Baby Hippo

My mind is REELING. I think my cultural anthropology course is going to make my head explode... in a good way. It's going to make me think about things I don't want to think about; because they are just too confusing.

In the Nuer tribe, a nomadic group in southern Sudan, they react to babies born with visible deformities in a completely foreign way (to Americans). To the tribe, it is not considered a human baby. If the mother gives birth to such a child, it is thought of (and referred to) as a baby hippopotamus. This way, the baby hippo can be returned to the river where it belongs. It provides a way for the nomadic tribe, in which a person with such a deformity often cannot survive, or will suffer, with a softer way of dealing with the situation. The tribe, even the mother, does not mourn the death of her child, as they don't view it as a child. Anthropologists see this as a way for the tribe to react in both a realistic and compassionate way.

AHHH!!! What do you think of this? I hate it. But I DON'T hate it. I'm so confused.

Anyway, I have not died. I haven't dropped the ball on my weight loss. I've just been a busy bee! My second weigh in for WW is tomorrow. I'm excited to see if I've lost. I've done the 30 Day Shred every day, and I've done great with my points.

Food today?

-oatmeal (with walnuts, almond butter, and butterscotch chips)_
-salad (romaine, carrots, celery, green peppers, cucumber, chick peas, cilantro, and cottage cheese)
-Lean Cuisine (swedish meatballs)
-two apples
-60 calorie yogurt
-handful of nuts
-serving of wheat thins
-grapefruit

AND I still have points for popcorn and a TSP of chocolate chips after class today.

Do you know what's funny?

My husband is doing my 30 Day Shred when I'm not at home. That's right... he's secure in his masculinity. Not enough to let me see him do it, but I'm not sure I want to. Jumping jacks and lunges aren't exactly hot.