Book Club Members: Friday is the day! Are you ready to discuss Undaunted?

Warning: You might want to get your favorite beverage first!

1. “Pain is weakness leaving the body.” This is a favorite saying of my eldest child, who has endured 7 painful surgeries due to sports injuries. However, the older I get, the more I realize that this saying could be applied to our internal hurts and sorrows. If we embrace that pain and walk through it, we do become stronger individuals, capable of brave things we never thought we could endure before the pain arrived.
2. “The harder one works, the luckier one gets.” When I was a young married woman with few financial resources, I’m not sure the hubby and I liked this one, but it has proven to be true, particularly for my workaholic hubby. What he may fail to realize is that in that hard work, he has gone from an impulsive, brash upstart to someone who now garners a lot of respect from his colleagues. Is the brash guy still there, occasionally? Yes, but only when brashness will make everyone more fortunate.
3. “The best thing you can do for your children? Love your spouse.” We forgot this one when we were deeply in the throes of the expensive proposition of raising three bold children. Babysitters were expensive and even more so for our motley crew (No, not the band.) and thus, we put weekly dates on the back burner. Our marriage started falling apart in the process. But, once we both acknowledged that we weren’t making enough time for each other, we found ways to incorporate that date into our very tiny budget. We got creative about finding free things to do with each other. And the result? I am more in love with my man than I was on the day I said, “I do.” And the kids? They now value a marriage in which couples fight…to stay together.
4. “Row, row, row your boat, Gently down the stream, Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, Life is but a dream.” Notice it doesn’t say row someone else’s boat! And if you have ever rowed a boat, you know what hard work that really is! It takes a coordinated effort of a paddle that often seems to have a mind of its own. It takes muscles that are often painfully developed. It takes determination even when those muscles hurt, even if rowing downstream!  And yet this taxing activity we are asked to do gently. Why? Because if you row your boat violently, you may crash into something, like someone else’s boat and endanger others in the process. If you are fortunate only to endanger yourself, that forces someone else to row your boat, at the very minimum or destroys “the boat”! Even though rowing a boat gently is often hard work, this childhood song reminds us to do it “merrily.” Notice that rowing is only repeated 3 times, while merrily is repeated 4 times! (And yes, this is probably because of the imposition of a song on this little saying, but it’s still rather interesting to me!) One can work one’s rear end off, but if we angrily do it or fearfully do it, we are going to tire much more quickly than if we endeavor to “find the silver lining” and do it merrily. We get farther by being joyful about our hard work. And last but certainly not least, life is but a dream in several ways. If we row our boats gently and merrily, we will probably create, in time, a dreamy life, but it also reminds me that this life is temporary—it’s the “Matrix” (Thank you, Keanu Reeves.) and our real life is in Heaven with God. Thus, it’s okay if I don’t learn these lessons the first time, because God’s got my next life all lined up for me and it truly will be a dreamy life.
5. “Love your neighbor.” Even though God is a God of judgment and mercy, note that Jesus does not say, “Love and judge your neighbor.” This is difficult for parents to remember, because in loving our children as we should, we often have to judge our children’s behavior—it’s our job! And if one has trained to be a counselor as I have, the insurance agency and even the psychology field to a degree, requires us to “categorize people” into “disorders.” Thus, because I have played both roles, I find myself judging people a lot. But, God only asks us to love people and let Him do the judging. Does loving someone mean that I always agree with them or their choices? Nope. Does it mean that when they hurt me it doesn’t “OUCH!”? Nope. Does it mean that I condone their treatment of me when hurting me? Nope. It just means I choose to regard them as well as I would like to be regarded—that Golden Rule thing. I can still respect someone’s dignity even if I don’t agree with them. I can still pray for things to be okay with them. I can still reach out and show that person kindness. In praying for that person effectively, I also find I have to put myself in their shoes. Usually, in praying for them, I find that it’s really tough to be in their shoes, and their choices (even the ones that hurt me) make a little more sense. And thus, I can find the beginnings of love and respect for that person. Since Jesus also told us our neighbor may be someone from another country, a place I’ve never visited or experienced, just loving people, without judgment, is a very huge task. If I’m loving people as I should, then I really don’t have time to judge people! Thankfully, if others also love their neighbors, then we eventually get around to loving everyone and helping them succeed in becoming people who “row their own boat.”

What adages seem to be oh, so true for you? Comment below.

Friday’s Posts: Slow Reader Friday & the January 2014 MIP Book Club Selection!

