A Bridge Too Far

Tuesday’s Child
It is patently untrue that Tuesday’s child is full of grace, and never more so than in the case of Jimmy. He was born on a rainy Tuesday at 03:24am, and from the very start there was nothing remotely graceful about him. He was big right from the start, even his mother related that having him was a bit like giving birth to a baby elephant, and it didn’t change - that is until, but that comes later.  From the very start it could be said that Jimmy liked/loved food, nothing put on a plate was safe from him. He was always in trouble for raiding the fridge, and eating stuff that his mother was saving for other meals. Sometimes, in despair, his mother would remark that it would be better if her groceries were delivered by the lorry load. Consequently Jimmy could have been said to be a fat kid, this was made worse by him not moving much in a vertical direction - yes, he was also short. There was never any doubt that he would be bullied at school, and he was, mercilessly.

However, Jimmy had a quick brain and never had to be told anything twice, his capacity for learning was unsurpassable. He sailed through his lessons and spent a lot of time helping his sister with her school work, even though she was two years older than him. By the time he arrived at secondary school he had learnt to tolerate the bullying as a fact of life, and it no longer had any effect. Those who tried bullying him at secondary school soon gave up when they realised that it had no effect whatever. In fact it soon became very clear that bullying Jimmy was more effort than it was worth as he either agreed with the bully or just ignored it. The new set of teachers quickly realised what a bright pupil they had in Jimmy, that is except the science master who knew full well that he had no interest in science at all. He did however see a side of Jimmy that was not quite so obvious, and that was his interest in philosophy. Jimmy seemed to have a philosophy  of life all of his own, and the science master decided to encourage him, and started lending him books about and by philosophers and philosophy.

To say that he took to philosophy would be a massive understatement - does a duck like water - every spare minute was spent immersed in some philosophy book or other. He became the stuff of a teachers nightmares, simply because he was able to, accurately, quote a piece of philosophy on any of the topics they were teaching, and that straight from the top of his head. Most of the teachers cursed the science master for ever introducing Jimmy to philosophy. That he would go on to university and study philosophy further was never in any doubt - the teachers wished the tutors and professors well with that one. Of course he went on to study philosophy walking away with the highest distinctions, and an eventual PhD. He was a natural academic, university life suited him well, and he was well aware that his calling was to teach at the highest level. All through his undergraduate years he was unafraid to challenge lecturers, which had the effect of keeping them on their toes, not getting sloppy, and raising the quality of their lectures.

It was during his second year that he met Amanda - yes this is where that ‘until’ comes into play. He was smitten from first sight, but didn’t think he stood a chance with such a goddess, girls just didn’t like fat blokes. It all really started one lunch time when she came and sat beside him in the refectory
‘I have noticed that you really love your food don’t you?’
He was shocked that she had even considered talking to him.
‘I always have, that’s why I am fat, I wish I wasn’t, but I am end of story.’
‘It needn’t be end of story, there are ways of losing some of your fat.’
‘I am not going on no diets for anybody, so forget that one.’
‘I wasn’t thinking of diets, there are much more fun ways of losing weight.’
‘So, what are you talking about, remember I’m not giving up food anytime soon?’
‘How about if you had an incentive?’
‘It would have to be a damned good incentive.’
‘Right. Do you like me?’
‘Yup, no problem with that one, you’re a goddess.’
‘Thank you. Would you like to have sex with me.’
‘Goes without saying.’
‘Now we are getting somewhere, here’s the incentive. If, with my help, you can lose eight pounds over the next two weeks we can fuck - deal?’
‘That’s definitely an incentive, I’ll give it a go, but no guarantee it will work.’
‘Oh, it will, believe me, I’ve been there.’
Amanda then explained that she would monitor what he ate, that it wouldn’t be a diet but a different way of eating, and he would still be able to eat the same things.

Jimmy went to bed with the distinct impression that he had been dreaming, then he got the text ‘See you at breakfast A xxx’. He had, for the first time ever, difficulty getting to sleep with thoughts of Amanda, losing weight, whether or not he wanted her badly enough to lose weight - the answer to which was don’t be such a fucking idiot, of course you do. He went to breakfast as usual, Amanda was there already and insisted on taking him to the gym to check his starting weight before breakfast, telling him that they would weigh him before breakfast every Monday and Friday. The next few days passed extremely quickly with Amanda coaching Jimmy in his eating habits. He had to admit that he was still enjoying his food, and if anything more than before. But he wasn’t sure how much of that was his ‘incentive’ working away in the background. Suddenly it was Friday, and the weigh in. Jimmy was gobsmacked to learn that he had lost seven pounds in just a week.

