Whom Would You Cast to Play You in a Movie?


Have you ever fantasized what actress or actor would play you in a movie about your life? Sandra Bullock, Emma Stone, Brad Pitt, or maybe James Franco? For me I was aiming a bit lower on the “talent” scale. Roseanne Barr, Natalie from “The Facts of Life” and if I was really lucky, I would have picked the totally hilarious Melissa McCarthy. (She is awesome and I have loved her since Gilmore Girls).

I will never forget the call from a studio executive who said they had signed the actress who was going to play me. I held my breath and crossed my fingers hoping it would be someone decent. When the name “Hilary Duff” was said, I acted thrilled but in all reality I had no clue who she was. Since I was already logged on to my computer, I typed her name in the search field and quickly had a pant filler moment. She was absolutely adorable. I was and still am completely ecstatic that she played me in the film, especially when Jabba the Hutt is available. 😉

My Underwear Could Double as a Car Cover!

Since I’ve been overweight it’s only natural that I purchased clothes that could double as a tent or large camping tarp. My clothes fit okay at the time because they were filled out. As I am now starting to lose weight, my pants are saggy, my shirts are growing like a wearable Chia Pet and most importantly, my underwear are unwearable.

The other day my friend Holly pulled up in her Yellow VW bug. As I was looking at her car I couldn’t help but think that my underwear could quite possibly cover her car to shield it from the elements. So, Holly if you’re reading this… don’t be surprised if your car is covered by lunch time. 😉

Carrie Fisher Reveals 50 Pound Weight Loss

Carrie Fisher reveals 50 pound weight loss

Over the past nine months, actress Carrie Fisher has lost 50 pounds, and she’s showing off her slimmer silhouette, reports People. The Jenny Craig spokeswoman appeared on Wednesday’s “Today” show and spoke about her weight loss journey. The former “Star Wars” actress, 54, showed off her new bod for “Today” host Ann Curry, who exclaimed, “Holy cow!” Curry joked, “Where’s the rest of you?” To which Fisher quipped, “I don’t want to know, because then I’d have to go get it.”

On what life was like 50 pounds heavier, Fisher says she “couldn’t leave the house [to go shopping], because they didn’t have sizes [large enough]…I exhausted the alphabet on bra sizes.” The actress and author added that she relied on her Jenny Craig consultant, who functioned as someone “to complain to, stamp my fat foot and say I didn’t want to do it.” Of the plan’s food, the actress/author says she enjoyed eating cereal, because “it tastes like contraband.”




Sometimes You Wanna Go, Where Everybody Knows Your Name…

As I was schlepping my big butt along the treadmill this morning I couldn’t help but notice how Better Bodies is much like the television show “Cheers”. Allow me to explain through interpretive dance. (Thank goodness you can’t see this!) 

When you walk into the gym there are machines on the left and on your right is a beautiful juice/smoothie/coffee/tea/water bar full of delicious goodness. Behind the bar is a handsome devil named Terry. Terry is always quick to offer advice about life, love and the pursuit of making a really spectacular smoothie. It was interesting to watch people who after finishing their workout, decide to belly up to the bar instead of bolting out of the gym like a horse at the Kentuck Derby. As one person would get up to leave, another would sit down and join in on the conversation. I thought this was really cool, especially for a gym.

I focused back on what I was doing and then it hit me, if this place is like Cheers and Terry is like “Woody” and Jeramy is like “Sam” then that would make me … “Norm!” 😉

“What’s shaking, Norm?”
“All four cheeks and a couple of chins.”

Check out http://www.betterbodiestucson.com  for more information or call Jeramy at (520) 731-1668, tell him Norm sent ya! 🙂

Wipe The Slate Clean

What is your personal truth?

Dr Phil (you either love him or hate him) said that our lives are like a slate that other people write things on like our parents, teachers and other pivotal people in our lives; these things are not necessarily true but we believe them and feel shame and what is worse we begin to write those same things on our slate and then this becomes our personal truth. As a result we may feel unlovable or unworthy and worse.

I was curious to know what my personal truth is and more importantly, how do I heal the hurt? I found several websites that discussed this and combined the information that I found here.

The first step in the healing process is to find, as specifically as possible, what the hurt is. Here are some questions that one website asked: How was the relationship with your parents? Make a list of all your major upsets, What are your fears? What are you driven towards? What are the areas of your life that don’t work? What do you resist in your parents? Has rejection or abandonment been an issue for you?

