France doesn't tolerate fat.

There is a tiny speck on my index finger. It's so small that if you looked at my hands right now, you'll surely miss it. But I know it's there, I see it clearly, I feel it. It's the spot given to me by the doctors at the French Immigration Office in Rouen, Normandy just before they handed me the immaculate carte de séjour (which allows you to stay legally in France). I have done blood tests before. It's always an excruciating experience, especially since I can't stand the mental pain of being pricked by a needle. Well I was pretty sure there would be no blood tests involved at the Immigration Office because when I went through the same process last year I didn't have to do one. However you see last year, I was weighed ten kilos less than what I weigh now. I still wear the same clothes, I have the same stamina, the same strong immune system, I still follow the same dietary pattern, etc. But apparently the French government doesn't take your lifestyle choices into consideration! You need to follow theirs. Majority of French people have the dream body structure. I don't know how they do it, I've asked tons of my French friends but they just brush it off as if this means nothing to them! I would have loved to look like that, I would have given my right arm to be slim and trim à la française, ok screw that, I would give both arms (it would probably make me appear skinner). But I know that's a just a dream. I am not significantly colossal but I could still pass for plump. In my defense, there are many factors that determine my body type.

1. I come from a family who are all big-boned with the exception of my Aunt L. (Ya I've had doubts about that too).
2. My mother was always obsessed with having a perfectly healthy child and in her world a well fed child= a healthy child.
3. I originate from a developing country that's obsessed with the marketing of junk food.
4. This same developing country couldn't care less about the physical activities in its schools. We never had Physical Education in our schooling system, which is such a shame! Because perhaps if I was more up to date on how to lead a healthy lifestyle, I would probably never have to write this post!

Flash forward to November 4/2010, France. I am waiting my turn for the medical check up (along with my friends with various body types), I realized many among us underwent the older procedure. The doctor calls you in, checks your eyes, weighs you, asks you those questions depending on what geographical zone you come from. Massive ha ha if you come from the country that's situated on the equator and experiences tropical climate! Have you had yellow fever? Have you have malaria? Have you been vaccinated? Have you lived in a zoo? etc. 
I watched the boring routine of assistants going in and out of the doctor's office. Some had cotton wrapped around a finger and I assumed this must have been a new procedure. But then I noticed only the fat people were getting their fingers pricked! Soon it was my turn. The doctor checked my eyes, weighed me, measured me and then pulled out a tiny pocket sized booklet. I knew only too well that she was confirming if my body weight equalled my height. Next I watched in horror as she leaned to the side table and pulled out a fresh needle from a pack of hundreds and set it into the glucose monitor. She had the strength of an elephant because she held my index finger so firmly, with my head turned away from the abominable sight, I felt it was her grasp that hurt more than the needle! She tells me it's over and that my sugar levels are strangely normal. Hello! Overweight is a symptom not a cause that leads to diabetes! Now over to the next part of the appointment where you meet Doctor no. 2 who checks your breathing, your vaccination card and gives the final ok for your carte de séjour. He is a talkative person, speaks excellent English, does not bother with those ridiculous question on the tropics. He seems like a nice person until he tells you there is a "grave problème" and then jabs his finger at your stomach. At that moment you think, uh-huh real classy Frenchman! Then follows the rhetoric of weight loss and how I should only eat 3 meals and a day and nothing else in between. hmmm. bahahahaha. I could have sued him but he seemed much nicer than elephant woman and he somehow convinced me that he was right. I do indulge in certain unhealthy foods and today I actually put his advice in action. I ate exactly 3 meals and not a single snack in between. It's hard! :(
What angered me the most about this experience was that not everyone got their fingers pricked. It's a terrible thing to ask for but don't thin people also suffer from diabetes? English Assistants are invited by the French government to integrate into the education system. Why do you invite someone if you suspect they will be a liability to your Social Security? I wish there were better, more unbiased ways of checking one's physical health. It can have adverse effects on some people. I was never concerned about my weight before. What concerns me is the way I feel. Now suddenly, I'm very conscious where my body stands against the weight scale of the French Immigration Office! Merci!