Every 3 Minutes

In less time than it will take me to write this post, another woman in the US will be diagnosed with breast cancer.  

In the United States, a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer every 3 minutes. One dies every 13 minutes.

These are horrible, sobering facts.  The point of me sharing these facts with you is not to bring you down or depress you.  The point is to help you understand why I have paid $90 for the right to walk 60 miles over 3 days (see post here for more info on the 3 Day Walk).  The point is to help you understand why I didn’t think twice before committing to raise $2,300 for Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

My training for the 3 Day walk officially started today.  I attended a “Get Started” meeting with my friend, Lara, who is walking as well.  Given that she is SOOO much taller than me, I don’t think we’ll actually be walking together every step of the way.  Her stride has to be at least 50% longer than mine.  Lara would have to slow down to a stroll just for me to be able to match her pace.   However, she will be my tent mate for the two nights that we have to camp.  Lara and I also hope to do some of the longer training walks together to help motivate each other.

Thanks to many generous donations, I have already raised $820.  Thank you so much!  If you haven’t already donated and would like to, please click here.

Trying to Save the Ta-Tas

Those of you who are my long time readers know that I am passionate about Breast Cancer research (as exhibited here, here, and here).  And those of you who actually read my blog by coming to the website and not through Google Reader, may have noticed something new on the sidebar.

I did the craziest thing today.  I signed my self up for the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure here in Michigan, August 13-15.   I'll walk 60 miles over the course of three days with thousands of other women and men.  Net proceeds from this event are invested in community-based breast health programs and breast cancer research.  The research funded focuses on decreasing breast cancer incidence and mortality in the next decade.  I've agreed to raise at least $2,300 in donations.  So over on the sidebar is a link to follow if you are interested in donating to this wonderful cause. 

I recognize that the event is still 4 months away and so you might thinking it’s awfully early for me to be asking for donations.  This might be true but think about all the training I will need to do.  I’m certainly not in great shape and so I need to get my rear in gear ASAP.  When I mentioned training, Ben kinda laughed and wondered aloud, “who trains for a walk?”  Well, when it’s 20 miles a day for 3 days in a row…I’m certainly going to train.  I need to get in better shape and develop some stamina.

I will periodically blog about my training progress and perhaps give you some breast cancer facts over the next couple of months.  Please join me on my journey, at least in spirit.  Your words of encouragement will be an incredible source of motivation to keep me walking.

And don’t forget to “Feel your Boobies!”

Insomnia, Suicidal Laptops, & a Cute Video

I can't sleep.  I woke up at 4:30 am and couldn't go back to sleep thanks to all the things running through my head.

In addition to all the other, expected things that are on my mind (see previous post), my work laptop decided to kick the bucket yesterday.  I was working on it at the kitchen table when I heard a *pop* and then about 10 minutes later my computer locked up.  A computer lock up is no big deal...a simple, albeit irritating, reboot and all is well. Right?

Right? Hello?

Not so much.

My laptop started to boot but then the screen went blank except for the message "Missing Operating System."

Now I'm no IT expert, but I know that's not good.


So with all this sleep not happening, I've spent some quality time during the wee hours of this morning on our (gasp!) desktop computer in the basement.  I've researched various bakeries in the area to see which ones will be open today. I have mentally prepared my order that I need to place for our going away party at work on Monday.

**
side note -- It is German culture to throw your own party at work.  This includes the "I just joined your group so come have coffee and cake at my desk so I get to know you" parties, birthday parties, going away parties, etc.  Like I don't have enough other $#*% to do right now, I have to arrange for a joint going away party for me and Ben.
**

Anyway, I've been on the computer for awhile this morning and I've been working on catching up on my Google Reader items and came across a cute video.  You should all know by now that I'm a Breast Cancer Awareness advocate and so when I stumbled across this video, I though I should share.

Some employees at the Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Oregon put together a music video to promote Breast Cancer Awareness.  It's a cute video and looks like they had a lot of fun making it.




Here's hoping your search for slumber has been more successful than mine.

October = Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and 2009 happens to be the 25th anniversary.  As you are probably aware (thanks to the "Feel your boobies" button on the right), I am rather passionate about Breast Cancer Awareness.  You may wonder why I'm so passionate about it...no one close to me has ever died from breast cancer.  BUT, the statistics are scary....

From Wikipedia: 
Women in the United States have the highest incidence rates of breast cancer in the world.  Among women in the US, breast cancer is the second-most common cancer (after skin cancer) and the second-most common cause of cancer death (after lung cancer). Women in the US have a 1 in 8 (12.5%) lifetime chance of developing invasive breast cancer and a 1 in 35 (3%) chance of breast cancer causing their death.

