MOVEMBER MOVEMENT

Movember is upon us.

Until last week, I had never heard of Movember. When my friend and co-worker mentioned it to me, I wasn’t convinced it was real. Despite not knowing whether it was real, there was no hesitation when Todd asked me to join him in honoring Movember by growing a mustache for the month of November.

I’m all for supporting causes and being part of a team. I also have no problem looking like an idiot, which growing a mustache will certainly do.

Why do it? According to www.movember,com, it’s a movement to raise awareness for prostate cancer, the No. 1 cancer affecting men. What started in 2003 “over a few beers” in Melbourne, Australia has grown into a movement that raised $42 million in 2009.

It’s an honorable movement, one that I am more than happy to participate in. Most of the men in the building I work in are participating, a nice show of solidarity among the males. Even some of the women are vowing not to pluck or wax for the next 30 days.

We’ll see how it goes. Through the years, I have managed a semblance of a beard just once. It wasn’t pretty, and I often forget that it happened. It was back in 2004, the year the Sox won the World Series. It was also the year our good friends Tim and Melissa got married, and I had the beard for their wedding. Whenever The Wife sees photos from that night, she rolls her eyes and says, “Oh… I forgot you had that beard.”

However, in this case it’s not a full beard. Just the ‘stache. No hair below the lip, and nothing connecting to the sideburns. To me, that’s a key difference. Not sure that The Wife sees it as a great compromise.

Still, she sees this for what it is. It’s a fun way to support an important cause while also being part of a team effort at work.

Movember, folks. Movember.