You may also like:  The Odd Days of November and A Real Scare

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Book Club Lovers: Time to wind up your reading on Undaunted this week. The book discussion and December 2013 MIP Book Selection posts will be up this Friday!

Last week’s WOW (Word of the Week) was ephebic. I just love (NOT!) when the dictionaries do what Merriam-Webster Online does with ephebic: “of, relating to, or characteristic of an ephebe or ephebus.” Um….yeah. Okay. I have absolutely no idea what an ephebe or ephebus is…how about you? So, of course, that meant I had to look up ephebe and ephebus.

An ephebe is a young person or youth. (Or “yeut,” if you’re a Joe Pesci fan.) An ephebus is a young person in ancient Greece, especially one who is training for full citizenship in Greece. Since we’re talking a youth from ancient Greece, wouldn’t that make that person, well, ancient? And therefore, that person would no longer be an ephebus, right??? In fact I don’t think I know any Athenians from ancient times that are still around, so that would make that person dead, right???? I think I’m starting to understand why we don’t often use the word ephebic.

This week’s word is booboisie. My numerous years in French class make me suspect that this word is French in origin, so you’ll have to forgive me if I reach into my French archives for some definition guesses this week:

booboisie: (büb-ˌwä-ˈzē) 1. being scared in Boise 2. scaring a French forest 3. the result of a female running into something with her chest region.

What’s your definition guess for booboisie? Submit your guess in the comment box below!

Wednesday’s Post: Adages that have proven to be true…

You might also like: Word of the Week: ephebic; Word of the Week: frisson; Word of the Week: jape; Word of the Week: rowel; and Word of the Week: redound

I promise that I will get off this tangent of being ungrateful, but the reality is that I have still not learned how to be thankful for the following:

1. Canned Peas: The frozen variety suits me just fine, but that slimy pale green version reminds me of…well…you know. I am grateful that I at least have the choice  between the slimy version and the frozen version! Oh, and I don’t care what brand is on the outside of the can, they’re still slimy on the inside of the can.

2. Asparagus: I think this is a texture issue for me, but when you cook a veggie, shouldn’t it get softer or better tasting? Asparagus doesn’t seem to do either for me. Even dousing it in artery-clogging sauce doesn’t seem to help. I’ll just consume the sauce, thank you.

3 Band-aids that don’t stick: It’s okay if the band-aids fail when they get wet or have been on for too long, but more and more, the band-aids in a brand new box don’t seem to stick like they did when I was a kid. We used to rip off arm hair when we took them off as a kid. All I can figure is that kids must have a lot more arm hair these days. And why do we need more arm hair???

4. Loud roads: Yes, you read that right. I used to think that not being able to hear myself think while in the car was due to a lack of air conditioning. Then, when we got an air-conditioned car, I thought it was because we couldn’t afford the expensive models with better soundproofing. Well, I have the expensive car now and they are even louder, if you ask me. And this conclusion I have reached despite advancing deafness. Maybe we should pave roads with ear plugs and acoustical tile??? If not, then may we economically develop hovercraft vehicles before I leave the planet for good.

5. Small jeans pockets/Bigger cell phones: Why did I put these two together? Because when I am in a meeting or service or gathering in which it’s necessary to put the phone on vibrate, I prefer to put it in my front pants pocket where I not only will be sure to feel it vibrate, but also will be able to retrieve it easily and noiselessly. Since women’s jeans designers insist on the “low rider” look, the front jeans pockets are too little for safely holding my mammoth phone. While I enjoy a lot of the features of my phone, even the smallest smart phone will not fit well in these pockets. I am forced to either constantly re-stuff it in said tiny pocket or pocket it in my back pocket where a pick pocket can pocket it.

Monday’s Post: Are you ephebic?

You might also like: Things I’m Not Thankful For…Part 3, Things I’m Not Thankful For…Part 2, Things I’m Not Thankful For…Part 1, and The Odd Days of November

Happy belated Veteran’s Day to all those who bravely serve our country! The very fact that others died so I could live in the best country in the world is sobering to me and rightly so, but perhaps even our courageous men and women who serve in this way might be perturbed by a few of the following:

1. Apathy – I can forgive just about anyone if they passionately believe something, even if I don’t really get their passion. But in a world full of starvation, dehydration, prostitution, enslavement, addiction, war and disease, shouldn’t we all be passionate about working to lessen the effects of at least one of these? Of course, I’m rather apathetic about helping people become more passionate. Hmmm…

2. Marketing calls on the phone I listed at the Do Not Call site: I list my numbers every year with this service as requested and they still call. When I say I’m not interested, they continue to try and sell me aluminum siding for my brick home. When my children did things like this, I usually sent them to their rooms.

