With news that Mary-Kate Olsen has checked herself into a clinic to treat her eating disorder, Gothamist was struck by the unwitting timing of some news stories: First, Governor Pataki has agreed to fund eating disorders centers in New York State - a first, since most people have to go out-of-state for treatment. And then the Daily News has a story about people's, mainly women's, obsession with weighing themselves. One artist, Emily Caigan, has created an art installation about people's "scale dances," with fifty scales and stories about women's relationship with them, which sounds cool. A doctor points out that many who weigh themselves any opportunity they get don't even have eating disorders; her suggestion is "throw the scale out" and notes that a person's body weight can fluctuate up to 5 pounds a day. The DN also mentions a book, The Tale of the Scale, which details what goes into creating a scale. Gothamist's strategy for scales is to weigh in after the first morning pee break. And then when we get home from work. And then right before we go to sleep. Yes, maybe we should get rid of the scale.
In the Bridget Jones' Guide to Life, Bridget instructs readers on various ways to weigh yourself AND make yourself feel better, like leaning on the counter while you're on the scale or wearing high heels. And Poor Mary-Kate - everyone suspected she had some sort of eating disorder, especially celebrity magazines which become devoted to showing photographs of how she seemed skinnier lately, especially compared to Ashley. Gothamist wonders if MK'n'A will make a statement about eating disorders later on, sort of as a PSA to the tween set as well as a way to shame paparazzi for harassing them and possibly driving MK to dieting (well, shaming paparazzi and studio heads). Mary-Kate, you're 18, you have your whole life ahead of you - get better.
