... while there are certainly some women who are adverse to the idea of marrying young, most women I know would like to get married as soon as the right man comes along - whether that is when we are 23 or 35. If all the men we date and then live with for 1-3 years each would have the balls to actually propose, I venture a guess that the majority of women would happily say YES. Instead we're stuck watching our clocks tick down while men our own age whine and wallow about not wanting to give up their freedom. Ick.

I'm 5'4" and 130lbs which makes me very thin in today's society but AVERAGE by 1950s standards. I have no trouble fitting into airline seats (I actually have 1-2inches extra on each side of each hip). I imagine that standard airline seats were designed in the 1950s and seat sizes haven't expanded to match our expanding population sizes. If all seats are expanded to match our new average size, then all of us will be forced to pay more, even those of us who fit fine into current seats.

While I certainly don't believe that being obese is a "moral failing" worthy of the derision and scorn our society heaps on those carrying a few extra pounds, the fact remains that 50 years ago the average American was able to maintain a much smaller weight healthily without resorting to fad diets or eating disorders. Being as thin as our current society feels we all somehow should be (like the rail-thin fashion models) is completely unrealistic and unhealthy, but expecting the average person to fit into the same average airline seat that he or she could 50 years ago does not seem overly putative.

I would never say I love you first to a guy, not out of fear of scaring him off, but out of fear that he would say it back out of obligation and not because he actually loved me.

For me I feel more comfortable SHOWING someone I love him by taking genuine interest in what he has to say, doing nice things for him, making it clear that he's becoming an important part of my life. He'll figure it out and say it eventually, and in the meantime maybe he'll start showing me he loves me in return.

I'm in exactly the same boat you are - single mid-twenties med student working 60+ hours per week in the hospital. Here's how I do it:

I have a stock of recipes that keep well as leftovers. Primarily I make soups (I make a kick-ass vegetarian minestrone and chicken tortilla), curries, and stir frys. This has a side benefit of getting all your major food groups in one (or two when you cook rice for the stir fry) pot, plus stretching out a small amount of meat. I cook 2 evenings/week and make 3-4 servings each time. With at least one meal out each weekend with friends this allows me to eat home-cooked food the rest of the week. For lunches I do eat more processed foods - lots of PB&J with fruit and yogurt, but I figure it's a fair sacrifice since I'm getting such balanced dinners.

Also, it makes grocery shopping easier since I pick my 2 meals for the week ahead of time and shop for ingredients once a week. I don't usually plan which days I'll be cooking, but just which meals to make sure to have stuff on hand. If you need recipes let me know in this thread and I'll type in several of my favorites.

Who cares if minivans are lame? Face it - YOU are now part of the hordes of overconsumers pushing this planet over the brink of global warming. When things start falling apart and your children are faced with the consequences, at least you can tell them that mommy and daddy didn't drive them around in an unpopular car. YOU have now become part of the problem - congratulations.

Adipose (otherwise known as fat) tissue is a relatively inert body component when it comes to drug metabolism. While some drugs are stored or consumed by fat tissue, MOST drugs just float happily on by and are only picked up and used by muscle or other organs. From this regard, giving a patient with a high percentage of body fat the dose calculated from their total weight can cause a life-threatening overdose if the drug bypasses the extra fat and concentrates in their vital organs.

While I certainly agree that oncologists should study the issue of appropriate chemo dosing more closely, there are also other reasons why obese women have a lower survival rate than non-obese women from ovarian cancer: ADIPOSE CELLS MAKE ESTROGEN. For patients with estrogen-responsive tumors such as breast, uterine endometrial or ovarian cancers, having more fat tissue increases their total body estrogen which basically works as tumor fertilizer. We absolutely need to study the proper dosage of chemotherapy in women of all sizes, but you can't blame the decreased survival of obese women from breast or gynecological cancers solely to chemo dosing.

Tantrums, talking back, beating up on my little brothers, the whole 9 yards. It was even worse cause I learned to talk early and then read early so I was smarter and more efficient at causing trouble. I had some tumultuous teenage years but managed to get dispatched to college OK and now am 9 months from being a full-fledged doctor. My mom swears I would never have made it if I hadn't been so stubborn and determined practically since birth.

There's certainly a chance your kid will grow up to be an asshole, but I think it's more likely he'll grow up to be extremely successful (although you'll probably have a rocky road for some years to come).