3. Kids who swear: I still sometimes swear, so I understand how children can pick up such language. But, there is something inherently wrong with a 2 year old saying the F word. There is even more wrong when the parent hears it and doesn’t scold their child for using it. It makes me want to scold the parent for being a child.

4. Mice: Actually, I’m okay with mice…as long as they don’t insist on running under my bed at night. I’ll even let them live here as long as I never have to see them. I have no earthly reason for this loathing or my very stupid reaction upon seeing one, but let’s just say my stress level can go from 0 to 100 in less than 3.5 seconds. Maybe mice are the newest way to eliminate the need for fossil fuel???

5. Allergies: I’ve yet to see the value of an allergy for anyone. How about you? Okay…maybe one has value….an allergy to allergies.

Friday’s Post: Yes, there are even more things that irritate me…

You might also like: Things I’m Not Thankful For: Part 2, Things I’m Not Thankful For: Part I, and The Odd Days of November

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Book Club Lovers: Isn’t Christine Caine’s story fascinating? Hope you are enjoying reading about her as much as I am!

Last week’s Word of the Week (WOW) was frisson. Merriam-Webster Online defines frisson as: a brief moment of emotional excitement. So, it’s a “cheap thrill”??? 😉 But frisson sounds better, hunh? I apparently have lots of frissons while shopping online. I don’t think this is a good thing. Hmmm…

This week’s WOW is ephebic. I don’t know what it means, but it sure makes me sound intelligent when I say it! Unfortunately, saying it (so far) has not helped me come up with intelligent-sounding definition guesses. Read on to see what I mean:

ephebic: (i-ˈfē-bik) 1. the description of a person  who has an online phobia 2. something that lasts for a very short period of time 3. the newest version of a ballpoint pen

What’s your definition for ephebic?

Wednesday’s Post: Things I”m Not Thankful For…Part III

You might also like: Word of the Week: frisson; Word of the Week: jape; Word of the Week: rowel; Word of the Week: redound; and Word of the Week: miscible

On Wednesday I pointed out that, while I’m blessed to have a lot of good things in my life, I do have a few things that regularly twitch my taters. (And no, I have no idea how taters would twitch, nor where “my” taters would be located, if they did twitch.) So, here’s what I can do without just fine today:

1. Bad grammar and misspellings: While my very own writing usually contains both, my daily reading is hampered when I see a typo or people using words that do not exist. It actually stops the train of thought I was trying to follow in the article, posting or book. I’m even more irritated when I know that a book’s proofreader didn’t catch such errata. Why? Because I used to be a proofreader. And yes, I just used bad grammar.
2. Wet towels on the floor: In every other part of my home I can be a total slob, but if the towels are wet and on carpeting, I’m incensed. And they had better be folded neatly on the towel rack the proper way. I have no idea why this just grinds my gears, but I prefer to think it’s a disorder caused by my neatnik mother. That’s much more sensible than blaming myself. 
3. Long receipts: Since the hubby has an expense account and I am his unofficial Senior Executive Administrative Assistant, unfolding and sorting receipts takes up a fair amount of my time. Even though we are supposed to be going green, receipts seem to get longer and longer. This probably means we’re killing even more trees than when I was a kid, when we thought “going green” was being the Hulk for Halloween. And the usual reason for their added length? To remind you five times to do their ONLINE survey so that you can get emails from them until you die and never, ever win their astonishingly-large jackpot that you are eligible for only if you complete said survey. Here’s a thought: Don’t even have the survey or the jackpot. Save some money from using less paper and not giving some rich millionaire your jackpot and lower your prices. That way we will ALL feel like we won. If you can’t do that, give the extra to your hard-working employees who are tired of rolling up your long receipts for their customers.
4. Long books that could have been written with 1/2 the verbiage: This one makes absolutely no sense because I adore my lengthy verbiage, but if the point was made five pages ago and you’re still prattling on about the same point, I’m not only bored; I’m re-writing and editing said verbiage. See # 1. Of course, these thoughts will be completely forgotten while editing my own book. *sigh*
5. Poorly researched writing or speaking that sounds definitive: An awful lot of reporters, commentators, politicians and scientists write or speak as if what they are saying is actual fact when it is really an opinion. If it’s your opinion, just say so. If we like you enough, we’ll probably believe you anyway. Of course, I NEVER do this myself. *cough* *sputter* I feel my nose getting longer and it was plenty long to begin with.  And yes, I just used bad grammar again.

