Three years ago I had this crazy notion to write this blog as a way to share my journey of weight loss and self-discovery and to chronicle my ongoing battle with obesity. Little did I know this blog what be the beginning of something magical, something Outside of the Box.
After losing my Marketing Assistant position in 2009, my lifelong friend, Carmen (Rest In Peace) told me that maybe I wasn’t supposed to work a 9-5 and that maybe there was something else for me. She went on to tell me to write down everything I liked to do and wanted to do no matter how unrealistic it seemed. At the time, I was in such a bad space I couldn’t have ever imagined that all the things I wanted to do and liked to do could become what I would do. But, here I am three years later doing ALL the things I love!
Thank you all for reading, attending my events, buying my cookbooks, and for the ongoing support, encouragement, and love. Since no birthday is complete without gifts, through the end of July, I’m offering 10% off my cookbook, Shop, Cook, Eat: Outside of the Box. Click here to order through PayPal (the 10% discount already applied).
Highlights from my past “Outside of the Box” year:
– 142 blog posts
– Authored Shop, Cook, Eat: Outside of the Box
– Shop, Cook, Eat: Outside of the Box becomes a required textbook for Clark College Health 100: Food and Your Health students
– Shop, Cook, Eat: Outside of the Box hits the shelves of Clark College Bookstore
– Book signings at Clark College Bookstore, Vancouver and Cascade Park Library, Tully’s Coffee, and DiTazza Coffee
– Shop, Cook, Eat: Outside of the Box gets a Dewey Decimal number (641.563 MOSLEY)
– Shop, Cook, Eat: Outside of the Box on the shelves at Fort Vancouver Regional Library, Multnomah County Library, and Clark College Library
– Invited as a guest lecturer for Clark College’s Health 100, 104, 258 classes
– Keynote speaker for for Clark College’s Biggest Loser competition
– Appeared on KBOO 90.7 FM Wednesday Morning Talk Radio – September and March
– Appeared on KBOO 90.7 FM Black Book Talk
– Article on front page of LiveWell in The Columbian and numerous blog features
– Article in The Independent
– Founded “5 or 50” Women’s Sustainable Weight Loss & Healthy Lifestyle Group meets monthly
– Offering shop.prep.cook Services and prep.cook.eat Parties
– Food & Wellness consultant for Nautropath
Healthy Food Presentations
– Clark College Health 100: “Food and Your Health” – February, March, and May 2013
– Clark College Health 104: “Weight and Your Health” – February 2013
– Cascade Park Community Library – October, February, and April 2013
– Fruit Valley Foundation – February and March 2013
– Northwest Personal Training – November 2012
Cooking Classes
-Chuck’s Produce & Street Market – September 2011 – April 2013
-Clark College Health 100: “Food and Your Health” at Chuck’s Produce & Street Market – November 2012
Public Speaking
– “Eat to Live” Panel – February 2013
– Camas & Washougal on a Diet – March 2013
– Lacamas Swim & Sport Silver Sneakers – March 2013
– Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) – December 2012
– Professional Connections – November 2012
– Vancouver Community Library – October 2012
– Multnomah County Library – September 2012
– Women in Networking (WIN) – August 2012
I’m not sharing my highlights to boast, but rather to remind you that you can do anything if you tap into yourself and are willing to step OUTSIDE of the Box. As Carmen said, write it down even if it seems unrealistic!
Chrisetta Mosley
I am a product – and now a survivor – of childhood obesity. As a child, my family always told me that my extra weight was merely baby fat and I’d eventually grow out of it. I never did. Instead, my childhood is filled with memories of not being able to ride a bike, flattening its training wheels from being over the recommended weight, and avoiding P.E. classes by any means necessary. For years, I wore my fatness like a wounded soldier wears a Purple Heart - with pride. I owned the look. I dressed it up. I worked the room. There wasn't a skinny girl who intimidated me. I made sure my hair was laid just right. Nails polished. Outfits coordinated to the tee. Accessories to compliment every outfit. But everyone has a breaking point, and mine came in the spring of 2004 when I tipped the scale at nearly 400 pounds 388 to be exact. I was MISERABLE trapped inside of that body. I no longer wore my Purple Heart with pride. Rather, I was ashamed and frightened. Ashamed that I had allowed food to become my everything – frightened I would die because of it. Drastic times called for drastic measures... Today, I’m bound and determined to live a better, healthier, active lifestyle. I realize I’m no longer a passenger in my life, I’m the driver. I’m overcoming my inhibitions and I’m slowly but surely saying farewell to my old childhood nemesis, obesity. For once and for all, Farewell Fatso!