Wherein I Comment on Hippo

I don't usually make fun of people by giving them nicknames, mainly because I think it's a low-brow, crass form of humour and also due to the plethora of nicknames I myself was given when I was in primary school. However, I use the term of endearment 'Hippo' to refer to one enormous girl Nick and I saw at gym on Friday, whom Nik has already named in his own blog.

Now, I know it's cruel to poke fun of people who are physically unfit or overweight, but you must understand that there was no way I could have treated Hippo as a normal human being in my circumstances. I have not the body beautiful, but I am working towards something that I hope will not leave people who look at my vacation photographs with the beautiful backdrops of sunrises on mountains saying things like "My, aren't you fat." I know my goal and I'm getting there. Still, I feel embarrassed stepping into the gym, with it's beautiful tanned people with their muscles and all that deflate my puny little biceps and $2-a-pop abs. I avoid the mirror and looking at myself in it at all odds. I hide in the corner when I'm resting, in the vain hopes that people will not notice me, the pathetic wannabe with the small quads.

Hippo girl defies all my behavorial traits. We walked in to witness her and her polka-dot stretch pants/shorts (depending on the exercise she was doing). Hippo girl is fat (political correctness is useless in this case). The sight killed our conversation.

Throughout my workout I couldn't concentrate. Hippo girl had my full and undivided attention, albeit in a somewhat downcast-eyes look-at-her-then-look-away-quickly kind of way. I almost dropped my bicep curl things when I saw her doing leg presses. My abs nearly gave way when I saw her admiring her reflection in the mirrored wall. Ilost all decorum and just stared at her as she did her situps.

through it all, I was amazed at her guts. She betrayed no discomfort at the obvious looks she was getting, not any self-consciousness about her looks. She didn't run out to salvage her pride when she did her leg-raises, nor was she shy about the preacher curls done using the lightest weights. She was there before we entered, and she was still at it when we left.

Now, I am always impressed when people have guts. And I am especially impressed when people can ignore the superficial idiots around them. Hippo girl takes the cake on both counts(though I would advise her against eating it). I would like to know her, if only to ascertain if she indeed possesses the iron will that I suspect she does.

You know you should live with some pride in yourself. But it's only through examples, I guess, that you learn how to do it.