Monday’s Post: Have you ever had a frisson? Are you sure you want to have one?

You might also like: Things I’m Not Thankful For…Part I, The Odd Days of November, and The Weirdest Diet on Earth: The Coumadin Diet

Cloudy Day

It has become a recent trend on FB to post 30 things/people/conditions/situations that one is thankful to have…one for each day of November. I have participated in this trend in years past. Indeed, if one lives in America (even if you can’t afford Obamacare), there is much reason to give thanks. We are still one of the wealthiest countries in the world with the most freedoms. We can worship the deity we wish to worship. We can choose our own profession. We get at least a basic education unlike the majority of the world.

But, there ARE some things I honestly have difficulty perceiving as a blessing. So, in November I elect (since it’s also a month that usually features an election) to share the things that are not at the top of my thankful list:

1. IV needles – These rather large nasty objects always hurt, no matter how much I pray, visualize, breathe or otherwise try to deal with them being attached to my body. Can we just ship these to D.C. every time politicians want to shut down the government?

2. Self-inflicted pain – I can tolerate other people torturing me; I just don’t seem to enjoy torturing myself. This particularly applies to stomach injections that produce quarter-sized multi-colored bruises. But, I have managed to bruise myself merely by walking forward…into an obvious wall. And I seem to make a habit of this. Does this mean I’m subconsciously sado-masochistic?

3. Dust – Why is it that when I can’t see dust in the air, I can see it all too well on my furniture??? And since my home is pretty loaded with horizontal surfaces, I loathe having to dust every single one of them. If they make affordable dusting robots, I will be first in line for one. Would you call a dusting robot a robust??? You can stop groaning now.

4. Arthritis – At the exact time in my life when I probably need to be more active, my body vehemently protests this with pain that will wake the dead each time I move one centimeter. Unfortunately, the only thing that really works on lessening this pain is 2 centimeters of moving…every second of every day.

5. Cloudy days with no rain – About the only good thing a cloudy day yields is less need for SPF 100 sunscreen. Either rain or get sunny again. I think this is the “fish or cut bait” advice. Can you give advice to the weather??? Hmmm….

Friday’s Post: Not thankful for this stuff, either…

You might also like: The Odd Days of November, Lessons Learned from 7 Years on Facebook, and Lessons Learned from Heart Attacks 3 & 4

Book Club Readers: I’m a little bit behind on my Undaunted reading. You, too? Guess we need to create a little more room for reading this week, hunh?

Last week’s WOW (Word of the Week) was jape. Merriam-Webster Online says that jape means: to say or do something jokingly or mockingly. If that is the case, then I jape a lot. In fact we could probably say I’m a jape-aholic. Is there a Japers Anonymous group? And yes, I just japed. 😀

Today’s WOW is frisson. I usually offer up 3 possibilities, but today 4 popped to mind pretty quickly, so you’re getting a bonus guess today. (I know…this just made your Monday, right?) Here are my definition attempts for frisson:

frisson: (frē-ˈsōⁿ) 1. freezing with a French accent 2. an area where you can do whatever you want 3. frizzy fission 4. the unruly hair of a son when it’s humid outside

What do you think frisson means? Submit your definition guess below!

Wednesday’s Post: 

You might also like: Word of the Week: jape; Word of the Week: rowel; Word of the Week: redound; and Word of the Week: miscible

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turkey

Book Club Readers: Today we are starting to read Undaunted today! It’s not too late to jump in with us and read! Go here for more details.

Warning: Get your favorite beverage first.

In October 2013 I focused a lot of my posts on the very serious topic of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. This got me to wondering what would be the official focus of the month of November. According to holidayinsights.com, here’s some of what we’re celebrating other than Veterans Day and Thanksgiving:

• International Drum Month (Two guys at my house will be happy. That’s how dull we are.)
• Peanut Butter Lovers Month (I can eat Reese’s all month, right?)
• Real Jewelry Month (As opposed to “Imaginary Jewelry Month”?)
• National Sleep Comfort Month (I smell a Communist plot here.)

