Movember Nostalgia

Eddie with his facial hair in the late 1970's

I just recently became aware of this annual month-long charity event called Movember. During the month of November, men grow and groom a mustache. The purpose is to raise awareness and funds for men's health issues, specifically prostate cancer and other cancers that affect men. The two main non-profit beneficiaries are the Prostate Cancer Foundation and Lance Armstrong's cancer foundation Livestrong. 

Check out the website at: http://us.movember.com/

As a colon-rectal cancer survivor, I am all for raising awareness and funds for men's health. My dad has also been treated for prostate cancer. My husband and I are not growing a mustache this year. I doubt we would do it in the future either. We have to much grey hair already on our bodies already without adding more to the face. 

Ed with facial hair in the early 1990's

We both sported mustaches earlier in our lives.The first set of pictures is E in the late 1970's. The second set is me in the early 1990's.

My health tip is don't put off getting your colonoscopy done. Age 50 is when you should have your first one. Age 40 or 45 if colon cancer runs in your family.

NYC blogger Kenneth Walsh is tracking his mustache and the Movember event on his blog Kenneth in the (212). See a series of entries at : http://www.kennethinthe212.com/search/label/movember

"Kissing a man without a moustache is like eating an egg without salt." - English proverb

Corporations Coming Out Against Defense of Marriage Act

The following companies submitted a brief opposing the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in a lawsuit that has made its way through the courts to a Federal Court of Appeals in Massachusetts. The case challenges the denial of federal rights and benefits to lawfully married gay and lesbian couples. The companies point out that DOMA forces them to treat their employees differently based on their sexual orientation, and as a result, the businesses assume an administrative financial burden to correct the inequity.

Companies Opposed To Gay Marriage Ban DOMA:

ABT Associates, Inc. (consulting)

Aetna Inc. (insurance)

Akamai Technologies, Inc. (technology)

Alere Inc. (health care)

Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (banking)

Biogen Idec Inc.  (biotechnology)

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of MA, Inc. (insurance)

Boston Medical Center Corp. (health care)

Bright Horizons Children’s Centers LLC  (health care)

CBS Corporation (media)

Calvert Investments, Inc. (investments)

Chubb Corporation (insurance)

Communispace Corporation (marketing)

Constellation Energy Group, Inc. (energy)

Diageo North American, Inc. (alcohol distributor)

Eastern Bank Corporation (banking)

Exelon Corporation (energy)

Fitcorp Healthcare Centers, Inc. (fitness)

Gammelgarden, LLC (hospitality)

Google, Inc. (technology)

Integrated Archive Systems, Inc. (technology)

Kimpton Hotel & Restaurant Group, LLC (hospitality)

Levi Strauss & Co.  (clothing)

Loring, Wolcott & Coolidge Trust, LLC (investments)

Massachusetts Association of Health Plans (health care)

Massachusetts Envelope Company, Inc. (manufacturer)

Massachusetts Financial Services Company (investments)

Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (insurance)

Microsoft Corporation (technology)

National Grid USA, Inc.  (energy)

Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company (insurance)

New Balance Athletic Shoe Inc. (clothing)

NIKE, Inc. (clothing)

The Ogilvy Group, Inc.  (advertising)

Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc.  (pharmaceuticals)

The Parthenon Group, LLC (investments)

Partners HealthCare Systems, Inc. (health care)

Reproductive Science Center of New England (health care)

Skyworks Solutions, Inc. (investments)

Starbucks Corporation  (retail)

State Street Bank and Trust Company (banking)

Stonyfield Farm, Inc. (food manufacturer)

Sun Life Financial (US) Services Co., Inc. (financial services)

Time Warner Cable Inc. (media)

Trillium Asset Management Corporation (financial services)

W/S Development Associates LLC (developer)

Xerox Corporation (manufacturer)

Zipcar, Inc. (auto services)

Law and professional firms:

Burns & Levinson LLP

Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP

Foley Hoag LLP

Goodwin Proctor LLP

Goulston & Storrs, P.C.

McCarter & English LLP

Nixon Peabody LLP

Parthenon Group LLC

Ropes & Gray LLP

Salera Consulting

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Sullivan & Worcester LLP

Professional, trade and civic organizations:

Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce

The Boston Foundation

Massachusetts Association of Health Plans

Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, Inc.

The National Fire Protection Association

Out & Equal Workplace Advocates

Retailers Association of Massachusetts

 

94% or 470 of the Fortunes 500 companies offer domestic partner benefits to their employees. HRC reports that DOMA prevents any of the over 1,100 federal rights, benefits and responsibilities of marriage from being afforded to legally married same-sex couples.  These include Social Security survivor benefits, federal employee health benefits for spouses, protections against spouses losing their homes in cases of severe medical emergencies, the right to sponsor a foreign born partner for immigration, the guarantee of family and medical leave and the ability to file joint tax returns, among many others.  51 percent of voters oppose DOMA while only 34 percent favor it.


Many companies prohibit workplace discrimination against gays and lesbians, even though they are not required by law to do so in most of the United States. Unfortunately many states and the federal government support discriminatory laws targeted at GLBT Americans.

But the workplace is not always a safe place. There are a number of companies and businesses that promote their anti-gay stance. More about them here: http://guydads.blogspot.com/2008/12/anti-gay-companies.html 

Hot for Harry Houdini

Halloween weekend we visited the traveling exhibition at San Francisco’s Contemporary Jewish Museum called Houdini: Art and Magic. The exhibition is on from October 2, 2011 until January 16, 2012 and well worth a visit.

Harry Houdini (1874-1926) was a Hungarian-born American magician noted for his sensational escape acts. Handcuffs, shackles, straitjackets, milk cans, and packing trunks – nothing could hold the famed vaudevillian who became one of the 20th century’s most legendary performers. With a talent for self-promotion and provocation, this immigrant son of a poor Hungarian rabbi rocketed to international fame and grabbed front-page headlines with his gripping theatrical presentations and heart-stopping outdoor spectacles.

Apparently, he also knew the sex appeal of a shirtless picture or a tight, form-fitting outfit that displayed his compactly muscled physique.

Curator Brooke Kamin Rapaport is quoted that Houdini's success "was a source of enormous pride for the Jewish community. He achieved mainstream acceptance despite anti-Semitic and anti-immigrant attitudes, and his escape from the confinement of handcuffs, chains, packing crates, trunks and boxes had particular resonance for those who sought liberation from political, ethnic, or religious oppression."