tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-76140568342680868252024-02-19T07:37:25.375-06:00Melanoma MamaIn loving memory of my daughter Jaime and her courageous 9-year battle with melanoma, I am a melanoma awareness advocate and the indoor tanning industry's worst nightmare!Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-29214357882751140822021-09-14T13:09:00.000-05:002021-09-14T13:09:18.827-05:00Earth Angels<p><span style="font-family: verdana;"> I don't even know their names. They were just two women camped out in the visitor lounge outside the palliative care unit of our local hospital. I would learn that they were sisters and that their mother was in the room next to my daughter Jaime's. Jaime, after being diagnosed 9 years earlier, at age 20, with melanoma caused by her tanning bed use, had been a "guest" of this hospital for 5 weeks, and within a couple hours, she would leave us and her pain and suffering behind.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">I had left Jaime's bedside for a short break. I went to the lounge and curled up in a recliner, physically and mentally exhausted, with my world taking a deep dive into the darkness that only a mother who has lost their child can know. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">My husband came in and gently asked -- "Are you okay?" I snapped back out of my fog with the fury of an injured wild a</span><span style="font-family: verdana;">nimal -- "My daughter is dying, and you ask me if I'm okay???" My husband, who </span><span style="font-family: verdana;">needed consoling himself, was just lost in my anger and couldn't respond.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Then, as if it had been choreographed and rehearsed to perfection, those two women pulled up chairs on each side of me and took my hands in theirs. One told me the story of how her teenage son was in a horrible auto accident and died in her arms. She told me how painful this was going to be for me; she told me that I would want to die every minute of every day for a very long time. And she told me that it would be the most painful thing I would ever face but that I would survive. She was right about everything.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">I returned to Jaime's room, knowing that what was about to happen would be the best thing for my little girl but would rip my heart right out of my body. A few minutes later, the nurse came in with a small stuffed lamb that she said the women next door wanted me to have. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLd4lqTyLR3pLfCERK1mysRCqoJd0l6hbVHWWZp0H_z-1RL6kPVZExJ1HI3MZfxNMF8ZfTgVuWMkDKYi8RSeAjhZPaTzFEwSVAFTzRdJ0uMdt1qqQyuzXRuHlql2TkIPQ1uIzbnxtBMsc/s800/jaimeslamb2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLd4lqTyLR3pLfCERK1mysRCqoJd0l6hbVHWWZp0H_z-1RL6kPVZExJ1HI3MZfxNMF8ZfTgVuWMkDKYi8RSeAjhZPaTzFEwSVAFTzRdJ0uMdt1qqQyuzXRuHlql2TkIPQ1uIzbnxtBMsc/s320/jaimeslamb2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">Such a loving gesture ... one that had even more meaning to me than they could ever know. Years before that, Jaime's nephew, my grandson, had died when he was a week old. I had put a little stuffed lamb in his casket with his tiny body. And here I was once again clutching a little lamb for comfort.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;">You might think all this is coincidence, or fate, or an accident, or maybe pure chance ... but I believe it was more than that. I think people are sometimes put into our lives for a specific reason. I don't know how this happens, but it just does. I am so grateful to those two strangers and have thought about them often over the years. We had a bond, a special moment in time, and I don't even know their names. But I call them "Earth Angels."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span></p><p><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: verdana;"> </span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span><span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
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<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span><span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span><span><span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.6705503000000164.7929405638211549 -131.8268003 61.413408236178846 -61.514300300000016tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-1222021086234775552020-01-24T14:26:00.041-06:002022-09-07T19:47:33.094-05:00Ding Goes My Heartstrings<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2uDrjWdz4O5hyUroiwihr_dSn2WGczGgwTOph3RxQ2LWMvCMeZShRtmb10IpvdLPyUcyiUdYFUmdb3oez6lJDiifkCUz8HwXljvebTlLgOwI11H53px2a8W-w3V78hstkNxN68LQOs98/s1600/JaimesDinger.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2uDrjWdz4O5hyUroiwihr_dSn2WGczGgwTOph3RxQ2LWMvCMeZShRtmb10IpvdLPyUcyiUdYFUmdb3oez6lJDiifkCUz8HwXljvebTlLgOwI11H53px2a8W-w3V78hstkNxN68LQOs98/s200/JaimesDinger.jpg" width="150" /></a><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">A Facebook friend of mine who lost her young daughter to melanoma posted about a broken alarm clock that somehow would occasionally sound its alarm, like when the family was all gathered around the Thanksgiving table with the dreaded empty chair or when the conversation turned to memories of their daughter. I responded that this didn't sound at all unusual to me ... because since the death of our daughter Jaime at age 29 of melanoma, we have a chatty ceiling fan.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">This is the ceiling fan in our bedroom. Looks like your
typical fan, right? Well, on occasion, it becomes, believe it or not,
Jaime's means of communication ... her way to say hello or in some
cases, not often but more often than we like, to keep us awake all night. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">You see those
two short chains with the metal bobs on the ends? Somehow she gets them
to knock against the glass globes, causing a loud DING. Sometimes it is
just one ding (and I can smile and say "Good night, Jaime! I love you"
as I roll over). </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> <span style="font-size: x-small;">(You may need to turn up the volume on your computer to hear the dings here)</span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Other times she is chatty and keeps it going with DING,
DING, DING, DING, DING, DING ... (and I guarantee that in the middle of
the night it is not so entertaining!).</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzQA2JKMJbC52RvtiCJ4c1GJ8axbKDUx0yzK_8EaPulkKcrNbO-JDVqZyDZaU9_aW2EOM7cbKDheqBYgp-hog' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div><p>
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<span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Sometimes she goes for a long
time without showing off her talent -- months or even years; sometimes she makes it happen several times a week.
Sounds weird, right? We just say "Jaime's here! Hi, baby girl!" and let
that ceiling fan warm our hearts with Jaime's DINGY thing!!! Bizarre is
our new norm!</span></span><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> </span></span><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">For you doubters, the dings came at all times of the day or night, in
all seasons, in all weather, with windows open or closed, with fan on
all speeds. My engineer-minded husband has tried to logically figure it out but had to conclude that it was Jaime. </span></span><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> </span></span><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The last time we heard the dings was over a year ago. I remember the last time because her dinging did not stop. It seemed that she was really excited about something or really agitated. The dinging continued throughout the day and the night. I told her that we needed our sleep ... yes, I'm the crazy old lady who talks to ceiling fans ... but it continued through the second night, at which time my husband flipped the switch to turn off the fan. Finally, sleep!</span></span><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">But when we turned it back on the next day, only quiet came from that fan. And that is all we have heard from it for more than a year. I don't know what she was trying to tell us, if anything. I don't know if we pissed her off by shutting down her means of communications. I do know that I miss those dings, and every day I hope for their return.</span></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: verdana;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">[UPDATE July 2022: It has been a few years since I wrote this blog and another before that (<a href="https://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2017/01/when-angels-speak.html">When Angels Speak</a>) since Jaime's last ding. But I'm more than delighted to report that in mid July 2022, as I was recuperating from my final chemo treatment for breast cancer, my husband and I heard one single ding come from this fan. Just one. But to me it said so much. It said "I'm still around and always will be. I've watched your struggle with cancer and I'm proud of you. Can you feel my love? Can you feel the strength I'm sending you?" Yes, baby girl, I can ...]</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: small;"><span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) <br />
</span> <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: small;"><span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> </span></span></span></span></span></div><span style="font-family: verdana; font-size: small;">
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</span><br />Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com3Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-70764298175813637992018-09-18T20:29:00.000-05:002018-09-18T20:29:41.529-05:00February Was Once "Fear"uary<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">February is always a difficult time of year for me. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Not only is it dreary <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">and cold</span> but it was <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">during February<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"> in 2007</span></span> that my 29-year-old daughter Jaime walked into the hospital not knowing </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">that she would never walk out. </span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">I took her to the emergency room for pain management for her Stage IV melanoma, not an uncommon thing for us to be doing at that point in time since the cancer had spread everywhere. </span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Usually we both fought for her to not be admitted (one time I even smuggled her out against doctor's orders) ... just get her pain to a manageable level and let us go back home ... but for some reason neither of us b<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">a</span>lked this time when they wanted to keep her overnight, that turned into just for the weekend, that turned into 5 weeks, that turned out to be the rest of her life. </span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">That time was a nightmare for Jaime, me, and our family, knowing where we were headed but not wanting to believe it. </span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">We were out of treatment options, which years ago were few; there was nothing left to try ... yet Jaime refused to quit fighting. When the doctor offered her hospice, she responded with, "Will they <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">work to make</span> me get better?" When he<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"> sadly shook his head no, her <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">words were sharp and direct -- "Then hell no!" </span></span> </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"> </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh0srm1hmbL25EOubaQNqx5IsVd1jS4Zg_k2g-B3YaE6NjUQG-sTgTrt38q0eZbhlF8CQkJKN4N9ICJFc34nWvoroBjBBeeonbhcj7_ShP77ZMvsOCxgZgy7kNkXY-1D4Kynduz_aLtRU/s1600/5986579446_898418514c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="359" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh0srm1hmbL25EOubaQNqx5IsVd1jS4Zg_k2g-B3YaE6NjUQG-sTgTrt38q0eZbhlF8CQkJKN4N9ICJFc34nWvoroBjBBeeonbhcj7_ShP77ZMvsOCxgZgy7kNkXY-1D4Kynduz_aLtRU/s200/5986579446_898418514c.jpg" width="149" /></a><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">We were in a free-fall, unable to control anything, <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">feeling so helpless and hope<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">less but at<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"> </span>the same time needing to stay strong and positive for Jaime.