But, it doesn’t stop there. There are some very odd things to celebrate on several of the days in November:

• November 2nd – Deviled Egg Day (An adopted and my daughter probably honor this day.)
• November 2nd – Look for Circles Day (I can probably find some under my eyes.)
• November 4th – King Tut Day (I feel a Steve Martin song coming on.)
• November 6th – Marooned without a Compass Day (Forgot to get the free compass app?)
• November 8th – Dunce Day (I thought this was Election Day.)
• November 9th – Chaos Never Dies Day (Probably because we continue to elect dunces.)
• November 15th – Clean Your Refrigerator Day (For turkey leftovers later in the month?)
• November 16th – Button Day (I wonder when Zipper Day is.)
• November 16th – Have a Party with Your Bear Day (as opposed to partying with your lion)
• November 19th – Have a Bad Day Day (Because we elected dunces and wore their buttons.)
• November 20th – Absurdity Day (Did we need this after November 19th?)
• November 21st – False Confession Day (Mob bosses are cross-examinied on this day, right?)
• November 26th – Shopping Reminder Day (We need a reminder in America in November?)
• November 28th – Make Your Own Head Day (Two heads are always better than one.)
• November 28th – Red Planet Day (Lose your head in a Martian Invasion? You have a spare now?)
• November 29th – Buy Nothing Day (I doubt this day was conceived by Wal-mart.)

Now, there are some really useful “holidays” in November, so may I suggest that you actually do something to honor the following:

• November 1st (today) – All Saints Day (Remember those who went to Heaven this past year.)
• November 2nd – Book Lovers Day (Read a book you love or read the MIP November Book!)
• November 3rd – Sandwich Day (Fix yourself a really awesome sandwich this Sunday.)
• November 7th – Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day (An excuse to pig out, right?)
• November 8th – Cook Something Bold Day (In Texas this usually involves jalapenos.)
• November 12th – Young Readers Day (Read to a young reader or donate a children’s book.)
• November 13th – World Kindness Day (Do something kind in “stealth mode.”)
• November 14th – Operating Room Nurse Day (Honor your favorite nurses on this day!)
• November 15th – America Recycles Day (Recycle what you found in your refrigerator on 11/15?)
• November 17th – Electronic Greeting Card Day (Wish a Happy Thanksgiving electronically!)
• November 17th – Homemade Bread Day (Any questions?)
• November 17th – Take a Hike Day (Use halftime to take an actual walk outside.)
• November 20th – Children’s Day (Spend the day with kids or give to a children’s charity.)
• November 21st – Hello Day (Say “hello” to a stranger today and smile.)
• November 22nd – Go for a Ride Day (Dust off the bike and pedal.)
• November 23rd – National Adoption Day (Do something nice for adoptive parents today.)
• November 29th – You’re Welcome Day (Do something that gives you an opportunity to say this.)

November also celebrates:

• Child Safety Protection Month (What can you do to ensure the safety of children?)
• National Adoption Awareness Month (Share adoption links on your favorite social site.)
• National Novel Writing Month (I’ll be writing at least 2 pages of my novel each day this month.)
• Native American Heritage Month (Celebrate the group that welcomed the pilgrims to America!)

In addition, a friend and my daughter are all doing the 30 Day Plank Challenge (as in the exercise…not a piece of wood.) Care to join us? Click here.

Got enough to work on, celebrate or honor yet? Let’s put some “good” out into the world this month as we celebrate how blessed we are as a people. Happy November!

Monday’s Post: Jumpin’ Japin’…

You might also like: Lessons Learned from 7 Years on Facebook and Lessons Learned from the 2009 Dallas Breast Cancer 3 Day

Book Club Readers: The MIP Reading Plan is up for November’s book! Click here to see it!

Warning: Get your favorite beverage first. 

What I’m about to discuss is not even known among a lot of my friends and family. Perhaps I should send them all smelling salts by FedEx first? If I am blessed to call you a friend or a family member, just do me a favor–sit down first, okay? And if you have a heart condition, take your meds first. But, I promise…it’s going to be all right.

In April 2013 I did my annual check-ups. Yes, plural. I have to do one for my heart condition and one for the female stuff. I have been doing the former ever since 1999 when I first discovered I had Prinzmetal Angina. The latter I should have been doing all along, but honestly, like a lot of women, I had lapsed on that exam for several years.

Enter my best buddy, Kim. Kim, like me, grew weary of the annual exams where our doctors usually chew us out for weighing too much, not exercising enough, and not eating right. Thus, when she felt a lump in her breast, she ignored it. If Kim were here, she would tell you that is the stupidest thing she’s ever done and she paid the ultimate price for that neglect: her life.

