'Unbearable Lightness'

I'm super excited about "Arrested Development" returning to the TV. While I could never choose a favorite character, I've always been quite taken with Lindsay Bluth, mainly because I think Portia de Rossi is hilarious and never had a chance to show off her ability on "Ally McBeal." Also, I got really creeped out by the rampant anorexia on that show. So I was really jazzed when my hold on de Rossi's memoir, "Unbearable Lightness," finally came up at the public library. I devoured her book this weekend, and I was so touched by de Rossi's honest retelling of her struggle with anorexia and bulimia. She got down to 82 pounds; she had osteoporosis; she showed signs of cirrhosis of the liver; her organs were on the verge of shutting down. She is truly lucky to be alive, and her story is an important cautionary tale about the devastating effects of eating disorders.

She's happy and healthy now, and some of her words really stuck with me:

If you can accept your natural body weight -- the weight that is easy for you to maintain, or your "set point" -- and not force it to beneath your body's natural, healthy weight, then you can live your life free of dieting, or restriction, or feeling guilty every time you eat a slice of your kid's birthday cake. But the key is to accept your body just as it is. Just as I have had to learn to accept that I have thighs that are a little bigger than I'd like, you may have to accept that your arms are naturally a little thicker or your hips are a little wider. In other words, accept yourself. Love your body the way it is and feel grateful toward it. Most important, in order to find real happiness, you must learn to love yourself for the totality of who you are and not just what you look like.

Wise words. To celebrate her journey, I submit this video of Lindsay Bluth (with an awesome assist from Gob) doing her chicken dance. Classic.