</span></span> It was the ultimate confl<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">ict, but</span> we <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">wore</span> our happy masks (I still have mine and wear it frequently!) for our girl. </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">We had successfully fought <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">off this evil beast of a cancer for 9 years, but Jaime's little body had taken as much abuse as it could and there would be no more surgeries, no more pumping poison through her veins. <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">A</span>s much as we all wanted <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">to rewrite her story</span>, in February 2007 <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/03/blowing-out-birthday-candles.html">the end</a> was quickly approaching.</span></span></span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">S</span></span>omehow, no matter how hard I try to ignore the<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">se memories</span>, every year a<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">t this time </span>th<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">ey</span> creep back into my mind and remind me how much I HATE melanoma<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"> and</span> how unfair life can be. <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">I am reminded of <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">t</span></span>h<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">at relentless</span> fear that gripped us all that February, <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">along with</span> the love that surrounded us as we faced <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">the stuff that horror movies are made of</span>. </span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #666666; display: inline; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">But one thing I never need to be reminded of is how much I love and miss <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">our</span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">beautiful</span> baby girl!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh19va_PmZ4hyJ1tG729q1mUqjyjib6bbs3chesZWmo0DKxcAPmhzuYtQ4W7ab5AZXjikLO_PQNzHmJgBE2mo4zdKu3kPULyG_e_Fv-L6x2NlBJf6rcbjcUEf7RAUetbcGppMUTT3LOHOg/s1600/Jaime+2003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="338" data-original-width="345" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh19va_PmZ4hyJ1tG729q1mUqjyjib6bbs3chesZWmo0DKxcAPmhzuYtQ4W7ab5AZXjikLO_PQNzHmJgBE2mo4zdKu3kPULyG_e_Fv-L6x2NlBJf6rcbjcUEf7RAUetbcGppMUTT3LOHOg/s200/Jaime+2003.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2E5DjmBS455-fwLibgifjhd7XB9D9_br_dozDcoix-cI64yzJGsDbGYnRxXbtKh-qaDlbacbD8kQdHYxj-7jTO2P4zpqVbQNALOx-D45KwTw8tHcnGasonTbw-sJjamcpjLRbSKcLAh0/s1600/missthedance2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="223" data-original-width="566" height="78" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2E5DjmBS455-fwLibgifjhd7XB9D9_br_dozDcoix-cI64yzJGsDbGYnRxXbtKh-qaDlbacbD8kQdHYxj-7jTO2P4zpqVbQNALOx-D45KwTw8tHcnGasonTbw-sJjamcpjLRbSKcLAh0/s200/missthedance2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) <br />
</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/jjemcreations/">https://www.facebook.com/jjemcreations/</a> (Jjem Creations</span>)</span></span></span></div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com5Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-40361088566055603152018-07-30T14:45:00.000-05:002018-07-31T16:52:39.360-05:00Hello Cancer, Goodbye Friends<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Friends come and go throughout our lives. Some stay for a short time; others for a lifetime. Some are casual; some are close and intimate. But even those close friendships, the ones you think will be there through thick and thin, are put to the test when you are diagnosed with cancer or you become the caregiver of a cancer patient. Probably not at first, when they are eager to provide support, before things get really rough. But after a while, you notice they have moved on with their lives while you are stuck in cancer hell!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After a lot of thought about this, I have come to realize that it is not their fault alone. There is enough guilt to go around. You, the cancer patient or caregiver, are also to blame, even though it's totally out of your control. Cancer can be very destructive to, among other things, friendships, and some of those friendships will not survive. Sadly, they just become another casualty of cancer.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE5nW_bFJ-pmCU8vgfATqvUypMPDcuoMKsY4004cSjJzba8iN-KRDBY027-IeoGBO13L7-3zau5A8XO64NZjRNa9zoHbxuC6GJIZCJnet15JCwY369Ur6zLCokUUL8SAlNCYgzG1zhxgU/s1600/The-Grumpy-Introverts-Advice-on-Friend-Breakups_SOURCE_stocksy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE5nW_bFJ-pmCU8vgfATqvUypMPDcuoMKsY4004cSjJzba8iN-KRDBY027-IeoGBO13L7-3zau5A8XO64NZjRNa9zoHbxuC6GJIZCJnet15JCwY369Ur6zLCokUUL8SAlNCYgzG1zhxgU/s320/The-Grumpy-Introverts-Advice-on-Friend-Breakups_SOURCE_stocksy.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">When my daughter Jaime was diagnosed with melanoma at age 20, she had lots of high school and college friends who were very close to her. They were precious to her, and she would do anything for them. Over her 9-year battle, many of those friends gradually drifted away. They had living life on their minds; Jaime had surviving cancer on hers. They were planning careers and weddings; Jaime was planning her next surgery or treatment plan or her funeral. </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh55WS4eVzWbbz1KDxrXUH0-KlvhmtvEjffupnxzfWQLpjVrAlhs_9Ysx3maXZMVaRZIZwNOLV83mFke9JG-TNyu-KQLuYusM4yIDCLmD7MK2UDV9uxT6ABJO-YfBCI19DVxtGkIPRiJv8/s1600/MTI0OTYzMDE5OTgwNTc3MjQ2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="460" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh55WS4eVzWbbz1KDxrXUH0-KlvhmtvEjffupnxzfWQLpjVrAlhs_9Ysx3maXZMVaRZIZwNOLV83mFke9JG-TNyu-KQLuYusM4yIDCLmD7MK2UDV9uxT6ABJO-YfBCI19DVxtGkIPRiJv8/s200/MTI0OTYzMDE5OTgwNTc3MjQ2.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To avoid being a downer, Jaime never let on about how bad her cancer was or how horrible she felt. She always put a positive spin on it, along with a huge smile. It was her way of coping with the nightmare she was in, but at the same time, she was sending out very confusing messages. Then she couldn't understand why her friends didn't offer the support she so badly needed. In their defense, they just didn't have a clue that she needed it. But, in Jaime's mind was the question, "What kind of friends are they?" Cancer is really good at creating emotional conflict, along with everything else.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">However, I was so touched that even at their young age, some would come to the hospital during Jaime's last days and sit in the lobby or the chapel, sending notes through the nurses that they were close by but didn't want to intrude. Others would visit, and laughter and love would fill the hospital room ... until they would leave and fall into my arms in tears. One even planned a pizza party that had the nurses fuming because too many people were in the room! </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvWcgAJy-N5LP08XvL6E0ZpbsWTAXZdS8FCHtxOClrIEwJweXaNaNY0OsjNhl7nGczVCyV58Pm6F3JwFgqDbckrZlcT8CUaXWACweS8w3BRxWsqmT4dYqCy7rSTqMiZZV7OtaDXNP5i0M/s1600/Friendship-Quotes-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="909" data-original-width="1000" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvWcgAJy-N5LP08XvL6E0ZpbsWTAXZdS8FCHtxOClrIEwJweXaNaNY0OsjNhl7nGczVCyV58Pm6F3JwFgqDbckrZlcT8CUaXWACweS8w3BRxWsqmT4dYqCy7rSTqMiZZV7OtaDXNP5i0M/s200/Friendship-Quotes-1.jpg" width="200" /></a>They were all so young, and death was a foreign concept. Yet some continued to keep Jaime in their lives, thoughts, and hearts
throughout her journey, surrounding her with love and comfort and truly
being a friend even when that became extremely difficult. You know who you are, and I am forever grateful!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">As Jaime's caregiver, I was also struggling with friendships. My world had been bombarded by cancer, and caring for and making memories with my daughter was my top priority. There really wasn't room for much else. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For a friendship to work, it really needs two people ... and I no longer could contribute. I also understand that my friends stopped calling because they were protecting themselves emotionally from the disastrous news they might hear. They no longer knew what to say or do, so it was easier for them to stay away. And I get all that. But I sure could have used their love and support during the worst days of my life. Again, cancer kept marching through our lives, leaving a path of destruction and chaos behind.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuU0GNQjMfi5WpcREu4A6VgI5zbECxfKGSePyWZDn3UtGfEQLefLyOLVXbX4HVHkpJjg2jXrsJsv0h__qdia1ttkie_M0AbmrwNGO-rw0uymUsCs_qZ33uzKVsZ7u_W6mF3xGDBLQ4k2A/s1600/1433744699057.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="500" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuU0GNQjMfi5WpcREu4A6VgI5zbECxfKGSePyWZDn3UtGfEQLefLyOLVXbX4HVHkpJjg2jXrsJsv0h__qdia1ttkie_M0AbmrwNGO-rw0uymUsCs_qZ33uzKVsZ7u_W6mF3xGDBLQ4k2A/s200/1433744699057.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cancer is no one's friend, and it makes having friends really complicated. Everyone handles a cancer diagnosis differently, whether you are the patient, caregiver, or friend, and friendships can be more fragile than we think. Many, including
marriages, can't handle the stress that cancer creates. But the ones
that can will be even stronger! </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) <br />
