The Insidious Fat She was behind me in line at Whole Foods. 5'4, maybe 170 - 180 lbs. She was dressed appropriately. She appeared polite. Her child, at the moment at least, was well-behaved. As she unloaded her cart onto the belt I noticed muffins, packaged snack crackers and cookies, juices. These are the most insidious of fats. They aren't large enough to be considered planets so in their minds (and unfortunately in the minds of a large percentage of the US population), they are fine. They are "chubby" or "working on it" or "have a few extra pounds". Worse, I'm sure some think they are at a normal weight. They don't display the very worst of hamfoolery (in public)... they are washed. They may not eat fast food often. They might go to the gym once or twice a week for a slow turtle crawl on the treadmill. And in our society, where fat fucks on scooters is now not uncommon... where you have to be 600 plus pounds to be considered truly freakish... these pudge slugs are the new norm. The new "ok". A constant (CONSTANT) vigilance is required to steel yourself again this new norm. It has crept up on me before... a slight weight gain and the thought "Oh, but I'm still hotter and fitter than all the people I see around me"... then you have to mentally slap yourself and realize that everyone around you is pudgy and bloated and slow. Better than 75% no longer means a whole lot.