Good links to check out:

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

National Breast Cancer Coalition

Feel Your Boobies

Susan G. Komen for the Cure

BreastCancer.org

Army of Women

Save the Ta-Tas

In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month, I am going to copy Ree from The Hotfessional.  She's donating 10 cents for every comment she receives during the month of October, up to $150.


I’ll contribute $0.50 for every comment I receive during the month of October, up to $200.  
 
No, I'm not trying to out-do the Hotfessional.  I will be really suprised if can get to $200.  I don't have the number of readers she does, nor will I post everyday like she does.  I will only count 1 comment per person per posting.

Army of Women

Following up to my "feel your boobies" posting from last week, I am inviting all you women out there to join the Love/Avon Army of Women.



Here's a little info that I've taken from their website:

Like many women, Dr. Susan Love was becoming increasingly frustrated by our not having made more progress in figuring out what causes breast cancer and how to prevent it. Scientists told her that they did not know how to find the women who would be interested in taking part in the studies that were needed to end this disease. Dr. Love realized the problem wasn’t that women didn’t want to participate in these studies, but that they didn’t know that they were needed. In short order, the idea was born of an Army of Women ready to serve science.


The Love/Avon Army of Women is looking for volunteers to take part in the clinical research that will help us understand what causes breast cancer — and how to stop it. Because scientists have a hard time finding women to volunteer for their studies, they typically study cell lines that have been developed in their labs, samples from tissue banks, or conduct research on animals, like mice. But what happens in cell lines or mice is not the same as what happens in women. And that’s why we need YOU to take part in this revolutionary innovative research initiative.


The Army of Women is dedicated to representing all women in research so that the research results will apply to all women. This means we need you to help us recruit women of all ages, ethnicities, sizes, and shapes. We need women who have had breast cancer and women who have not. We need African American women, Asian women, Caucasian women, and Latinas of every age and lifestyle to be involved.


How does the Army of Women work?

Women who are interested register on the Love/Avon Army of Women website, providing very basic information such as name, age, city, and state of residence. Army of Women members will receive email updates from the Love/Avon Army of Women announcing new research studies looking for volunteers just like you. The email will detail the research project and who and what the researchers need. If you fit the criteria and you’d like to participate, all you need to do is reply to the email and let us know you’ve accepted our “Call to Action.” If you accept the Call to Action, you will be contacted by an Army of Women staff member, who will make sure you meet the study criteria and answer any questions you might have about study participation. You will never be pressured to take part in any study. The decision to take part is yours — and yours alone. If you meet the study criteria and are interested in taking part, the Army of Women staff member will let you know what you need to do next.

Some examples of their research are:

• Weight loss and biological parameters in breast cancer survivors
• The Milk Study: Using Breast Milk to Screen for Breast Cancer and Assess Breast-Cancer Risk
• The development of an inexpensive and easy to use band-aid-like test strip that can assess whether a premenopausal woman is at risk of developing breast cancer
• Exploring the effect of previous pregnancy on the physiology of the breast ducts
• Investigating whether pregnancy causes permanent molecular changes in breast tissue that reduces breast cancer risk.

You don't need to have breast cancer, it doesn't even have to run in your family. Any old (or young) pair of ta-ta's will do. It takes a just a minute to join. But the impact we will have will last a lifetime.

Please Join Me in Being One in a Million! Click here to register.

PS - thanks, Mom, for introducing me to this.

Feel Your Boobies

OK, you might think I've lost my mind, but really I'm just posting a friendly reminder to all you ladies. After reading Middle Place (by Kelly Corrigan) and meeting Amy (breast cancer survivor) on the cruise, breast cancer has been on my brain a lot.

Women in the United States have the highest incidence rates of breast cancer in the world. Among women in the US, breast cancer is the most common cancer and the second-most common cause of cancer death (after lung cancer). Women in the US have a 1 in 8 (12.5%) lifetime chance of developing invasive breast cancer and a 1 in 35 (3%) chance of breast cancer causing their death.

So of the roughly 200 female Facebook friends I have, over 12 of you will get breast cancer. Did you know that you are more likely to find a woman with breast cancer (12.5%) than a female engineer (9%)? Did you know that research shows that "feeling your boobies" is just as effective at identifying changes or lumps as doing a formal self-breast exam?

Feel Your Boobies is a non-profit breast cancer organization. It's mission is to utilize unexpected and unconventional media to remind women, especially those under 40, to "feel their boobies" or do a self-breast exam. As a way of raising money, they sell humorous t-shirts (like the one above), bumper stickers, etc.

So go ahead and do it...feel your boobies and participate in a local Race for the Cure or Breast Cancer 3-Day.