</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/jjemcreations/">https://www.facebook.com/jjemcreations/</a> (Jjem Creations</span>)</span></span></span></div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-8615812561378047252017-10-16T20:26:00.000-05:002017-10-17T22:13:50.079-05:00Spam-A-Lot or Not?<span style="font-size: large;">I only have a few minutes before I have to be at my Texting Anonymous group meeting📵. It's not actually a physical meeting. You guessed it ... we text📱.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We text about why we have given up texting ... about the rejection that we feel</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdiyDMYlTRRztXUQpzlw7ekWDgoP5rASCuDmVLot5Iu3wwpEJsg6YL9CemJhFVfaeaNjIaBNu7ouUdTVuKJF7pef33KrTCo0HFYyEWXMW2EIMFqqbhg004M_fSprC_q5sHrVeMfvIKiZ0/s1600/34dd3e7c30c1a6623de3b6ada6f8fc5c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="742" data-original-width="900" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdiyDMYlTRRztXUQpzlw7ekWDgoP5rASCuDmVLot5Iu3wwpEJsg6YL9CemJhFVfaeaNjIaBNu7ouUdTVuKJF7pef33KrTCo0HFYyEWXMW2EIMFqqbhg004M_fSprC_q5sHrVeMfvIKiZ0/s200/34dd3e7c30c1a6623de3b6ada6f8fc5c.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">when no one texts back after we have shared an important part of ourselves, a piece of our lives (like a photo of the ice cream cone🍦 we are about to eat) ... about the isolation and depression☁️ we feel in a room of people, all with their heads down and fingers flying over their phone keyboards⌨️, who are obviously more important than we are because they have something interesting to text about and someone to text it to💔.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We text about why our outgoing texts📤 are considered <i>"spam"</i> while incoming texts📥 are considered texts😒. We text about why we must resist the urge to pick up that phone and pull up that way-too-tiny keyboard⌨️!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Spam ... what the heck is that, anyway? Well, I know what it used to be. It was processed meat(?) that came in a can and you fried it <img alt="" class="Kw-O-x" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7RCIuFzPL3uBdiLZAZz4TDfNg3KX3EdygfLhrpB_6Zfmyd7_ZfqFWnYoS7CWtjoe-TjPC4ByEj-ZgNJArjLI21AhCSUNq4MNmuU8KQ2ligkBrAR49FmCdGIyYkEwCoykzjjKLUETLoeM/h120/canned-food_1f96b.png" style="left: 0px; top: 0px; transform: rotate(0deg);" />🍳. It was a "getting from one paycheck to the next meal." Now, my sons tell me it means texts that haven't been requested. Hmmm ... now I must ask someone first if they want a text? But to ask them that would be considered spam, right? I'm just not getting the gist of this whole thing😕.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Years ago, before the internet 💻 and before smart phones📱 (and before most of you!), the highlight of the day was a visit from the mailman. Long distance phone calls ☎ were expensive so we waited with great excitement for the mail delivery 📭. Yes, he or she delivered ads and bills💸, and we called them "damned ads and bills💸." It never crossed our minds to say "our mailbox is just full of spam today" 😲... because that was probably what we were having for dinner.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3IGYRj6_MvCf8cRHluIS_aFWWJWdErKnjQ1ehaS6YMoXuedRo3hgvWWrb1ewhzaFLpHWpP46Pd-OseQVL_y95fVX-UeduxsHNwInMZ7l4vM70fKA6j78ur70daGzr00MArh5F1knhqpk/s1600/1200x630bb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="630" data-original-width="630" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3IGYRj6_MvCf8cRHluIS_aFWWJWdErKnjQ1ehaS6YMoXuedRo3hgvWWrb1ewhzaFLpHWpP46Pd-OseQVL_y95fVX-UeduxsHNwInMZ7l4vM70fKA6j78ur70daGzr00MArh5F1knhqpk/s200/1200x630bb.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">But the mail also contained something exciting that you are probably not familiar with ... letters💌. Personal, hand-written (people used to do that, you know) letters that asked how you were and wanted to know what was going on in your life and filled you in on theirsℹ️. Sometimes, to make you feel really special and loved, photos📷 were included. I guess it just didn't dawn on us to respond with "I didn't request this letter or these pictures so stop spamming me." Then we would write back with our own news. That's how it worked. This was called communication, written correspondence, keeping in touch ... and I miss it☹️😭.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And when we were out somewhere, we didn't take our stationery (that's what we called the paper that we wrote our correspondence on)📜 and pen✏️ with us. We left that home and actually talked to other people ... yes, by looking them in the face👀. Novel idea, huh? And if we were special, we received a hug<img alt="" class="Kw-O-x" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmH7jBO0bXk72WpIWstw6eH1S_lzIhG9_ObatwSPTQa3fgzC4YNLHZYfJIKV136kSnD09KLK3hYlVPKYd9FhL5bSLo_AZxzfuclHeOdFcuhbD5Uxx310qf75rthDkBpwur4cSOb07pFU8/h120/1f917.png" style="left: 0px; top: 0px; transform: rotate(0deg);" />. No, not an emoji but a genuine arms squeezing around you, crushing your ribs, taking your breath away hug. Sigh ... those were the good old days! And that was REAL communication!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">When I got texting on my phone, I thought how great it would be to send texts just because I was thinking of someone or to share everyday life😀👏. Now I can understand that my family👩👦👦 and friends may not be as interested in my tomato plants 🍅 or the resident squirrel <img alt="" class="Kw-O-x" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV7Fy1kZnE0pP0CcLeJYp1X1DkL2NXWFquALTvx62BYPe2HvdP9tmtCUsZok3aHPSlISmMX28bfNViLVMFASKGTH47iNXyuGei0PlzcgIkTPD3QTPe_5Q7dtnixo5vzg12DUz04a8zMDg/h120/chipmunk_1f43f.png" style="left: 0px; top: 0px;" />as I am, but hey ... at age 70, that's about as exciting as my life gets👵!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I mistakenly thought texting would be a great tool🔧🔨 because I am a sharer. I like to share everything that happens daily in my little world🌎 (as you can tell from my blogs!) ... and that has turned out to not be such a good thing for a texting addict☹️. But I give my textees (the lucky recipients of my earth-shattering messages) choices. If they don't like the photos of my cute new shoes👡, then I'm sure they are interested that McDonald's 🍔 in New Hampshire serves lobster rolls <img alt="" class="Kw-O-x" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6rowYJRDeGbeK6VI4g7xW146Gh6Qb7nF_GNGxZBNthX1AYQR6DtXqVvgZv9Mb7bJ0M6QOno5w4OCrWm_F4_dpBwSMkWHTmmQqyBwtnFf07q9rH5eETo1dZYDwPA0tr-XoXXoiG8-oJxk/h120/%25E3%2582%25AB%25E3%2583%258B.png" style="left: 0px; top: 0px;" />. Who wouldn't be, right???</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But now I have to remind myself, "Donna, step away from the phone.📣" I come from a different world ... and texting is not bringing me happiness. Well, the texting is delightful, but not when you can only text yourself for fear of bothering someone else. Then to add to the rejection, sometimes I don't even respond to myself! And that is why I need Texting Anonymous📵.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I am proud to say that I have not sent an unsolicited text for a few weeks now 📉, but the urge is still there😲. The road to recovery will be difficult, but I just need to remember the torture of staring at that blank screen waiting ⌛⏰⏳ for a reply, putting your life on hold while you assure yourself that your message must have gotten lost in space somewhere☹️. Because why else would the receiver not be excited that you found the best Greek yogurt flavor ever😋?!!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I would remove texting from my phone plan but then how would I be reminded of my next dentist appointment 📅 or that my prescription<span class="iconos" id="a711" title="Pill">💊</span> is ready to be picked up. Besides, do they even have plans anymore that don't include texting?? Wonder what they would say if I asked them for the plan that includes spamming instead of texting???💭 Maybe I should text them and ask ...</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) <br />
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<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></div>
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Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-64051366710456365862017-04-02T17:55:00.000-05:002017-04-02T19:19:03.643-05:0040 Years of Celebrating JaimeIt is hard for me to imagine that this week will be my baby girl's 40th birthday. Wasn't it just yesterday that she just a beautiful infant (see <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/04/birthday-girl.html">Birthday Girl</a>)? Wasn't she just a very loud and energetic child? Wasn't she just a snarly teenager? Wasn't she just a proud college grad? Wasn't she just a blushing bride (see <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/02/with-this-ring.html">With This Ring</a>)? Wasn't she just a terminal cancer patient (see <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/03/blowing-out-birthday-candles.html">Blowing Out Birthday Candles</a>)?<br />
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Those memories, both amazing and horrific, are all that's left. My Jaime will not be here to celebrate this milestone or any others in the future because melanoma took her life when she was 29. Thanks to her love of tanning beds, she was diagnosed when she was 20 and only celebrated 9 more birthdays. And for many of those, she wore a brave mask to cover her pain. Melanoma has a nasty way of stealing birthdays!<br />
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I know that many of you have come to know my only daughter, my best friend, my hero, my courageous melanoma warrior Jaime through my stories on social media. However, in honor of her 40th birthday, I'd like to share a few of the<br />
pieces that made up our Jaime.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdifmVCfhXvFCqOJaan9B9mwP3xuzrClrVoJG-8Jb6bKA_Ths_mQaRBHIgvrHrM1Whmu4c1ymWQMgR4SyETHMoGrwjxQ4k23ruejLeIrOlEU54p9rOJaqM9mGtJ45gC36xBB0u9HY4azM/s1600/1979smelltheflowers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdifmVCfhXvFCqOJaan9B9mwP3xuzrClrVoJG-8Jb6bKA_Ths_mQaRBHIgvrHrM1Whmu4c1ymWQMgR4SyETHMoGrwjxQ4k23ruejLeIrOlEU54p9rOJaqM9mGtJ45gC36xBB0u9HY4azM/s320/1979smelltheflowers.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Jaime was, in many ways, unique, seeming to live life at a faster pace than most, perhaps somehow knowing that her time here was limited. She was the ultimate free spirit. No one else could make me so angry or make me laugh so hard. She had a huge heart but wasn't all sweetness; there was plenty of spice mixed in. She definitely did her own thing and wasn't concerned about what others thought. She was outspoken, sometimes brutally outspoken. Either you adored her or you couldn't stand her -- there was no middle ground -- and she didn't really care. But if you were her friend, she would do anything for you!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinb3zWxAiJ1beiaWC6QLYtoHIQTwJpBYx2-UtZO7JNw9PAbF9ofxQ_B3LdtUXPNAPK99EWF5bajuPn3vU2OaxxfGA8ILd1o-r7qOrqJrNKWNIN4UqpOLqg3gFiXhOnr4ABZJCs7QiktIg/s1600/1.5+years.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinb3zWxAiJ1beiaWC6QLYtoHIQTwJpBYx2-UtZO7JNw9PAbF9ofxQ_B3LdtUXPNAPK99EWF5bajuPn3vU2OaxxfGA8ILd1o-r7qOrqJrNKWNIN4UqpOLqg3gFiXhOnr4ABZJCs7QiktIg/s200/1.5+years.jpg" width="126" /></a>She always wanted to be the center of attention and usually made sure that she was, much to her brothers' dismay. Jaime was that annoying child who always had to be first in line. She never met a stranger, and she could talk your ear off. But she always had that beautiful smile on her face and a contagious laugh. And she loved to sing and dance. For Jaime, life was one big party ... her show and she was the star!<br />
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As a toddler she looked like an angel with unruly strawberry blonde curls going everywhere, bright blue eyes, and freckles flowing over her nose and down her cheeks. But when that little angel opened her mouth, her vocabulary made your toes curl up and your eyes pop out.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK2_GdCMtYlH835MXEDHp4rdy3sUVWXhzUmApUpDlA2OwNM_F-iF4InyurYdXl8h87bK7WGkIF8YvPgfENlc21lBHSZ8-Q1W8vOdWvpFUdwSFQfSm47-t0PtJESYsd1BY8tHNI8mSb_10/s1600/1622848_10100729553720603_146872474_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK2_GdCMtYlH835MXEDHp4rdy3sUVWXhzUmApUpDlA2OwNM_F-iF4InyurYdXl8h87bK7WGkIF8YvPgfENlc21lBHSZ8-Q1W8vOdWvpFUdwSFQfSm47-t0PtJESYsd1BY8tHNI8mSb_10/s200/1622848_10100729553720603_146872474_n.jpg" width="200" /></a> The "F" word was among her favorites ... and remained so throughout her entire life. I tried to clean up her potty mouth by washing her mouth out with soap, until one day she gave me a bubbly smile and declared that she was starting to like the taste of that!!<br />
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At the first parent/teacher conference of each school year, Jaime's teachers would tell us that we should be prepared for them to recommend holding her back to repeat the grade, but by the end of the year they couldn't wait to pass her along to the next group of unsuspecting teachers. The school psychologist assured us that Jaime would be a powerful leader as an adult ... but because of the damn cancer, all she could do as an adult was fight for her life!<br />
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I'm sure she was responsible for giving her teachers more than a little gray hair! She was the child who got bored and roamed around the school for hours, ending up in the nurse's office every day just to chat. It was impossible to know whether Jaime was a good student in elementary school because she never really took a test. She insisted on being the first student to finish a test so she just went through and marked a, b, c, d answers, without reading the questions. We weren't even sure she could read, but she did graduate from college with honors so I guess she had us all fooled!<br />
