The last day of November means different things to different people—the start of December, the rush to Christmas shopping, and winter is coming.
What does it mean for me this year? It’s the end of two global events that happened over the month of November. One, I participated in; one, I didn’t.
The first is National Novel Writing Month, better known as “NaNoWriMo.” The event has the tagline of “Thirty days and nights of literary abandon!” I liken it to “vomiting out a novel” in a month’s time. Participants begin writing on November 1st with the goal to write a 50,000-word novel by 11:59:59, November 30th.
The main objective of NaNoWriMo is output. It’s about quantity, not quality. Given this, anyone can join and is encouraged to write with abandon, take risks, and most importantly—forget their internal editor. There are very few rules, but a couple of key ones are you must start from scratch (no previously written work can be included in the NaNoWriMo draft), and you can’t write the same word 50,000 times. Sounds simple, right?
It was November 5th before I signed up for the event. I had a lull in my writing at the time and thought it might be worthwhile to see if I could do this. There are no prizes, only the satisfaction of accomplishment. I connected with a NaNoWriMo group in Toronto on Twitter—its members tweeting frantically each day about their hardships, progress, and word count. Some had made friends through the event and were meeting at local coffee shops to write together. It was a real community of writers and non-writers who wanted to encourage each other to make their goals.
I tried really hard to get myself wrapped up in the excitement, but by November 16th—I was out. I felt bad because I’m not a quitter, but I had been wrestling with the idea of continuing, deluding myself into thinking my 9,000+ word manuscript could later be transformed from pure shite to something brilliant. Who was I kidding?
I have since filed that draft in a folder entitled “NaNoWriMo 2010,” and there it will stay—probably forever. It was an interesting experience but not one that I will likely repeat. I know the way I write—slow, methodical, anal at times. I can’t regurgitate words onto a page and not be able to make changes to it as I write, but that’s just me. I certainly applaud those who can do it.
If anyone feels they would like to give NaNoWriMo a shot, you can always register early for next year!
The second event is Movember, a word created from Mo, slang for moustache, and November.
The idea for Movember originated in 2003 in Australia. The plan was to bring the moustache back as a bit of a joke and do something for men’s health.
The rules are simple, start out clean-shaven on the 1st of November and grow a moustache for thirty days. As with other causes that are represented by different-colored ribbons, the moustache is symbolic of the ribbon to raise awareness and funds for prostate cancer.
I remember first learning about Movember at my workplace in 2007. I walked into the staff kitchen and saw poor-quality photocopies of celebrities plastered all over the walls. Among them were Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp, and Pierce Brosnan—all of them sporting moustaches with the word “Movember” written above each of their pictures. If nothing else, it created a buzz in the office. No one was aware of the association of Movember with prostate cancer at the time.
Coming from the banking environment, I know what a healthy dose of competition among corporate rivals can bring. The drive to outdo each other in raising the most money for a worthy cause is fierce among bankers. Teams are formed who compete against other teams within the same organization. Banks also compete with other banks and companies for bragging rights and recognition. All of this has helped to grow a grassroots movement into something much bigger—awareness for prostate cancer backed by corporate sponsorship dollars.
Globally, the 2009 Movember campaign raised more than $38 million, with $7.2 million collected in Canada. It was also a Canadian bank that ranked as the No. 2 fundraiser in the world for prostate cancer research last year.
Though I didn’t participate in the event, I’m going to research what I can do the next time November rolls around. I think I could convince Ramone to look good with a moustache.
To my friends who have been growing their ‘staches over the month—YOU GUYS ROCK!
A special shout-out to Mr. P – Congrats on being cancer-free since December 2002. WOOHOO! HIP HIP HOORAY! HIP HIP HOORAY!
It’s not too late to donate to a Mo Bro. You can also support the cause to end prostate cancer by visiting www.prosatecancer.ca.
Stay sexy,
Eden
edenbaylee.wordpress.com 