MOVEMBER - Post #1, Movember 1, 2012

Hello dear readers. As we move into November here in NZ, I would like to call your attention to a great charity event that occurs in this month every year - MOVEMBER. For the uninitiated, men across the globe grow moustaches in an effort raise money and awareness for a wide range of men's health issues, chief among them prostate cancer and depression. As I have done for the past 4 years, I will be growing a moustache and raising money for the cause.

Due to the varying quality of soup-strainers that are on display throughout the month, Movember often gets a negative rap - "Everyone looks so gross" they say. "You look like you should be in jail" they cry. Well, I am here not to disagree with (some) of those sentiments, but to say that to get lost in those arguments misses the whole point of the month. At last count, approximately 50% of the earth's population is male, and thus directly impacted by the prospect of prostate cancer. When adding in the mental health aspect as well, the number of people, both men and women, that stand to benefit from the money raised by the Movember campaign surely stands in the hundreds of millions. Thus, if you are making some type of stand against Movember (or know someone who is) based on "moustaches are gross," I say to you: pull your head out of your ass and make a positive difference!

Now, for my personal campaign - why donate to me? I'll give you 3 reasons:
1. As I am currently living in New Zealand, I'll actually be growing my moustache while upside down. Truly an impressive feat, and one worth donating to.
2. Even though I'm thousands of miles away from anywhere, it's really easy to find me and donate: my Movember homepage URL is mobro.co/davidreinhardt (just type it into your browser and you'll come to my page), and I'll be posting updates there every 3-4 days. Also, both my Facebook and this blog will be getting regular updates as well.
3. BUT, the BEST reason to donate to me is...If I raise AT LEAST $750, I pledge to keep my moustache until I return home! The date of my return is a top secret date (so donating is a bit of a gamble - will I have my mo for 1 extra day, or 20? WHO KNOWS?) in December, but push me over that donation threshold and I'll have a moustache for at least some of the following life events: Grad. Job interviews. Hiking the Milford and Kepler Tracks. Climbing Mount Doom. Dealing with airport security. So yeah, let's make that happen.

Well, that's about it. Thanks for reading this waffle, and remember to donate for a worthy cause this month - if not to me, then anyone else you know, it's a great cause and a great campaign.

Cheers from NZ,

Dave

Day 01. Feel the intensity.