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To my knowledge, she never discriminated against anyone, having friends of all colors, faiths, cultures, and sexual orientations ... but she did not hesitate to judge people based on whether or not they were a$$holes (a word that took second place in her list of favorites!).<br />
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Every summer Jaime participated on the YMCA swim team, not because she was a great swimmer or was competitive in any way, but because she could hang out every day with friends of all ages. For her, it was a summer-long party, and swimming a lap now and then was just the price she was willing to pay. Jaime was also goalie on a soccer team, where she spent each game perfecting her cartwheels in front of the goal box. She was a social animal, not an athlete!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj27PERYrKIcyWWM78JbBhDzJ_zrW3tEiiFhMWMmwJB8cfdIG5a6fN820J7QttmXQa_PaD6slj2huCat1bFfxCVy-Bm8bWhBpfLmEWF8xQrm-1pVox7gOuh1y6cShU3EMGW2KBxzMXNsRE/s1600/1995hsgrad.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj27PERYrKIcyWWM78JbBhDzJ_zrW3tEiiFhMWMmwJB8cfdIG5a6fN820J7QttmXQa_PaD6slj2huCat1bFfxCVy-Bm8bWhBpfLmEWF8xQrm-1pVox7gOuh1y6cShU3EMGW2KBxzMXNsRE/s200/1995hsgrad.jpg" width="158" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2l4XCXGeLY-dDr4CAFXUK_9FocYwSR7ur2-GuNoCMShMu6oPi1N737SKbh9Nb-JQA5tHZNN3X7shEZUB_A-OdThCxcszz9QKMNHEiNTB4SpNyqJJK4DbxotITKsp6vLmWls52jksJtZs/s1600/Jaime+being+Jaime.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2l4XCXGeLY-dDr4CAFXUK_9FocYwSR7ur2-GuNoCMShMu6oPi1N737SKbh9Nb-JQA5tHZNN3X7shEZUB_A-OdThCxcszz9QKMNHEiNTB4SpNyqJJK4DbxotITKsp6vLmWls52jksJtZs/s200/Jaime+being+Jaime.jpg" width="135" /></a>Then that little girl then became a feisty, independent, defiant, moody teenager with a wild streak, who declared war on her parents and any other authority figures! One night when she was out with friends, her phone butt-dialed us. We could hear her laughing and proclaiming that "I'm so drunk! And my parents don't even know that I drink!!" Giggle, giggle, giggle! Well, her parents did then, and they weren't laughing. That got her grounded for months.<br />
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That snarly teenager blossomed into a college student but not without some bribery. Her high school dean had destroyed her confidence by telling her she could never pass a college class. But after passing the first class with an A (with a lot of tutoring from Mom), she found her lost determination and continued to take and pass classes until graduating with honors.<br />
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Jaime was very orderly and organized (must have gotten that trait from her daddy) -- and a control freak. She planned and executed the magical wedding of her dreams without a single hitch, but I'm sure her vendors were dreaming about executing her before it was over!<br />
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Her career in fashion merchandising had its start and devastating finish at Fossil, with her being told to leave because of her melanoma
diagnosis. But I will save that story for a future blog dealing with cancer
patients and employment. She did, however, go on to create her hand-crafted jewelry business, which I now continue for her.<br />
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And that brings us to the Jaime you are more familiar with, the one who fought melanoma for 9 years with grit, determination, and her delightful sense of humor, never allowing the cancer to define her. She made me so proud of the fierce warrior she became ... and she never lost her love of life, her spunk and sparkle, or that beautiful smile. <br />
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When we were planning her headstone, I was told to think of a 6-word saying to include on it. When I asked her oldest brother Ben about it, he said without hesitation "She Gave the World the Finger." That is not the saying that we chose to live on her grave marker for eternity, but it was oh so fitting! Jaime definitely lived life her way ... and lived it well.<br />
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Jaime was not perfect -- but she was so perfectly Jaime!!<br />
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Happy 40th Birthday, sweet girl!<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) <br />
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<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></div>
<br />Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-18346087302770907732017-03-12T19:39:00.000-05:002017-03-12T19:39:39.967-05:00Life Interrupted, 10 Years Later<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Life has its ups and downs. You buy a new car and then have a fender bender; you graduate from college and then it seems like forever to get a job; you find the love of your life and then you discover that he/she is not your soulmate after all.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">But imagine that your life involved climbing up the slope of a steep cliff with someone you love more than life itself, some times dragging them and some times being dragged by them and some times carrying them on your back ... only to reach the top and step over the edge into a free fall, losing your grasp on your loved one along the way.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That is kind of the way it feels to lose a child to cancer. And I've been in a free fall for the past 10 years.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My daughter Jaime was 20 when we heard those terrifying 3 words "you have cancer." It was also the first time we had ever heard the word "melanoma." She had been diagnosed with melanoma, an often-fatal form of skin cancer, caused by her love of tanning beds since about age 14. But everyone said "she was too young for cancer" -- and "she didn't look like a cancer patient" -- and "it was just skin cancer, right?" <b>WRONG!</b></span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2OWaOggPqpWCn0V0xhSHioHLfK0Ey55HI5LtiPjAopsxnZEA3j4S53Q-Z43dNJzbvdNnSDOi0gCeOJM5guimD4SmQSlbMlpXhb0mZRJZfxl769PQWjna_jX9_L1YmvYAEAIOzyBh95ww/s1600/1554532_10151892581092304_1034364321_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2OWaOggPqpWCn0V0xhSHioHLfK0Ey55HI5LtiPjAopsxnZEA3j4S53Q-Z43dNJzbvdNnSDOi0gCeOJM5guimD4SmQSlbMlpXhb0mZRJZfxl769PQWjna_jX9_L1YmvYAEAIOzyBh95ww/s320/1554532_10151892581092304_1034364321_n.jpg" width="228" /></a>It's been 10 years this week since Jaime took her last breathe, and I feel I should have something important to share. I feel like I should have encouragement for those mothers who are also grieving but not as far down the road as I am. I feel like I should have some answers to all the questions that all of us angel moms ask. But I don't. </span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I hate to tell you, but it does not get easier; it just gets different. The grieving continues, but you do get better at wearing your mask, the one you put on whenever you are not alone. The unimaginable pain is chronic, but you somehow get used to carrying it and it is not as raw or heavy.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You will never be the same person you were before. Your life has been divided into your life with your son or daughter and your life after having them ripped from your arms. My "post-angel wings" life now is nothing like it was when Jaime was alive. As I said, I'm in free fall.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ten years has been an agonizingly long time to be without my child and best friend ... honestly, much longer than I ever hoped I would be separated from her ... and at the same time, it seems like it was just yesterday that she came through the front door yelling "Mom." Jaime was always the center of attention and I was her shadow. Now I am just a shadow looking for its missing object.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">That doesn't mean that my life has no meaning or direction. I still have a husband and 2 sons that I love with all my heart, but my direction has only come from a little voice whispering in my ear, giving me passion and commitment to fight the tanning beds that took my baby girl.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One thing I have learned in the past 10 years is that life is not fair. Growing up, my mom always would tell me that because I was such a bleeding heart. But now that I'm here and Jaime is not, I do believe that my mom was right. It's really not fair -- not fair at all! And don't assume that because you have gone through the unthinkable, nothing else bad will happen. You think you have paid your dues, but life just keeps happening.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Then there is the tremendous guilt. She was my child and I should have </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisIhUhTM5n-5kl7J76vgw1y8TBhMBFfWqUprQyEBkxC1VeRgQYNmpxA3CFhP9UutW0l-h6NgT-OWXqslxkPXcXVv9zC2__TF7UGUKppddOEfIl9zoXQEAe_Et4EgPqW_c5cwIsMnHpt6M/s1600/64c57f236f119ab2c68506a06bd1db70.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisIhUhTM5n-5kl7J76vgw1y8TBhMBFfWqUprQyEBkxC1VeRgQYNmpxA3CFhP9UutW0l-h6NgT-OWXqslxkPXcXVv9zC2__TF7UGUKppddOEfIl9zoXQEAe_Et4EgPqW_c5cwIsMnHpt6M/s200/64c57f236f119ab2c68506a06bd1db70.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">been able to protect her. I should have been able to fix her. I've always been a fixer, but not this time. Why not this time? Then there was the guilt that I was not the same wife I had been before Jaime's death, and not the same mother. I realized how badly my family wanted me to be the same ... but that Donna was no longer here. She had died with Jaime. The guilt has been suffocating!</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">For the first couple years I had a never-ending loop running in my head of all the events leading up to Jaime's death. All the second guessing; all the what ifs; all the searching for answers when I wasn't even sure what the questions were ... playing it over & over & over. I finally came to realize that no matter what I had done or hadn't done, the final result would be the same. And as weird as it sounds, I haven't worn a watch or carried a purse since the day Jaime died and I have no idea why that is. I've just learned to accept that not everything has an answer, at least not one I understand.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">At the beginning of my grief, I heard all the comments from people who mean well but just don't know what to say -- "she's in a better place," "it was God's plan," "at least she is free of pain," "I understand your pain because my grandmother died," etc. FYI: The best thing you can say to a grieving mom is "I'm sorry," "I love you," " He/she (and use their name!) will never be forgotten," or a story about the son or daughter, or even just a hug. </span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It was 3 years before I could look at Jaime's photos. And then it was not because I wanted to but because I was forced to as part of the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYzfldQ3OU0">video</a> presentation on tanning beds that I had agreed to do. It was so very painful to dig through all the pictures from a better time, a happy time, but I did so with a lot of tears. The nightmarish memories from Jaime's death were just beginning to let the happy memories of her life come forward.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Somewhere along the way, I learned to recognize the warning signs that I was sliding into that deep dark hole of extreme grief and despair (you angel moms all know the place I am talking about) and eventually gained the strength to not allow my mind to take me there. The climb out was extremely exhausting. If you haven't been there, it's not someplace you ever want to visit.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It took me several years to feel comfortable about going out socially. Small talk scared the crap out of me. The question I feared most was the pleasant, simple "How many children do you have?" And if I got through that one without breaking down, there was usually the innocent follow-up "And where do they live?"
