I came home from Las Vegas with a food hangover.

Seriously. I know this sounds weird, but I'm fairly certain about this. I felt like I weighed 300 pounds.

I ate things that I normally avoid. Lots of things. In part, I did this because there were limited options available. Or maybe it was just because I figured that food indulgence was the lesser of evils in Sin City.

Either way, I was reluctant to step on to the scale this morning. And my fear was well-founded. I'm up 4 pounds.

I can't blame all of this on Vegas. The CES event follows the holidays, and I had more than my share of sweets and libation. But that Southwest burger that I had at the airport, with fries, certainly didn't help my cause.

So even though my camera gear is nimble, my Nikes not so much. I have until mid-February to lose 7 pounds. That will get me to my "on-camera" weight for my next lynda.com title on shooting senior portraits.

Fortunately, I don't have any travel scheduled between now and then. And I do have a dieting companion.

Dibs went to the vet this morning for an upper respiratory infection. She tipped the scale at 12 pounds, about a pound and a half too heavy for her. So we're going to slim down together. She doesn't know this yet.

Yeah... it's going to be a fun couple of weeks around the studio.

-Derrick