When I look at my list of major upsets in my life, I realized that at the age of 5, I was put in a situation where not only did I have to listen and trust in my gut instinct, but I had to remain calm in a situation where one wrong move could have had me raped or even killed. I had never seen this man before, so it wasn’t a case of being taken by someone I knew. I can remember that incident like it was yesterday and it makes sense now why people always thought I was an “old soul”. I believe that by being put in that specific situation, a five year old little girl quickly became an adult. I was terrified of men and emotionally scarred for a long time. I felt ashamed for what had happened because I knew what he did was wrong. I just didn’t understand exactly why it was wrong.

The next step was to look over a list of common core issues to find the hurt that runs my life. http://www.masteryoflife.com/coreissues-common.shtml

After looking at the list in the link above, one of the words that jumped out at me was “undesirable”. Don’t get me wrong, there are many other words in those lists that made me feel something, but “undesirable” was the trigger. All of these years I thought that as long as I was undesirable, no one could ever love me. And as long as no one could love me, I would never be hurt. Without knowing, I created a core issue that would then sabotage the rest of my life.

The hurt is like a monster we run from. But the monster never causes us any harm because the monster doesn’t exist in reality, it only exists in our mind. All of the harm is caused by the things we do to avoid facing the monster. It’s the fighting, resisting, hanging on, and withdrawing that sabotages our lives. To have the monster lose power, do the opposite of what gives it power. Instead of fighting it and running from it, own and embrace it. Once you face the monster, you realize that the monster is an illusion and instead of the monster having power over you, you have power over the monster.




Chicago or Bust!?

A friend of mine asked me today, “Heather, why do you always carry that Nalgene water bottle?” To most people it’s just a simple water bottle and doesn’t serve much purpose than to *gasp* hold water. However, this specific water bottle was given to me when I worked for Oprah in Chicago. Now, this is the moment where most people expect me to go into a long story about working for the most powerful woman in entertainment. Well, I hate to disappoint you, but that part of the story stops here. (However, I must say that Sheri Salata inspired me in so many ways to go on this journey!)

Anyhow, the reason I carry the water bottle is because each day it reminds me that I had the guts to do something scary. When I was in Tucson I received a call to come and work in Chicago. I had only lived in Los Angeles (which was still close to home) and Denver. Chicago seemed like a far off country and I was terrified to leave, but I knew that if I didn’t do it, I would always wonder “what if?” My mom and grandmother would always say, “Life is just too short for “what if’s” — you have to go and do this!” So I packed the things I needed in three large bags, boarded an American Airlines flight and left the two people who are my entire world in Tucson.

To leave something that is familiar to you, is probably the scariest thing someone could do. If it’s moving to a different city, country, school or even changing the way you eat or your lifestyle. All of those things can be terrifying, but you have to take the leap. There are many things that I took away from my Chicago experience, the Nalgene bottle is just one of them. 😉

* Emotional Trigger: Anxiety, Disappointment, Fear, Anger, Happiness, Frustration
* Lesson Learned: Leaving the things that are familiar to you, make room for new experiences and opportunities.
* How to grow from it: Going forward in life you can draw from the moments that have scared you the most. There have been many times when I would think, “If I can pack up and move to Chicago, I can certainly do this!” Go after those moments and scare the hell out of yourself. You will be so glad that you did.

Relationship Reform

Unless you live under a rock, chances are pretty good that you have heard about Health Care Reform, Immigration Reform, Education Reform and Financial Reform. Well, who says we can’t have “Relationship Reform?” When I look up the word “Reform” it says:

  1. A change for the better; an improvement.
  2. Correction of evils, abuses, or errors.
  3. Action to improve social or economic conditions without radical or revolutionary change.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could all just take a moment and have a relationship reform with ourselves and the people we share our lives with? There have been people in my life who were very negative and often times down right mean, and I would constantly find myself walking on eggshells around them. (Note: Being fat and walking on eggshells, doesn’t last long at all!) Yet, I’ve been told over and over again to keep trying to have a relationship with them because they are “family”. Family, Shmamily!

Just because you’re blood related doesn’t mean you’re family. Or more specifically, MY family. I have learned to surround myself with people who love me unconditionally and WANT to be around me. Those people are positive influences in my life. I learned early on in screenwriting that a scene in a screenplay will always serve one of two functions: either it moves the story forward, or it reveals information about the character. In this case, my life is the story and the people in my life move me forward.

I have found it very challenging to let go of the negative people who didn’t move me forward. But once they’re not around, it’s an eye opener as to how much crap I was settling for just because they were “family”.

* Lesson Learned: Just because you have the same blood doesn’t mean you have the same outlook on life and how to treat people.
* How to grow from it: Surround yourself with people who move YOUR life forward. People who love you unconditionally and help you become the best person you can be. Stay away from “emotional vampires” or people who constantly bring you down. You deserve the best!