</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I was also aware that people who knew about Jaime's death felt uncomfortable around me, like I had a contagious disease, and they were afraid of doing or saying something to cause me pain. Let me assure you that I was already in more pain than you can imagine. You couldn't make it any worse -- unless you tried to ignore or avoid it.</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">About 5 years after Jaime's death, I began to smile again and really mean it. It would be almost 10 years before I would hear myself laugh -- not a tears-running-down-your-face, pee-running-down-your-leg laugh like Jaime could provoke, but it was a laugh. And it was such a strange sound coming from me after so long that it actually startled me!</span></span></span><br />
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ten years out and I can finally tell Jaime's story without sobbing ... at least some of the time. I don't think it will get much better, but I will not stop talking about how her use of tanning beds took her life at 29 because the killing has got to stop. Melanoma is a cancer that, in many cases, can be prevented ... and it must be prevented. I have a mission. I did not choose it but I have it. Some of the time I don't even like it but I have it. And I will continue on that mission until that little voice in my ear leads me in a different direction.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-j9bEN6mXMozdUE_6kS6pp_q1TwAcZqF_RlMMPvneULyHYykPxJ5CubN9fbsM3myzJqabNxUl_uh4-s-9gtOt1C7nh4o84398BniPunQd-Q0o9anEdh6_Op47av6bVJXmnOnHz2nPG_k/s1600/Jaime+2003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="313" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-j9bEN6mXMozdUE_6kS6pp_q1TwAcZqF_RlMMPvneULyHYykPxJ5CubN9fbsM3myzJqabNxUl_uh4-s-9gtOt1C7nh4o84398BniPunQd-Q0o9anEdh6_Op47av6bVJXmnOnHz2nPG_k/s320/Jaime+2003.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></span></div>
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Ten years out ... and I can't tell you everything is fine or back to normal (whatever that is) or that the road of grief is behind me. I still find it hard to imagine that she is really dead. But I can tell you that, even after 10 years, Jaime hasn't left my heart or my side. I may be in free fall, but she is right there with me. That I do know.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) <br />
</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></span></span></span></div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-60059885609286425282017-01-06T20:07:00.000-06:002017-04-02T19:14:49.179-05:00When Angels SpeakWhen my 29-year-old daughter Jaime died from melanoma (caused by her tanning bed habit), people told me to watch for signs from her. I was skeptical, as I'm sure that many of you reading this are, but in the almost 10 years since her death, I have seen enough to make me a believer. At some point, you don't question -- you just listen when angels speak!<br />
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I'm not sure when I stopped trying to logically explain unusual events and just accepted that my Jaime was the responsible party. Perhaps it was when I put a bouquet of flowers in the vase of her headstone. Yes, I did notice that there was one white carnation in it, and yes, I did know that Jaime hated carnations, but I didn't think it would matter. The next day when we returned to her grave, the flower arrangement was untouched ... except that the white carnation was lying on the ground and had been flattened.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZLNLi5DewVYRZ42w9gz52DYZi0Ho11D4PzAdQvBQg1AkQYUE2UWDWGmdP482glP1ioIvt3SR5F_nsAbC_ROSYlO9aVJcu_biV2Cb5YctGPd1xBflh8fSYnnajdMK3z5gid3-4Q-62lWs/s1600/angelfeather.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZLNLi5DewVYRZ42w9gz52DYZi0Ho11D4PzAdQvBQg1AkQYUE2UWDWGmdP482glP1ioIvt3SR5F_nsAbC_ROSYlO9aVJcu_biV2Cb5YctGPd1xBflh8fSYnnajdMK3z5gid3-4Q-62lWs/s200/angelfeather.jpg" width="161" /></a>Or perhaps it was when her dad and I and her brother Tim were sitting in our backyard, and we were joined by hundreds of beautiful butterflies. Or maybe it was when I was filming a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYzfldQ3OU0">PSA about Jaime and the dangers of tanning</a> when a strange tapping on the glass behind me stopped everything, which turned out to be a dog that wasn't even supposed to be there. Or could it have been when our front yard was covered with little white feathers and the neighbors' yards had none? <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGS1x3fO5FFPDeZwv3T7azaPDkKd1SC5tQIPyjeqiIhQIO-Zqm6gxBEeTP-AmuP8iuEdN9n0oKU3ipPVDz7Yt5kvocb45s27w2u2tP9ekgBapYcujHiziqngcsljklO0tlw7wkUSqx4Qs/s1600/angelfeathers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGS1x3fO5FFPDeZwv3T7azaPDkKd1SC5tQIPyjeqiIhQIO-Zqm6gxBEeTP-AmuP8iuEdN9n0oKU3ipPVDz7Yt5kvocb45s27w2u2tP9ekgBapYcujHiziqngcsljklO0tlw7wkUSqx4Qs/s200/angelfeathers.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
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And the list goes on and on and on ...<br />
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Most recently, my husband and I were visiting Las Vegas and were in a hotel lobby. Now before going any further with this story, I need to give you some background. Jaime had a little blonde chihuahua named Peanut. She had rescued Peanut from a puppy mill, and they adored each other.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzUbPSJIpglup9m65fUEE9p7NavUH0Es-zKHkOFiEZq_JSf9rImF9n3FK8x2lLNPTRcL6Ae5bDkjl5BtwnuQTb7g_E3_-X_uj0MTCKerBTXmmD9wIgtYARJRWawJRhkJgp7CePcHqMna0/s1600/peanut4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzUbPSJIpglup9m65fUEE9p7NavUH0Es-zKHkOFiEZq_JSf9rImF9n3FK8x2lLNPTRcL6Ae5bDkjl5BtwnuQTb7g_E3_-X_uj0MTCKerBTXmmD9wIgtYARJRWawJRhkJgp7CePcHqMna0/s400/peanut4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Okay, back to my story! Into the lobby walks a young couple with a little blonde chihuahua prancing along on a leash. The instant the puppy spotted me she dropped to her belly and scooted across the lobby floor until she reached my feet, never losing eye contact with me. She then stopped and just looked up at me. The young couple was baffled by their dog's behavior, saying that she had never done this before. I leaned over and petted her head ... and then poof, the magic was over. She just got up and trotted away without looking back. I knew what was happening and so did my husband, and we could only smile at each other and softly whisper "Jaime."<br />
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Now perhaps you are thinking that this was just some bizarre dog behavior and had nothing to do with a sign from beyond, and I get that. But in the past 10 years, bizarre events seems to be attracted to me, so I know that little puppy was delivering a message from my very special angel ... that she was thinking of me and loved me and that there was no way I was going to do Vegas without her!<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) <br />
</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-23535316584189507682016-05-24T12:55:00.000-05:002016-06-08T16:24:50.774-05:00The Giant Hug (aka Melanoma Patient Symposium)<span style="font-size: small;">As soon as my husband and I stepped foot off the plane from Dallas at Newark New Jersey Airport, I knew I was in trouble. My eyes began that now familiar feeling of a waterfall starting to cascade down over my cheeks.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">This was the first time I had been to New Jersey in 10 years ... and the first I had ever been there without my best friend and precious daughter Jaime, who died at age 29 after a 9-year battle with melanoma. So many times I had walked through that terminal shadowing our princess and pulling our bags ... but not this time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">What had I gotten myself into when I agreed to speak at the AIM at Melanoma/Atlantic Health System patient symposium in Morristown? Why didn't </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhifSNK2e0LfdqJ0yNDvBPHfXkXj1Tixcbv_vZwJN_Ln5KZykoB8zxT2nWXZHjICvsvkpmxCYAX4z75nNrm1E6e5NKwCRbfZirtyXTn85kSsSHfy4ZelzDPq4hg4V9v_DjZ640b1Vb-rTk/s1600/agenda.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhifSNK2e0LfdqJ0yNDvBPHfXkXj1Tixcbv_vZwJN_Ln5KZykoB8zxT2nWXZHjICvsvkpmxCYAX4z75nNrm1E6e5NKwCRbfZirtyXTn85kSsSHfy4ZelzDPq4hg4V9v_DjZ640b1Vb-rTk/s200/agenda.jpg" width="150" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">I think about it for longer than 2 seconds when Dr. Eric Whitman, Jaime's melanoma specialist for 5 years, asked me to tell Jaime's story and update the audience on the ongoing battle with the indoor tanning industry? Really ... what was I thinking???</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Well, I did have a few moments of being a blubbering idiot, but then I felt Jaime's presence and the love that everyone there still had for her and I knew that I belonged there. It had been 10 years but Jaime had not been forgotten, and I realized that even though she couldn't speak herself, she was speaking through me (although I did censor some of her more favorite 4-letter words!).</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">So even though public speaking is not really my thing, I put on my big girl panties and did what I was asked to do ... what I needed to do ... and that was to spread awareness about the dangers of tanning bed use so that maybe ... just maybe ... someone would be spared from losing their Jaime. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqbjiWKzmvM&list=PLOnM_erAQqID5av4kIzM1PkeCoNLYZfw1"></a></span><br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dqbjiWKzmvM/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dqbjiWKzmvM?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">I entered into this as a rookie. I had not attended a patient symposium before and frankly thought they sounded stuffy, with a lot of technical/medical terms that I might recognize but certainly couldn't understand. After all, I had failed my college biochemistry course so it doesn't take much to put me into anxiety mode!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjobuxByOgE7XqAW6Cn0ez-zvBiRN9_pmshw-g0t4l7kGyjhs3gyi4ZPAf-VnnwjGPk5K9Syzbl-f5IDklsNRe32h3gW59EZ7dNrMkpPpUovjXVo4MRK3wvx2fQxVRZS42uG4waps2i3Aw/s1600/DrWhitmanPresenting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjobuxByOgE7XqAW6Cn0ez-zvBiRN9_pmshw-g0t4l7kGyjhs3gyi4ZPAf-VnnwjGPk5K9Syzbl-f5IDklsNRe32h3gW59EZ7dNrMkpPpUovjXVo4MRK3wvx2fQxVRZS42uG4waps2i3Aw/s200/DrWhitmanPresenting.jpg" width="200" /></a>To my surprise, the doctors who presented (Dr. Whitman and Dr. Bickenbach) brought the information down to a layman's level, and I was totally fascinated with what I heard. As I mentioned, Dr. Whitman was Jaime's wonderful melanoma specialist and now Director of the Atlantic Melanoma Center and the Carol G. Simon Cancer Center at Morristown NJ Medical Center. Dr. Bickenbach is a surgical oncologist there and the new (really cute!) kid on the block. You need to remember his name because I'm pretty sure you will be hearing lots more about him in the future.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">But my main take-home point (term I learned from the symposium!) was that the auditorium was just bursting with love and compassion and hope. My first thought was that it wasn't just a symposium ... it was a giant hug.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">The doctors were both very approachable and made everyone feel comfortable and welcome. The patient panel told stories of their difficult roads to survival, and all showed such gratitude and admiration for the two amazing doctors who had helped them along the way.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">I know, I know ... it all sounds so warm and fuzzy. Well, it was! And in the world of melanoma, warm and fuzzy just doesn't come along that often, so it was most welcome.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">So as I reflect back over my trepidation upon our arrival in New Jersey, I realize that I needed that giant hug ... to be around people who understood what Jaime had gone through, people who had loved and cared for her so many years ago, people who wanted to hear the message about melanoma prevention by staying out of tanning beds.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">Thank you, Dr. Whitman, for asking me (and Jaime) to be part of such a wonderful event ... and thank you, sweet Jaime, for being by my side the whole time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtUstN_bm6mX1JxbsVDBl0VoQ99h3nj8rO7hIzf14VaLF5pxOstbFxjrWm7Fkq5JhO_1oUU2x8qkvKckCQEQMptsfY1e1pG-O20x-ZHc49DO28bADuEfB8dgSSCv8PLxXVAzFePj0PrDE/s1600/DrWhitman2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtUstN_bm6mX1JxbsVDBl0VoQ99h3nj8rO7hIzf14VaLF5pxOstbFxjrWm7Fkq5JhO_1oUU2x8qkvKckCQEQMptsfY1e1pG-O20x-ZHc49DO28bADuEfB8dgSSCv8PLxXVAzFePj0PrDE/s320/DrWhitman2016.jpg" width="314" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">See all videos from the symposium at <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOnM_erAQqID5av4kIzM1PkeCoNLYZfw1">https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOnM_erAQqID5av4kIzM1PkeCoNLYZfw1</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> <br />
