The Poetry Portal Net

Funny, poignant, painful and joyous - That’s the Jessica Fischer’s story as presented on the DVD “What’s So Funny? A transformation of epic proportions.” Jessica was a successful stand up comic who at the young age of 23 looked obesity square in the face and laughed on stage in New York City. She captured audiences with her self-deprecating fat humor.

Then she underwent gastric bypass surgery, lost half of her body weight and suddenly she wasn’t so funny. It turns out former fatty just isn’t as funny as the 300 pound girl making fun of her own obese self. Jessica found herself reinventing her act and herself, while at the same time trying to hold on to who she was before surgery. Can’t we all relate to that?

The film not only features Jessica, but also her support network: parents, brother, sister, friends, and even surgeon Dr. Shaw. Jessica’s sister is course and skeptical, openly criticizing the “easy way out”. She says, “You’re 23! What are you doing? Get off you ass and do something - walk around the block.” But her sister later concedes how hard Jessica worked for her weight loss and that WLS was, in fact, the only option for her. “It was not an easy fix,” she states, “she needed the help. I don’t think she knew how to get out of her own way.”

Dr. Shaw calls Jessie a model patient. He said what weight loss surgery does is open a window to make it possible to change a lifetime of eating behaviors and misconceptions. He said the physical changes from gastric bypass are predictable, “What is more profound than the physical change is the psychological and social changes. Weight loss surgery corrects a medical problem that comes with a lot of social and psychological baggage.”

The best part of this film is that it is real. Weight loss surgery is tough and the road is bumpy and twisted and challenging. It’s tough being fat and it’s tough losing weight. Not just for the comedienne on stage - but for every person brave enough to “take the easy way out.” A definite must-see film for the LivingAfterWLS audience and the people they love.

“WHAT’S SO FUNNY?” follows Jessica’s journey after her surgery. Not only does she lose the weight, but also her drive and ability to perform comedy, which she perceived as her “ticket” into the world of entertainment. While her physical transformation is remarkable, it is the emotional turmoil she experiences afterwards, which is truly life changing and proves to be more than she bargained for.

The DVD “What’s So Funny?” may be purchased directly from Chrysalis Productions, http://www.chrysalisproductions.com/home.html. Chrysalis Productions is a New Jersey based non-profit organization dedicated to the production of human interest, educational, historical and/or socially relevant documentary films designed to inform and enlighten the general public.

Jessica Fischer is a native of Georgetown, MA, Jessica has been performing in New York since 2001. Some favorite roles include the third witch inLady McBroth as part of the La MAMA reading series and LuLu Reilly with the Peterborough Players. She was also seen in the independent film RF. Jessica has performed her stand-up act at venues such as Stand Up New York, New York Comedy Club, Caroline’s on Broadway and The Duplex. She’s also performed regularly at both the Tribal Comedy Hour and The Poole Party at Don’t Tell Mama’s. A theatre arts graduate of Bridgewater State College in MA, Jess is now in rehearsals for a new play by Boston playwright William Donnelly entitled, Host.

Sandra Longo, Producer/Director

Sandra Longo makes her directorial debut with the documentary feature, What’s So Funny? After over a decade in the corporate world, Sandra worked for several years as a personal coach whose specialty was helping others to pursue their life’s dreams. As a result, she felt compelled to pursue her own dream of becoming a filmmaker. A native of the Midwest, Sandra has lived throughout the United States and Bermuda. She and her husband now reside near the Jersey Shore and are parents to two five-year olds adopted from Guatemala. She is currently in production on her second feature documentary, as well as co-producing a television pilot.

Kaye Bailey © 2005 - All Rights Reserved

An award winning journalist and former newspaper editor Kaye Bailey brings expertise in writing and personal experience with gastric bypass surgery to EzineArticles.com. Having spent most of her life overweight Ms. Bailey is strongly empathetic toward the obese, particularly overweight children. This compassion compelled her to found the website http://www.livingafterwls.com, a fast-growing resource of information, understanding and support for the weight loss surgery community.

The LivingAfterWLS.com site is complimented with daily blog. The blog, http://livingafterwls.blogspot.com offers readers the chance to comment or leave feedback about fresh content added daily. This site contains success stories and recipes, general information and WLS inspired topics. Complementing the site is a monthly newsletter titled “You Have Arrived” available exclusively to people who subscribe through the website or the blog.

Advertising Industry | No Comments »

Presenters often tell me that they fear losing their train of thought. When listening to their talks I realized that for many people, the problem is not forgetting the words or main points.

