I’m having a book release party after I run the half-marathon. It’s on Saturday, May 3rd at 3pm at The Milano Inn in Indianapolis. Everyone is invited! But if you are planning on coming, do please RSPV at halfofme@pastaqueen.com so I have an idea of how many people to expect and no one goes hungry. There will be food and games and books for sale. You may win the Fiber Gourmet gift basket! Several people have already told me they’re coming, but I’d like to get as accurate of a count as possible by Tuesday so I can finalize the plans. Thanks! Hope to see you there.
Also, if you live in the Indianapolis area, I’m scheduled to be on the Fox Morning News on Thursday, May 1st at about 8:30 am. Set your TiVos.
Cindy says
April 28, 2008 at 10:51 amHave fun at your party! I will be at a Sheep Festival in Maryland, but I will be thinking of you. I will be bringing my copy of your book to read, as I will have handed in my final… finally! Some fun reading!
PastaQueen says
April 28, 2008 at 11:25 amA sheep festival? That’s a new one :)
Kate Kockler says
April 28, 2008 at 11:43 amI’m halfway through your book and I’m loving it!
Thanks so much for sharing your story :)
Abby says
April 28, 2008 at 12:19 pmI recently found your blog and am about half way through your archives. Reading your experiences helps me stay on track, plus you’re really funny. :) I appreciate how frank and self aware you are, so thanks for exposing so much!
And your book is on its way to me! I wish I could make it to your release. Congratulations!
Red says
April 28, 2008 at 12:30 pmYou’re going to be a television star and a published author.
Color me jealous.
Mymsie says
April 28, 2008 at 12:59 pmSooo exciting! I’m hoping to pop by. Can’t wait to read the book – I’ve heard so many great things already!
punxylola says
April 28, 2008 at 1:08 pmCongrats on your book party and your up-coming mini marathon! I re-read bits of Half-Assed almost every day, and somehow it works it’s way into all my conversations! BRAVO!!
JEM says
April 28, 2008 at 1:31 pmAw, I want to party with PQ! Have a wonderful time! I am so happy for your success!!
Sarah says
April 28, 2008 at 3:27 pmAw, poo. I was looking forward to possibly meeting you, but the release party is the same day as my stepsister’s wedding shower.
I still will buy the book, though!
Congratulations on your success, and good luck in the marathon!
MizFit says
April 28, 2008 at 5:03 pmso wish I could go….ENJOY! ENJOY! ENJOY!
M.
Becca says
April 28, 2008 at 8:07 pmSince there are so very few times when I will be able to make others jealous due to my status as a Hoosier – I intend to milk this for all it’s worth.
HaHa! I live in Indy and I am going to the release party. HaHa!
(yes…it is small of me to gloat, but I cannae help it…)
Merry says
April 29, 2008 at 12:29 amWait a minute… what was that about a sheep festival??
Penny says
April 29, 2008 at 12:59 pmJennette, Congratulations to you on your book and your book release party. I just finished reading it and was very impressed. Not just with what you achieved by losing all that weight, but with your ability to write in an intelligent, funny, thoughtful and self-revealing way. I highlighted many passages that resonated with me. I’ve been reading a lot of weight loss related books and memoirs this year as a source of inspiration, and I have to say that yours is the best I have read so far. I also appreciate the fact that although you lost your weight the “old-fashioned” way with diet and exercise, that you are not judgmental toward those who may have to seek the more radical solution of weight loss surgery. I fall into that catagory for many reasons, though it will still be a long journey for me too. I have about as much weight to lose as you did. Again, congratulations. Enjoy your success and all the opportunities it brings to you. —- Penny
MB says
April 29, 2008 at 8:04 pmI’ve never had much desire to visit Indianapolis until now. I wish I could be there for the book release. I’ll be there in spirit though.
Any chance you can post your Fox Morning News segment for those of us out of area? I’d love to see it.
PastaQueen says
April 29, 2008 at 8:56 pmI will try. I am rather old school though and I don’t have a DVR, so I might end up converting it from VHS, assuming my VCR actually records it. Otherwise I’ll try to rip it off of my mother’s TiVo later.
John (NYC) says
May 2, 2008 at 10:56 amFirst of all, congratulations on losing all that weight and on dedicating yourself to exercise, healthful nutrition and helping others, as well as on your entrepreneurship. I see that you are still working on reaching your “Healthy” goal weight and I wish you continued success.
Here’s my problem. As someone who lost 110 pounds eight years ago in a sane, doctor-supervised program and who became a dedicated aerobic and anaerobic exercise devotee with proud levels of measureable performance, I think it is way too early for you to be giving so much advice to others.
Losing the pounds, undertaking an exercise program and reaching a healthy weight is about a third of the battle–if not less. The real challenge is in keeping the weight off and continuing with the program. I know. I put all 110 pounds back on and then some. I am now, again, trying to lose those same 110 pounds, plus a couple dozen more.
I’m not trying to universalize my experience, but even cursory research tells us that the real challenge for the vast majority of people with weight problems is in maintenance over multiple years.
So, here’s my deal. I’ll return to this site (or its successor) two years from today–I say “two years,” because I kept all the weight off for over 18 months after I had lost it; it was only at the two year mark that I started to let it come back on. If the site is still up and your weight is in a healthy range as measured by BMI (the indicator you use on your web page), I’ll not only buy your book, but I’ll make a financial contribution to your favorite charity.
PastaQueen says
May 2, 2008 at 12:06 pmJohn, good luck to you in losing those 100 pounds. Keeping the weight off is just as difficult if not harder than losing it. Nothing in my blog or book says otherwise.
I think, however, you are confused over the purpose of my writings. My blog is about what’s happening in my life. My book is a memoir. In both of theses I simply recount my experiences. People can take from it what they want, but my book is not a diet book or a self-help book. I also openly address the possibility that I could regain the weight in the last chapter.
As for the qualifications for giving advice, I think people are qualified to give advice about whatever they’ve learned from their life experiences. My book and blog cover what I’ve personally experienced, and if people find some good advice from what I’ve lived, that’s great. I think it’s silly to think I have to wait 2 more years for my current life experiences to be validated. Even if I do regain 200 pounds, what I experienced still happened and everything I’ve written in my book and blog remains true. It doesn’t become more or less valid depending on what I weigh in 2010.