</span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/melanoma_mama">@melanoma_mama</a><br />
Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
Etsy: <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
Ebay: <a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-77551165810616365732015-12-30T16:07:00.000-06:002015-12-30T16:07:11.303-06:00Colleges & Tanning ... Looking Back on 2015<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">2015 was the first year of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds/">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a>' existence. It was a busy year, starting with Tanning Bed Dangers Awareness Month in January and expanding to five different projects and a membership of over 2600. See these blogs (<a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2015/04/road-to-destruction-of-tanning-beds.html">Road to Destruction ... for Tanning Beds</a> and <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2015/05/birth-of-anti-tanning-bed-grassroots.html">Birth of an Anti-Tanning Grassroots Movement</a>) for info on how and why this group came to be.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBYWoiBdvRxVvXLbpqG9a6wEsDbCTutWRMjD28XgVzr7CPH2LYZDuXvAIZRY12mVIcPPXn6HqfndDxBeq_7Svju6Sh2nBFXR17ry0a6NrHr-DbpcGzdix35cgrGGD3e8b7y7qaz7SIVZ0/s1600/Turnoutlites.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBYWoiBdvRxVvXLbpqG9a6wEsDbCTutWRMjD28XgVzr7CPH2LYZDuXvAIZRY12mVIcPPXn6HqfndDxBeq_7Svju6Sh2nBFXR17ry0a6NrHr-DbpcGzdix35cgrGGD3e8b7y7qaz7SIVZ0/s320/Turnoutlites.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">It was also an educational year, concentrating our efforts on the connections between indoor tanning and colleges/universities. Too many colleges are making it much too convenient for their students to participate in the dangerous behavior of using tanning beds. Do they not care about the health and safety of their students? Or are college administrators unaware of the dangers of tanning beds? Or is this part of the plan to lure students and their money?</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">I think I learned more than I really wanted to know about colleges and their administration, about off-campus housing and their management, about people. I think I prefer being naive, but there's no going back now. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Emails were sent out to over 300 college presidents on the topic of their university's connection with indoor tanning ... actually they were sent twice because of lack of response. It became apparent that most presidents do not know whether their institutions have a connection with the tanning industry ... but in truth, almost all of them do.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">We found that these connections might occur through the Dept of Housing, with partnerships/affiliations with off-campus housing offering tanning beds free to the students or working through third-party housing location companies that advertise off-campus facilities that include tanning beds among their amenities on the university's web sites.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoA8HaU5DodXjbuNnnFntfoQCethXvR1YuUsxHyL1e1EJpxtN5F5CjR93FootXQIt5a5E0vrU6hcA0jd3obgyJcR9VNwT_QnQ0mFp5PEhvd7nAktEIZjm5sknIY1DDrf2tt4FhyphenhyphenoW_Fgs/s1600/universityprotect.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoA8HaU5DodXjbuNnnFntfoQCethXvR1YuUsxHyL1e1EJpxtN5F5CjR93FootXQIt5a5E0vrU6hcA0jd3obgyJcR9VNwT_QnQ0mFp5PEhvd7nAktEIZjm5sknIY1DDrf2tt4FhyphenhyphenoW_Fgs/s320/universityprotect.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Or indoor tanning connections might be seen through the Athletic Dept, with sponsorships by tanning salons or advertising at games or in event programs often arranged by third-party marketing companies. Some tanning salons claim to be the "official" tanning salon for the cheer teams of various colleges. The University of Louisville has a notorious connection with the tanning industry according to this <a href="http://www.courier-journal.com/story/opinion/contributors/2015/03/23/universities-tanning-salons/70324684/">article</a>!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Finance Office might provide a link to tanning by providing student cash cards that can be used to pay for tanning services at participating tanning salons. Grand Valley State University in Michigan claimed that they would continue to allow
tanning salons to participate in their cash card program because it
would be breaking the law to not do so. I never received a copy of that law from them even after asking several times.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Student Government Association is another route that permits indoor tanning to connect with college students, raising funds by offering a student ID discount program and allowing local tanning salons to participate.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">The student newspapers of many colleges are not supervised or regulated by the university so articles promoting the use of tanning beds or advertising by tanning salons can and do appear as well. That's an area we will be concentrating on next.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">Most colleges, at least the larger ones, have some connections to tanning. Some even house tanning beds on their campuses, and it is becoming more common for them to be in their dorms! See this <a href="http://fortune.com/2015/09/07/college-dorm-rooms-luxury/">article</a> about the direction student housing is headed. Colleges have become large businesses first, institutions of higher learning second ... or so it appears to me. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6axztYkz6zhyphenhyphen-X3eMCrJO2eGEndHKkNaikA9UjiyGsUnscSQzN4ifXu721VLBg4M8dxrweUIRAnibyg5SH8oKtD_jx3Agd6r_oTH7IElCrvEIGzDAJLgOwsroagOwdp6taAyegme-PBA/s1600/roadtocollege.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6axztYkz6zhyphenhyphen-X3eMCrJO2eGEndHKkNaikA9UjiyGsUnscSQzN4ifXu721VLBg4M8dxrweUIRAnibyg5SH8oKtD_jx3Agd6r_oTH7IElCrvEIGzDAJLgOwsroagOwdp6taAyegme-PBA/s320/roadtocollege.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">For example (just one of many), through conversations with various officials at Purdue University, I learned that the tanning salon located on their campus isn't technically (according to them) on their campus. That block of retail on the edge of their campus is owned by the Purdue Research Foundation, which I was told had no connection to Purdue University. Yet the President of Purdue is the Chairman of the Board of the research foundation ... which seems like a pretty strong connection to me! Check out this <a href="http://www.allure.com/beauty-trends/health/2015/college-tanning-bed-cancer-risk">article</a> that reported this info about Purdue.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">At this point we have heard back from most of the colleges (after contacting them through multiple emails, Facebook posts and messages, and tweets). See our results in the Notes section of Pull the Plug's page in our <a href="https://www.facebook.com/notes/pull-the-plug-on-tanning-beds/good-bad-and-the-ugly-tan-free-and-not-tan-free-college-campuses/1049437848417593">Good, Bad, and Ugly list</a>. But we are far from done with this issue! It appears that the FDA will be putting a ban on using tanning beds on those kids younger than 18, but that still leaves those young people 18-21 vulnerable. Their lives deserve to be protected, too! <span style="font-family: inherit;">So</span> on to 2016 ...</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span><span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span>Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) </span> <span><br />
</span></span></span></span> <span><span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span><span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></span></span></span></div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com1Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-10373458159517054612015-12-20T17:55:00.000-06:002015-12-24T19:23:20.206-06:00Dare to Dream<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Last Friday was just a normal Friday ... or as normal as the Friday before Christmas could be ... until I received a notice from the FDA of a <b>HUGE, </b>earth-shattering announcement. They were proposing a ban against tanning bed use for all minors under 18 in the US! I had heard through the grapevine that this ban was coming, but I didn't know when. And I wasn't holding my breath because I'd been holding it for too many years already. Then suddenly, last Friday became AMAZING! The planets had aligned!!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It was almost 6 years ago that presentations were made at a FDA hearing on the issue of teens and tanning beds. One of my friends from the melanoma community gave this <a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-M_Z-lTzpZE">presentation</a> that included Jaime's story. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/-M_Z-lTzpZE/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-M_Z-lTzpZE?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Her presentation was one of many that shared stories about how tanning beds had changed or destroyed young lives. The hearings seemed promising ... but then the waiting game began. If you know me, you know that I am not a patient person, so ...</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">In the meantime, my attention turned to state legislation when Texas introduced a bill to restrict children under 16 from using tanning beds. Even though it wasn't the under-18 bill that I was dreaming of (and many thought it was just a foolish pipe dream!), it was a step in the right direction. With help from Jaime's story, it passed, which was surprising for such a conservative state. (And eventually, a full under-18 tanning bed ban would pass as well!)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Others began to share my seemingly impossible dream of an under-18 ban in every state. I'm not sure I even really believed that it was possible ... but I was being pushed ahead by some energy and force that insisted I just keep going. (Thank you, Miss J!) Then along came AIM at Melanoma, working on an under 18 tan ban in California, and I was hooked! Although it was far from easy, it passed! Twelve other states would follow to pass under-18 tan ban laws, but for years many more tried and failed. I am proud, along with Jaime and many, many others, to have been part of most of these difficult battles, but my dream was that all 50 states would pass these laws to protect their children by keeping them out of tanning beds ... and there was a long way to go.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Then just as my energy was draining and my dream was dimming, last year the FDA renewed its focus on under-18 use of tanning beds. It announced a strong recommendation against the use of UV devices by all minors. Many of us thanked them, but also let them know that it just wasn't enough.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">And that led to Friday's announcement. Now there will be a 90-day period to respond to their proposal, and assuming it will be adopted ... that will put it becoming official just about on the 9th anniversary of Jaime's death!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The stories of all the melanoma victims whose cancer was brought on by tanning bed use have been heard, including my Jaime's. The years of hard work by thousands of supporters for this teen tan ban are FINALLY bearing fruit. Many lives will be saved!! I am proud to have played a role in this, and my sincere thanks go out to everyone who contributed to making this happen, to those who dared to dream.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixOL5AWn1qrLmb176bomLcPaSxklm4oX-ZpJl3ENJ7fCLnjlESCSVZWEBHOCeLTJrsFhbEvfTDXpEHPJEhYv2amWx-CfSM0R3FWHb0h75pPQEFBEwMSCRQqHK4bIfo3fk3xSaB0agOh2k/s1600/limits+of+possible.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixOL5AWn1qrLmb176bomLcPaSxklm4oX-ZpJl3ENJ7fCLnjlESCSVZWEBHOCeLTJrsFhbEvfTDXpEHPJEhYv2amWx-CfSM0R3FWHb0h75pPQEFBEwMSCRQqHK4bIfo3fk3xSaB0agOh2k/s400/limits+of+possible.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">But wait ... we're not done yet with the indoor tanning industry! Visit and "like" our Facebook group <a href="http://www.facebook.com/banthebeds">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a> to keep updated regarding our continuing efforts. Now that we have seen the impossible become possible, there is no dream too big!!</span></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) <br />