Thus, I resolved to be a better medical patient and started going to my annual female appointment again. This includes a routine mammogram due to my age. Normally, these come back just fine, despite having the very common, usually “no-big-deal” fibro-cystic disease.

This year, I got a very short report saying that they needed to re-do the test. That was it. I kept reading the report to try and discern whether the “re-do” was because they hadn’t gotten a clear pic of the “girls” or if they suspected a tumor. Even when I called to schedule this new mammogram, the receptionist wouldn’t specify why I was doing the test again. However, the scary part is that the radiologist would give me the results right away–I would not have to wait 10 days to hear whether or not everything was okay. I considered this both good and bad news.

They couldn’t schedule the re-test right away. Not good for a woman who can make mountain ranges out of an anthill. I considered whether I wanted to relay this to my family for prayer requests or whether I just wanted to “go it alone” with my husband and a few close friends who understood all too well the ramifications of what this test might mean for me. I decided on the latter. The friends told me this was very common and that often, women’s breasts calcify as they age and most of the time, these calcifications are not harmful in any way.

Finally the day came for doing the re-test. The technician did finally confirm that my breasts were calcifying and that these calcifications had grown considerably since my last annual exam. Not only did I have to redo the original scans, but now I had to endure even more uncomfortable positions for this test. Basically, they tried to wring out my breasts like a dish rag and since I’m a C cup, this was not exactly my favorite thing to do on a Monday morning. But, I survived, probably because my other health adventures have taught me a lot about surviving stupid medical pain.

As I waited with the lovely enormous pink paper towel (I didn’t know the Jolly Green Giant had breasts.) over the top part of my bod for the technician or the radiologist to return, I was actually calm. All I can say is that faith in God and the prayers of my family and friends intervened there.

The technician came back and said that the questionable spots on the mammogram appeared to be just calcifications and I needed to confirm this again with another mammogram in late October. I scheduled the appointment and returned home.

Being the researcher that I am, I got on WebMD and discovered that 98% of the time the re-mammogram of such calcifications proves to be nothing to worry about. That was even more calming news. I let those who had been praying know that all seemed to be okay for now.

Enter the health adventures of the last 4 months. Let me just add that my annual heart check-up went extremely well, so I was not prepared for my heart to go berzerk in June and then to create a clot in one of my ventricles this past August. As I recuperated from all of that mess, my mind periodically remembered the eventual October appointment. Again, I thought, “Should I tell more of my family and friends?” Most of them were in rather large transitions themselves and it seemed silly to tell them about something that was probably going to be okay. However, I had seemed to be okay heart-wise as well. And look how that turned out! My luck was pretty much non-existent!

I decided to only tell a few more people about the situation and proceeded with last Monday’s test. Again I lived through the “booby-trap” process I had endured in the original re-test. (I’m thinking a vise grip would have been kinder to my poor left side.) And this time the radiologist saw no reason to re-test until my next female exam in 2014. Yay! Hallelujah! Thanks be to God!

In the meantime one reader friend has also had to deal with an actual diagnosis of breast cancer. It is just scary how many women I know who face these rather unnerving, somewhat painful experiences every day and seldom tell a lot of people simply because they just don’t want to worry people unnecessarily.

The good news? Even if diagnosed, your chances of surviving are awesome today, particularly if you are diagnosed at Stage 1 and Stage 2. In fact I just learned that a vaccine is expected for breast cancer in 10 to 15 years. The friend recently diagnosed said that our country is full of great resources and support, often only a phone call or web site away.

So, dear lady readers: Is it time for a check-up? If so, make that appointment today. Don’t let cost deter you. Many places make mammograms and other female appointments free throughout the year. It never hurts to ask! All they can say is no. But, keep asking.

And gentlemen readers: Have you checked on your favorite person of the opposite gender to make sure she is having those appointments regularly? Be a man and stumble through it, if you have to. At least she will know you care. And that may be the very thing that gets her to the enormous, pink paper towel. You may even save her life. And just for the record, men get breast cancer, too. So, make sure you’re going to YOUR appointments, too.

Yes, friends, it’s that important. The life you save may be your own. And I am always here for support any way you need it. Why? Because I made the decision to keep my appointments. 🙂

Friday’s Post: The Patron Saint of Writers…and???

You might also like: Lessons Learned from the 2009 Dallas Breast Cancer 3 Day, How I Cope with a Heart that’s a Ticking Time Bomb, and 8 Women Who Changed My Life