Speakers freeze because they can’t get from point A to point B. They know the next point but they struggle with the transition.
And without transitions you will sound choppy and inexperienced.

So how do you create that smooth flow? First consider your points.
Let’s say your agenda items are

• background history
• current situation
• future trends

You don’t want to simply say “Background history.” You need a lead in.
Your segue can be as basic as “Let’s begin with some background history…” Now choose another transition such as “Next we’ll discuss our current situation…”
A transition can be phrased as a statement or question. “So what do we project for the future of the industry?…..”
In sales presentations it’s very effective to verbalize what the customer is thinking.

“You may be wondering how much does it cost”
“At this point you may be concerned with safety.”
“So what is our track record?”

Transitions are the thread that weaves all the ideas together in a cohesive fashion. They also help the audience to listen and comprehend the message. Transitions are road signs that signal you are making a new point.
Here are a few transitions to bridge to your speaking points:

“That brings me to me next point which is…”

“Now that we’ve discussed advertising, let’s take a look at direct mail…”

“So far we’ve covered compensation and benefits, the next agenda item is training..”

“In addition to cost containment, there is another area I’d like to discuss…”

“Now let’s consider..”

“To begin with let’s take a look at…”

“The next important factor is…”

“I’d like to view the issue from three aspects…”

“Finally, let’s consider…”

Remember to use transitions in all your presentations. You will have more attentive listeners, better retention and they’ll think you’re a real smooth talker!

Diane DiResta, President of DiResta Communications, Inc. is an International speaker, coach, and author of Knockout Presentations: How to Deliver Your Message with Power, Punch, and Pizzazz. To subscribe to Impact Player, a free online newsletter visit http://www.diresta.com.

Better Management | No Comments »

When choosing a college to attend, there are certainly many criteria you will use to select the one that is right for you.

As the first person in my family to attend college, I really had no idea of what to expect before I enroled so I had to figure out for myself exactly what I was getting myself into when choosing a college.

When it comes to choosing your college, here are a few suggestions to help ensure you choose one that is right for you.

1. Visit the campus as early as possible. One of the best things you can do is to visit the campus you’re thinking of attending to get a sense of the city and the school and where you’ll be spending the better part of the next few years of your life should you choose to attend. The sooner you are able to visit the college, the sooner you’ll be able to get a real sense of the city, school and the campus itself.

2. Speak with people who have attended the college. Try to speak with former graduates who attended the college you are thinking of attending. Pick their brain and ask to learn about their experience. Ask them about the city, the campus, the school itself, the social scene. Ask them about anything related to the college experience that you want to know more about.

3. Attend college visits to your high school. Often, colleges will send representatives to your high school to help you learn more about their school. Make sure you take advantage of this and speak with as many of the reps as possible, even those who are from schools you aren’t necessarily interested in. Your initial impression of a school might be a bit different once you get to learn more about it and possibly after experiencing it in person, as in Point #1.

4. Do your budget early on. Estimate how much money you are going to need to complete college well in advance. This is especially true if you are going to live away from home which will increase your costs. If you need financial assistance, you’ll want to ensure well in advance of the application deadlines whether or not you’ll need to apply and whether or not you’ll need to get a job to supplement it.

For more information on college selection, visit http://www.find-your-dream-career.com/college.html Carl Mueller is an Internet entrepreneur and professional recruiter who has written an ebook for career-minded individuals: http://www.RecruiterSecretsRevealed.com Recruiter Secrets Revealed sheds light on job search and career management “secrets” that you can use to supercharge your career and distinguish yourself from other job searchers.

Education Special | No Comments »

“When you arrive at a fork in the road take it.” Yogi Berra, major league baseball Hall of Fame player and coach

Many paths lead to higher performance. The high performance route is individual and unique for every person, team, and organization. There is no one or best way. What works for me, or anyone else, may not work for you. We can’t follow someone else’s path. We need to blaze our own trail.

While no route is exactly the same, successful organization change and improvement efforts cover similar territory. Highly successful organizations have passed most of these change checkpoints and improvement milestones as they move toward ever-higher performance levels:

__ Clear and compelling reasons for changing and improving

__ Balanced focus on people, management, and technology

__ Strong ethic of self-determination

__ Comprehensive and balanced improvement model

__ Clear and compelling picture of our preferred future

__ Three or four core values

__ Definitive statement of purpose, business we’re in, or why we exist

__ Rich and continuous customer/partner performance gap data

__ Intense exploring and searching for new markets and customers

__ High levels of experimentation, pilots, and clumsy tries

__ Robust process for disseminating team and organization learning

__ Three to four strategic imperatives for each annual improvement cycle

__ Direct links between all improvement activities and strategic imperatives

__ Comprehensive and balanced improvement plan

__ Improvement planning structure, process, and discipline

__ Well designed, proven approach to process management

__ Clarity on the preferred types and focus of all teams

__ Well trained team leaders and members

__ Intense levels of technical, management, and leadership skill development

__ Simple customer/partner, innovation, capabilities, improvement, and financial measurements

__ Active feedback loops that foster learning and improvement

__ Flat, decentralized, and team-based organization structure

__ Systems that serve and support customers and partners

__ Extensive and continuous education programs

__ Effective communication strategies, systems, and practices

__ Partner-designed reward and recognition programs within a vibrant appreciation culture

__ Strong development of change champions

__ Support for local initiatives

__ Annual progress reviews and improvement assessments

__ Frequent celebrations of major breakthroughs and small wins

__ Annual refocus and planning for the next year’s improvement cycle

Management teams can use this list in a variety of ways. It could be a simple checklist for the development of improvement strategies and plan. They might have everyone on the team rate how well the organization and/or team is doing in each area now. Or they might have everyone rate the improvement urgency of each of these 31 areas. Another possibility is to have everyone do both rating exercises to provide performance gap data.

Jim Clemmer is a bestselling author and internationally acclaimed keynote speaker, workshop/retreat leader, and management team developer on leadership, change, customer focus, culture, teams, and personal growth. During the last 25 years he has delivered over two thousand customized keynote presentations, workshops, and retreats. Jim’s five international bestselling books include The VIP Strategy, Firing on All Cylinders, Pathways to Performance, Growing the Distance, and The Leader’s Digest. His web site is http://www.clemmer.net/articles.

Better Management | No Comments »

The use of light as a therapeutic tool has a long history, with reports of sunlight being used to treat depression and lethargy over 2000 years ago in ancient Greece and Rome. The use of light in therapy today however stems largely from research carried out in the 1980s that looked at the cycle of depression, and other problems, associated with changes in the seasons of the year.

Many of the body’s functions are regulated by an internal clock which operates on a pattern that repeats roughly every 24 hours and that gives a rhythm to our lives. Indeed, this is often referred to as the body’s circadian rhythm, from the Latin ‘circa dies’ meaning ‘about a day’.

Unlike your kitchen clock or wrist watch, however, which are more often than not powered by batteries these days, your body clock is essentially a chemical clock and is powered by a variety of different environmental factors, the most significant of which is the alternating pattern between daylight to darkness.

In simple terms, as your body senses the fall of darkness it sends out signals, shutting down many of your body’s functions in preparation for sleep. Similarly, as daylight returns, signals are again sent out for these same functions to start up again.

So just how can we apply this knowledge to the treatment of insomnia?

There are three main types of insomnia - initial, or sleep onset, insomnia (difficulty falling asleep), middle insomnia (difficulty remaining asleep through the night) and late, or terminal, insomnia (waking too early in the morning). It is in the first and last of these three that light therapy can be particularly useful.

In the case of initial insomnia your body clock has often shifted so that, instead of sending out the chemical signals to start shutting down at say ten or eleven o’clock in the evening, your body doesn’t start sending out the necessary messages until perhaps one or two o’clock in the morning.

Similarly, at perhaps seven o’clock in the morning, when you should be starting your day, your body clock hasn’t yet started to send out its ‘wake up’ signals and won’t be doing so for perhaps another three or four hours.

To solve this problem, and to re-adjust your body clock, bright light therapy can be used in the morning to get you up and going. If bright light therapy is used for perhaps thirty minutes to an hour each morning for several days, your internal body clock will gradually shift to align itself with your normal sleeping routine.

The same treatment can be applied in the case of late insomnia. In this case your body clock is set too early so that it is telling you to go to bed before it is time to do so and similarly to get up too early.

Here, bright light therapy can again be used to re-adjust your body clock, but now needs to be applied in the evening, rather than in the morning.

Although bright light therapy is being used increasingly to treat insomnia it remains very much a secondary form of treatment and has yet to achieve the prominence that it deserves. It is, however, gaining ground in the treatment of insomnia associated with two specific problems, those of jet lag and shift work, and so it is perhaps only a matter of time before it becomes a far more widely used form of treatment for insomnia generally.

Copyright 2005 Donald Saunders - http://help-me-to-sleep.com

Donald Saunders is the author of a number of health-related publications including “How To Get A Good Night’s Sleep”. Pick up your free copy today and learn the secret to better sleep or visit Help-Me-To-Sleep.com to learn more about insomnia

The Healthy Way | No Comments »