</span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-70056257727541366852015-07-16T20:03:00.000-05:002015-07-16T20:03:47.929-05:00Stepping Back into the Fog<span style="font-size: small;">It is past time for a blog from me. I can feel it as if the page is nudging me. No problem, I think. Most of my blogs tend to write themselves. But now I put my fingers on the keyboard and get nothing. They just don't move.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">I recognize this fog of grief. I don't want to but I do ... and I know it will take a while for it to lift and allow me to focus. You see, my mom died last week. Yes, she was almost 96 years old; yes, she had no idea who I was for the past 2 years; yes, her quality of life was nonexistent. Yes, it was time for her to go ... but the loss still hurts.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKSYDaKEEL2fsBs-C3EtXVFmNSS4n-ZdP3s01IYtYeRZIDvAOluYy9-4QvSdGB19lzMU4dW4bggC2Vh0r9gRL7IMdXpEhVvfw91Ivqfk2MUmchPmOcdxWDJpzRAhzqUUM5DM07V6U1Vk/s1600/1476650_10152040504929246_41439_n.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKSYDaKEEL2fsBs-C3EtXVFmNSS4n-ZdP3s01IYtYeRZIDvAOluYy9-4QvSdGB19lzMU4dW4bggC2Vh0r9gRL7IMdXpEhVvfw91Ivqfk2MUmchPmOcdxWDJpzRAhzqUUM5DM07V6U1Vk/s320/1476650_10152040504929246_41439_n.png" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">This foggy feeling is all too familiar from when my 29-year-old daughter Jaime died 8 years ago (although it seems like yesterday). Jaime was young with her whole life ahead of her, she suffered
courageously for 5 years with end-stage melanoma, and she was fully
aware that she was dying. It's not the same ... and yet it is.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">Because here we are again ... left behind with the intense emptiness, the
conflicting memories, the messiness of dealing with death, the missing link from our
family chain. Another piece of my life, my past, my youth has been ripped from my grasp (see my blog <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/07/there-goes-another-little-piece-of-my.html">There Goes Another Little Piece of My Life</a>).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">I know I am not alone in these feelings. Many loved my mom and are affected by her death. Not only our close family and friends, but over almost a century she touched a lot of people. My heart aches for their loss as well as mine.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Matter of fact, I'm sure everyone reading this has experienced grief, and we all deal with it in different ways ... but we all must deal with it. It can't be avoided ... it can't be ignored. We grieve because we have loved.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">Death is part of life, but as part of the melanoma community, I see death visiting our group way too often. I see their pain, I know their pain, I feel their pain ... but it is their pain. Now this is mine once again ... and I don't like it.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBQ7oUpc6FLD53w-AyhNA5WP9QATcgjp2JXqaS_ooVpLi6sCsKygD9zYzEZ2yRiThWPi89nNHUF_KrGFSglecSkPqQWKWKRogIJopRudH6JrRtCptosZuNCRRcvcMtoZoj3RfJNmckmk/s1600/Donna_Nama_Jaime1979.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQBQ7oUpc6FLD53w-AyhNA5WP9QATcgjp2JXqaS_ooVpLi6sCsKygD9zYzEZ2yRiThWPi89nNHUF_KrGFSglecSkPqQWKWKRogIJopRudH6JrRtCptosZuNCRRcvcMtoZoj3RfJNmckmk/s320/Donna_Nama_Jaime1979.jpg" width="256" /></a>This treasured photo is from around 1979. Three generations: my mom,
my daughter Jaime, and me! There were three of us then, but now I am the only
one left. The two most important women in my life are now gone. It
wasn't supposed to be like this ... it is not the way I planned it.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">My life has been changed once again, and I don't like change. I am angry that I am once again forced to walk this path of mourning. I don't want to because I know what lies ahead on this long journey, but I also am aware that I have no choice. The good thing is that I know I can do it ... and so I will.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">But right now, I am fragile, not broken, just fragile. My thoughts are scattered and don't want to leap onto a blog page. My fingers don't want to move, and my brain is resisting every effort to find the right words.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: small;">So I ask that you be patient as the fog clears because I have lots of future blogs to write ... I just have to find them ... and me ... again.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Rest in peace now, Mildred Jane Fox Helm (Sept 26, 1919 - July 7, 2015) ... Mother, Nama, Jane, Millie, or Blondie. You will be always be loved and missed by many! Thank you for giving us 95 years ... and forgive me for my selfishness in wishing there were more! I love you, Mom!! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP604cjQdEyM2OO_QhOrRWI_0PepsdyIcI5TXjHJbav14rRHxAwsCpn27AeHvNXYKUClnR9A8zPpMNQKcQ9pLl0wqC_nxIxmwx2JFf7C_VacApfmehKwaAUaOTN56Veyyoc7DKA9u1iCs/s1600/Jan2014mompuzzle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP604cjQdEyM2OO_QhOrRWI_0PepsdyIcI5TXjHJbav14rRHxAwsCpn27AeHvNXYKUClnR9A8zPpMNQKcQ9pLl0wqC_nxIxmwx2JFf7C_VacApfmehKwaAUaOTN56Veyyoc7DKA9u1iCs/s400/Jan2014mompuzzle.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span>Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) </span> <span><br />
</span></span></span></span> <span style="font-size: small;"><span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></span></span></div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-58448969183256956212015-05-29T15:40:00.001-05:002021-12-31T18:09:53.590-06:00Birth of an Anti-Tanning Bed Grassroots Movement<span style="font-size: x-small;">Previously published on May 21, 2015, at <a href="http://www.disruptivewomen.net/2015/05/21/birth-of-the-pull-the-plug-on-tanning-beds/">http://www.disruptivewomen.net/2015/05/21/birth-of-the-pull-the-plug-on-tanning-beds/</a></span><br />
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-OuRygodqfjp3W11n-f2AZLYBeA3EoFOjI02D2vP_rXohqDYZ2kscCGTStz7GnNhK3DmQ-qkUJhYcYAsSXoOmc8UR8q3NyvZUof6ftXnUBzJ4NswW_iWU5ZfQZ6YoFvN4XEBoyCYs7_8/s1600/jaimeduringchemo.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-OuRygodqfjp3W11n-f2AZLYBeA3EoFOjI02D2vP_rXohqDYZ2kscCGTStz7GnNhK3DmQ-qkUJhYcYAsSXoOmc8UR8q3NyvZUof6ftXnUBzJ4NswW_iWU5ZfQZ6YoFvN4XEBoyCYs7_8/s200/jaimeduringchemo.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">Eight years ago, my
daughter Jaime died from melanoma, which the doctors believed was from her use
of tanning beds in high school and college. She was diagnosed when she was 20 and fought
the evil beast of a disease until her death at 29. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">My Jaime's story gave me the
passion and conviction to become "the indoor tanning industry's worst
nightmare." The day after Jaime's funeral I began going after the indoor
tanning industry and their lies and deception. I drew their wrath by commenting
on magazine and newspaper articles on the internet about the dangers of tanning
beds (see <a href="http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122">http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122</a>). Social media was in its infancy; Facebook and Twitter had not yet been
born. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcCJPn3wYCkuZk4JkNmiboTCBJCFGfUS_4nS5bDpnvQ5tfZVBSyyvV-cT34qWDWRmOiE_gaxLxRoVa5dlyN2hc6HUVOfSNGL_bLIjBNBX2wg3X35R-HHTnmfrzRVRbRYT5i8rOw44j-O0/s1600/brokenhearts.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcCJPn3wYCkuZk4JkNmiboTCBJCFGfUS_4nS5bDpnvQ5tfZVBSyyvV-cT34qWDWRmOiE_gaxLxRoVa5dlyN2hc6HUVOfSNGL_bLIjBNBX2wg3X35R-HHTnmfrzRVRbRYT5i8rOw44j-O0/s200/brokenhearts.jpg" width="200" /></a> </span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">I also contacted my state
legislators about writing a bill to ban teens from using tanning beds but I was
ignored, and it would take several years before the Texas legislature would
have such a bill introduced and passed ... but it did. Two of them in fact. The
first one was weak, but the one that followed was a full under 18 ban, and I
testified with Jaime's story for both of these laws.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">As Facebook grew and melanoma
patients found each other, many groups were formed. There were groups for skin
cancer or melanoma in general, groups for survivors, groups for support, groups
for mothers of melanoma patients, groups for care-givers, groups for individual
melanoma journeys, groups for fundraising, groups for ocular melanoma, groups
for pediatric melanoma, groups for research, groups for grief &
remembrance, groups for advocacy, groups for sun safety ... but I recognized
there was a void. There was no group or page devoted entirely to the dangers of
tanning beds. So <a href="http://facebook.com/BanTheBeds">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a> was created.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">It has been up and running
for about 5 months, and now has almost</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqKZBi6s7DgfWieGUq2ANUHKOA4D5p4yHZdY_qDKmfkEx6cuYhAYWE48zf1ZvOgHE5wqw7H1WC5sxCy36Lp2C5r68ArrvaqmTQqsfqmTr8OJKJ3d7pmdZZuAUnfjqImrw9J2GOiiQDvb8/s1600/unplugged.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqKZBi6s7DgfWieGUq2ANUHKOA4D5p4yHZdY_qDKmfkEx6cuYhAYWE48zf1ZvOgHE5wqw7H1WC5sxCy36Lp2C5r68ArrvaqmTQqsfqmTr8OJKJ3d7pmdZZuAUnfjqImrw9J2GOiiQDvb8/s320/unplugged.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"> 1,900 members [in 2021, close to 4,100]. January was designated
Tanning Bed Dangers Awareness Month since it is the beginning of the peak
tanning bed use time for teens wanting that "glow" for Prom and
Spring Break. The page has provided photos and information regarding tanning
bed risks that have been shared across Facebook and Twitter. </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">There have also been numerous
activities that the members could participate in, and many have done so. These
include contacting fitness centers to ask about whether they provide tanning
beds at their center and attempting to educate them to the contradiction
between promoting a healthy lifestyle and offering cancer in the form of
tanning. We have also tried to educate the customers of tanning salons through
the salons' Facebook pages and to identify any false advertising and notify the
FTC. Another project is to make Facebook aware that tanning salons with
Facebook pages are advertising "self-harm," which is something that
Facebook has a policy against. And our members are kept up to date on the
latest legislation in all states.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHbhH9oWBEdFIRyhnri533be1DZ7xKhxnfpKu-4g2MvBzhREYbHT8venXFVYkQdV-1F7_kbTYnvHxs8up4SXLRfZnqxAzual07JajhXCHG20_PZadPYFtKZPBacgpdETxbgLJbmRYiE8Y/s1600/universityprotect.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHbhH9oWBEdFIRyhnri533be1DZ7xKhxnfpKu-4g2MvBzhREYbHT8venXFVYkQdV-1F7_kbTYnvHxs8up4SXLRfZnqxAzual07JajhXCHG20_PZadPYFtKZPBacgpdETxbgLJbmRYiE8Y/s320/universityprotect.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">Our largest project has been
writing letters/emails/Facebook messages and posts/tweets to over 200
[now 300+] colleges and universities in the US, asking whether they have tanning beds on
campus or in off-campus housing and whether tanning salons are merchants in
their college cash card programs. AIM at Melanoma was kind enough to draft up a
letter for our use. [Dr. Sherry Pagoto, who did the original <a href="http://archderm.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1919438">research</a> on this topic for the University of Massachusetts, is providing guidance.] We have received over 40 replies, with most stating
their tan-free campus policy. Some, like Michigan State, are reviewing their criteria for selecting merchants for the student cash card program or for their discount program.