Amanda was also quite surprised,
‘Blimey, my plan was that you only lose four pounds a week, and you lose seven!’
‘I guess that walking everywhere instead of taking the bus has helped, that is along with your incentive.’
Amanda grinned
‘C’mon, breakfast, I need some time to think about this. I may have to make some slight adjustments.’
Jimmy didn’t say anything, he wasn’t going to spoil what he saw as a good thing. He was just amazed that he had lost weight without really trying. He had to admit that he felt much fitter since he had been walking instead of taking the bus everywhere. He was pulled back to reality when Amanda spoke telling him that she had given her ‘incentive’ some thought, and didn’t see any reason not to change it. Jimmy was terrified that she meant that their deal was off. She went on to explain that when she came to university she, like him was way overweight, and for the same reasons, and how she had fallen for a medical student, and how it had changed her life.

Jimmy was intrigued, and wanted to know more.
‘I don’t get the connection between falling for a bloke and weight loss.’
‘He did for me what I have done for you the last week. He helped me to make changes to how I eat without actually going on a diet.’
‘But isn’t that just a diet by another name?’
‘Not really, because you are not changing what you eat, but how you eat. Have you felt at all hungry or dissatisfied this last week?’
‘Not a bit, if anything I am enjoying my food more, and am feeling fitter for the walking.’
‘Well, that’s my point. The encouragement to make a different lifestyle choice, along with you own idea to stop using the bus to get around, has made a significant difference.’
‘So where next, the gym?’
‘No, we’ll discuss that later when I take you to dinner as a reward for your loss this week.’
‘And here was me thinking that your ‘incentive’ was the reward.’
‘Not so fast buster the deal was eight pounds in two weeks, you have only lost seven to date.’
He grinned, gave her a hug and headed off for a lecture. He most definitely was looking forward to dinner later.

When he met Amanda later she had a present for him, and gave him a Fitbit. This somewhat puzzled him until she told him that she wanted to monitor his overall fitness and stamina, along with how his heart reacted to exercise. Before they went to dinner she helped him set up an account, install the app, and pair the device to it. She also told him that she expected him to do ten thousand steps a day, which he thought was rather a lot. Jimmy tried to discover more about her intentions, but all she would say was that they didn’t want to be late for dinner, and that she would tell him more later. He was quickly coming to the idea that he wanted to spend far more time with Amanda. He knew that, for him, marriage wasn’t an option he didn’t believe in it, but he could envisage living with her on an equal footing. That would be something to discuss in the future. He knew that sex wasn’t going to be a problem, he was no virgin, a friend of his mother had seen to that. Aunt Rose, not a real aunt just a friend of his mother who he called auntie, had decided that if he was going to university he should be at least ‘competent between the sheets’. His mother would have had a screaming fit had she found out - maybe he would tell her one day, just for the hell of it. Something for which he had a feeling he was going to be very grateful.

From the start he insisted that he buy the wine, Amanda tried to argue, but had to give way to Jimmy’s expensive tastes in wine. He argued that life was too short to drink crap wine. Having ordered wine and food they began talking generally, and Jimmy asked how the medic had helped her to lose weight. She told him that once she had been very much like him where food was concerned, and how Peter, the medic, had shown her just what she had shown him, that small changes could make a big difference. She then went on to tell Jimmy that Peter had told her that losing weight could be immense fun, and that Jimmy should bear that in mind for what was to come. She said that she knew he couldn’t even think about how losing weight could be fun, and neither could she at the time. There was a break while their food was delivered. He was still trying to get his head around how losing weight could be ‘fun’, let alone ‘immense fun’ when Amanda continued.

Jimmy listened with increasing amazement when she said that it was all about sex. He voiced his opinion that he couldn’t see how sex helped you lose weight. She went on to explain that a good hot, sweaty, passionate session of sex burnt off almost as many calories as a treadmill workout at the gym, and was much more fun. It was finally beginning to dawn on him what her ‘incentive’ was all about. She explained that this was why she had given him a Fitbit, so that they could keep an eye on his improvements. That night neither really slept, they only dozed between bouts of hot, sweaty, passionate sex. At breakfast Jimmy informed Amanda that his parents were coming to visit at the end of the following week, and that he would like her to meet them. That week he lost a further ten pounds, and had been complimented by Amanda as being the best shag she had had to date. At dinner on the Saturday night his mother commented on his loss of weight, and asked how he managed it. He looked at Amanda and said
‘Sex mum, it’s a really fun way to lose weight, maybe you should try it on dad.’
His father choked, his mother looked mortified and Amanda laughed.