I have been f** for a while-

Whoops, I mean I have been fat for a while. When referring to myself as fat, people tend to respond with looks of pity or disgust. Some of them even shake their heads and say one of the following: "Oh my gosh, you are not fat!," "What are you talking about? Stop it!" or "Puh-lease, you're not obese."

Well, I hate to burst all of your bubbles, but I am, in fact... *grabs tissues as I dramatically and incoherently sob* FAT!

Yeah, I am "fat," a "chunky monkey," "curvy" and, my personal favorite, "flabulous." I'm overweight, and there's seriously no need for folks to deny it.

I'm not being mean when I refer to myself as being something that I am. I'm large and in charge, and while admitting I am overweight, I am not entirely embracing the fact that I am carrying a good many extra pounds (even though some folks do and that's totally fine). I am a constant work in progress, but that's not the point of this article.

The point if this piece is to snip the strong ties between self-hatred and a large person referring to themselves as "fat."

When I go into a store and jokingly ask "Yo, do they sell fat people clothes here?" I am not being derogatory toward myself; I'm making light of the fact that most clothing stores only carry sizes XS through XL. Please don't come rushing to my "cries of sadness" by saying "Oh stop, you're not fat!" My immediate thoughts are either "sweet cheeks, the XL shirts in this store could fit my thigh" or "I don't think Victoria's Secret sells F cups."

The only time I am offended by the word "fat" is when someone equates weight to beauty. If I say "As a fat woman of America-" and I get interrupted by "You're not fat! You're pretty!," you had best believe I will get a little angry.

Since when has weight attributed to beauty? I don't know if some folks have missed the memo or not, but fat people can be pretty too! Call me crazy, but inner and outer beauty do not correlate with someone's weight.

So, the moral of this tirade is to let the people of the world know that not all overweight people are being critical of themselves when they describe themselves as being "fat." When I refer to myself as being "fat," please don't tell me I'm pretty or deny my extra pounds; it's not an insult, just an adjective.