night, 2 did, but who's counting!) and this week wasn't my week. But NEXT GV night is on Wednesday, and they and their spouses are all invited to my house for the airing of the TV show. It will be MY week to cry, I'm fairly certain. Or maybe ALL of them will be crying of laughter!? lol

So, today I'm in the Swerve Magazine (a small insert into the Calgary Herald Newspaper every Friday). I thought I'd share it with ya'll who don't get this paper.

I know you can't see what it says, so I'll type it out below, if you're interested.

The weighting is the hardest part

Calgarian gets a reality check after signing on to show. by RUTH MYLES

Losing weight is hard enough, but add three young kids, a job, a husband and a camera crew into the mix and many people would run screaming for the Doritos. Debbi Barber, however, took all that as an incentive.

The 27-year-old Calgarian willingly went public with her weight-loss struggle when she signed on for an episode of X-Weighted, the Canadian doc series that tracks participants' battles to lose excess pounds.

"I'm a bit of an attention hog, I guess," Barber says with a laugh. "That was the motivator: knowing that if I didn't get on the show, I would have to lose the weight myself. It was a do-or-die kind of thing." With 50 pounds to ditch in a six-month period, there wasn't a lot of wiggle room in her plan. During the six-month experience, Barber held herself to a killer workout schedule: an hour of cardio six times a week, an hour of weights three times a week and two weekly sessions of two to three hours of training for her fitness-competition routine.

But the series has more on its plate than the physical aspect of weight loss. It digs around in participants' lives, exploring their relationship with food and others. Barber's episode, which opens Season 3 of the series, delves into how weight became an issue in her marriage. "Apart from learning a bit about what to eat, how to exercise, I really learned a lot about who I was and who it was I wanted to be. I just didn't anticipate that much of a personal revelation, as compared to a physical one."

Barber hasn't seen the episode and isn't sure where she'll be watching it, or with whom. "Isn't that the million-dollar question?...I'm afraid of feeling really vulnerable again. I went through a lot of really emotional times during the six months. I don't know if I'll watch it in my bedroom and have everyone else watch it somewhere else."

That said, Barber maintains that she would sign on for the experience again. "In a heartbeat." X-Weighted, Season 3, premieres Wednesday, Slice, Ch. 33, 9 p.m.