The Movember Movement: Men's Health Issue Month

Sweet 'Stache MacDonald

Happy November! Now that the Zombie Fog has lifted, I hope everyone had a safe and happy Halloween! November 1st is All Saint's Day and marks the start of the month dedicated to the Holy Souls in Purgatory, in the Roman Catholic Church. November is quite a busy month otherwise too! Not only do we observe Remembrance Day/Veteran's Day, the month acts as awareness month for Native American Heritage Month, Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, COPD Awareness Month,  National Novel Writing Month, Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month, American Diabetes Month, Lung Cancer Awareness Month, National Homeless Youth Awareness Month, and Crohn's & Ulcerative Colitis Awareness Month.



Lanny MacDonald

I've had a few of the above Conditions or Causes affect my life, another movement associated with November has affected my life as well... November has also been dubbed Movember, to raise awareness and support for Prostate Cancer/Men's Health issues. As a female, I obviously don't have a prostate... But I do have a Father, Brother, Uncles, Male Cousins, Male Friends, and I also had two Grand Fathers. I'd like to keep as many of them around for as long as possible!

In January of 2001, I lost my Gramps to Pancreatic Cancer... In September of that same year, 9 months almost to the day, I lost my Grandpa to Bone Cancer. Grandpa's relationship with cancer didn't directly start with Bone Cancer however... Roughly 8 years prior, it all started when Grandpa was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer... This post is dedicated to both my Gramps & Grandpa, and to anyone who has fought these types of Cancer and survived... And especially to those who didn't.



Staches Galore! -
Every Good Cowboy's Gotta
Have One!



Sam Elliott -
Lanny's "Mo" Twin/Rival

Movember, what can I say about it? To sum it up as best I can, without plagiarizing, is the month when Men are encouraged to grow a "Mo"-ustache to support and change the face of Men's Health Issues/Prostate Cancer. I flipped through a news paper, late last week, and saw a picture of ex-NHL-er, Lanny McDonald in a Movember Ad. He has got the sweetest 'stache I have ever seen in my life.... and he is the perfect guy to be the face for your ads! (It also reminded me what the month of November was to stand for.) I can think of a couple runners up for the best moustache - Tom Selleck, Hulk Hogan, Ed Brimley (The Quaker Oats guy), Sam Elliott (the only one that can truly rival Lanny Mac for sweetest stache! Just my opinion) and Santa - real or not... The main cast of Tombstone - including Sam Elliott- all seemed to sport Mo's... Some were pretty decent even! But Mr McDonald, in my opinion, holds the title of All-time Best Moustache. No Contest.

Aged to Perfection!

I won't preach, but I hope people see their doctors and do what they have to in order to keep themselves healthy... Whether its from Prostate Cancer, just like anything else. All I know is, I miss both my Grandfathers. It's been almost 10 years since they've passed... I think about them all the time. The pain of losing them slowly subsides, but I catch myself crying in remembrance from time to time. I also remember that Grandpa himself, had a pretty solid 'stache.... I can't think of any time he didn't have one - though I've seen him in pictures clean shaven... I don't recall ever seeing him clean shaven otherwise though. He always had a salt and pepper growth under his nose.  http://ca.movember.com/ and http://prostatecancer.ca/ are good sites to read about the month of Movember, get involved if you can.

It's not always about me - I'm going to shave my moustache off right now. (Just Kidding!!!) I am looking forward to seeing a "Mo" or two... Maybe someone has the ability to put Lanny & Sam to shame?