Our message is being heard; colleges now know that concerned people are
watching them. They cannot continue to promote, or even be perceived to promote,
risky behavior in their students by making tanning beds more easily accessible.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">Every day new projects that
pertain to tanning beds come to our attention, and there is something in our
group for everyone who wants to <a href="http://facebook.com/BanTheBeds">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a>. I
hope to see you there!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOZ8x4rG2vG1Wei9v4VIWaHFVJ84k3RpUHLvm53khB_EpBEBNLrZC9CDpQRysjpTVjdm5Rcsz8Vr5ZcivaVs5AoY1lxv5V1iXqB_pU5OSOY3JNtx-cjFoHcg1pjW9ZZ_GX6cfX-KZWbR8/s1600/pulltheplug.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOZ8x4rG2vG1Wei9v4VIWaHFVJ84k3RpUHLvm53khB_EpBEBNLrZC9CDpQRysjpTVjdm5Rcsz8Vr5ZcivaVs5AoY1lxv5V1iXqB_pU5OSOY3JNtx-cjFoHcg1pjW9ZZ_GX6cfX-KZWbR8/s200/pulltheplug.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) <br />
</span></span> <span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><br /></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/melanoma_mama">@melanoma_mama</a><br />
Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
Etsy: <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
Ebay: <a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></div>
</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
Eight
years ago, my daughter Jaime died from melanoma, which the doctors
believed was from her use of tanning beds in high school and college.
She was diagnosed when she was 20 and fought the evil beast of a disease
until her death at 29.<br />
My Jaime’s story gave me the passion and conviction to become “the
indoor tanning industry’s worst nightmare.” The day after Jaime’s
funeral I began going after the indoor tanning industry and their lies
and deception. I drew their wrath by commenting on magazine and
newspaper articles on the internet about the dangers of tanning beds
(see <a href="http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122" target="_blank">http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122</a>). Social media was in its infancy; Facebook and Twitter had not yet been born.<span id="more-20019"></span><br />
I also contacted my state legislators about writing a bill to ban
teens from using tanning beds but I was ignored, and it would take
several years before the Texas legislature would have such a bill
introduced and passed … but it did. Two of them in fact. The first one
was weak, but the one that followed was a full under 18 ban, and I
testified with Jaime’s story for both of these laws.<br />
As Facebook grew and melanoma patients found each other, many groups
were formed. There were groups for skin cancer or melanoma in general,
groups for survivors, groups for support, groups for mothers of melanoma
patients, groups for care-givers, groups for individual melanoma
journeys, groups for fundraising, groups for ocular melanoma, groups for
pediatric melanoma, groups for research, groups for grief &
remembrance, groups for advocacy, groups for sun safety … but I
recognized there was a void. There was no group or page devoted entirely
to the dangers of tanning beds. So Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds was
created.<br />
It has been up and running for about 5 months, and now has almost
1,900 members. January was designated Tanning Bed Dangers Awareness
Month since it is the beginning of the peak tanning bed use time for
teens wanting that “glow” for Prom and Spring Break. The page has
provided photos and information regarding tanning bed risks that have
been shared across Facebook and Twitter.<br />
There have also been numerous activities that the members could
participate in, and many have done so. These include contacting fitness
centers to ask about whether they provide tanning beds at their center
and attempting to educate them to the contradiction between promoting a
healthy lifestyle and offering cancer in the form of tanning. We have
also tried to educate the customers of tanning salons through the
salons’ Facebook pages and to identify any false advertising and notify
the FTC. Another project is to make Facebook aware that tanning salons
with Facebook pages are advertising “self-harm,” which is something that
Facebook has a policy against. And our members are kept up to date on
the latest legislation in all states.<br />
Our largest project has been writing letters/emails/Facebook messages
and posts/tweets to over 200 colleges and universities in the US,
asking whether they have tanning beds on campus or in off-campus housing
and whether tanning salons are merchants in their college cash card
programs. AIM at Melanoma was kind enough to draft up a letter for our
use. We have received over 40 replies, with most stating their tan-free
campus policy. Some, like Michigan State, are reviewing their criteria
for selecting merchants for the student cash card program or for their
discount program. Our message is being heard; colleges now know that
concerned people are watching them. They cannot continue to promote, or
even be perceived to promote, risky behavior in their students by making
tanning beds more easily accessible.<br />
Every day new projects that pertain to tanning beds come to our
attention, and there is something in our group for everyone who wants to
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds" target="_blank">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a>. I hope to see you there!<br />
- See more at: http://www.disruptivewomen.net/2015/05/21/birth-of-the-pull-the-plug-on-tanning-beds/#sthash.J3JLflVi.dpuf</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
Eight
years ago, my daughter Jaime died from melanoma, which the doctors
believed was from her use of tanning beds in high school and college.
She was diagnosed when she was 20 and fought the evil beast of a disease
until her death at 29.<br />
My Jaime’s story gave me the passion and conviction to become “the
indoor tanning industry’s worst nightmare.” The day after Jaime’s
funeral I began going after the indoor tanning industry and their lies
and deception. I drew their wrath by commenting on magazine and
newspaper articles on the internet about the dangers of tanning beds
(see <a href="http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122" target="_blank">http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122</a>). Social media was in its infancy; Facebook and Twitter had not yet been born.<span id="more-20019"></span><br />
I also contacted my state legislators about writing a bill to ban
teens from using tanning beds but I was ignored, and it would take
several years before the Texas legislature would have such a bill
introduced and passed … but it did. Two of them in fact. The first one
was weak, but the one that followed was a full under 18 ban, and I
testified with Jaime’s story for both of these laws.<br />
As Facebook grew and melanoma patients found each other, many groups
were formed. There were groups for skin cancer or melanoma in general,
groups for survivors, groups for support, groups for mothers of melanoma
patients, groups for care-givers, groups for individual melanoma
journeys, groups for fundraising, groups for ocular melanoma, groups for
pediatric melanoma, groups for research, groups for grief &
remembrance, groups for advocacy, groups for sun safety … but I
recognized there was a void. There was no group or page devoted entirely
to the dangers of tanning beds. So Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds was
created.<br />
It has been up and running for about 5 months, and now has almost
1,900 members. January was designated Tanning Bed Dangers Awareness
Month since it is the beginning of the peak tanning bed use time for
teens wanting that “glow” for Prom and Spring Break. The page has
provided photos and information regarding tanning bed risks that have
been shared across Facebook and Twitter.<br />
There have also been numerous activities that the members could
participate in, and many have done so. These include contacting fitness
centers to ask about whether they provide tanning beds at their center
and attempting to educate them to the contradiction between promoting a
healthy lifestyle and offering cancer in the form of tanning. We have
also tried to educate the customers of tanning salons through the
salons’ Facebook pages and to identify any false advertising and notify
the FTC. Another project is to make Facebook aware that tanning salons
with Facebook pages are advertising “self-harm,” which is something that
Facebook has a policy against. And our members are kept up to date on
the latest legislation in all states.<br />
Our largest project has been writing letters/emails/Facebook messages
and posts/tweets to over 200 colleges and universities in the US,
asking whether they have tanning beds on campus or in off-campus housing
and whether tanning salons are merchants in their college cash card
programs. AIM at Melanoma was kind enough to draft up a letter for our
use. We have received over 40 replies, with most stating their tan-free
campus policy. Some, like Michigan State, are reviewing their criteria
for selecting merchants for the student cash card program or for their
discount program. Our message is being heard; colleges now know that
concerned people are watching them. They cannot continue to promote, or
even be perceived to promote, risky behavior in their students by making
tanning beds more easily accessible.<br />
Every day new projects that pertain to tanning beds come to our
attention, and there is something in our group for everyone who wants to
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds" target="_blank">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a>. I hope to see you there!<br />
- See more at: http://www.disruptivewomen.net/2015/05/21/birth-of-the-pull-the-plug-on-tanning-beds/#sthash.J3JLflVi.dpuf</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
Eight
years ago, my daughter Jaime died from melanoma, which the doctors
believed was from her use of tanning beds in high school and college.
She was diagnosed when she was 20 and fought the evil beast of a disease
until her death at 29.<br />
My Jaime’s story gave me the passion and conviction to become “the
indoor tanning industry’s worst nightmare.” The day after Jaime’s
funeral I began going after the indoor tanning industry and their lies
and deception. I drew their wrath by commenting on magazine and
newspaper articles on the internet about the dangers of tanning beds
(see <a href="http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122" target="_blank">http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122</a>). Social media was in its infancy; Facebook and Twitter had not yet been born.<span id="more-20019"></span><br />
I also contacted my state legislators about writing a bill to ban
teens from using tanning beds but I was ignored, and it would take
several years before the Texas legislature would have such a bill
introduced and passed … but it did. Two of them in fact. The first one
was weak, but the one that followed was a full under 18 ban, and I
testified with Jaime’s story for both of these laws.<br />
As Facebook grew and melanoma patients found each other, many groups
were formed. There were groups for skin cancer or melanoma in general,
groups for survivors, groups for support, groups for mothers of melanoma
patients, groups for care-givers, groups for individual melanoma
journeys, groups for fundraising, groups for ocular melanoma, groups for
pediatric melanoma, groups for research, groups for grief &
remembrance, groups for advocacy, groups for sun safety … but I
recognized there was a void. There was no group or page devoted entirely
to the dangers of tanning beds. So Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds was
created.<br />
It has been up and running for about 5 months, and now has almost
1,900 members. January was designated Tanning Bed Dangers Awareness
Month since it is the beginning of the peak tanning bed use time for
teens wanting that “glow” for Prom and Spring Break. The page has
provided photos and information regarding tanning bed risks that have
been shared across Facebook and Twitter.<br />
There have also been numerous activities that the members could
participate in, and many have done so. These include contacting fitness
centers to ask about whether they provide tanning beds at their center
and attempting to educate them to the contradiction between promoting a
healthy lifestyle and offering cancer in the form of tanning. We have
also tried to educate the customers of tanning salons through the
salons’ Facebook pages and to identify any false advertising and notify
the FTC. Another project is to make Facebook aware that tanning salons
with Facebook pages are advertising “self-harm,” which is something that
Facebook has a policy against. And our members are kept up to date on
the latest legislation in all states.<br />
Our largest project has been writing letters/emails/Facebook messages
and posts/tweets to over 200 colleges and universities in the US,
asking whether they have tanning beds on campus or in off-campus housing
and whether tanning salons are merchants in their college cash card
programs. AIM at Melanoma was kind enough to draft up a letter for our
use. We have received over 40 replies, with most stating their tan-free
campus policy. Some, like Michigan State, are reviewing their criteria
for selecting merchants for the student cash card program or for their
discount program. Our message is being heard; colleges now know that
concerned people are watching them. They cannot continue to promote, or
even be perceived to promote, risky behavior in their students by making
tanning beds more easily accessible.<br />
Every day new projects that pertain to tanning beds come to our
attention, and there is something in our group for everyone who wants to
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds" target="_blank">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a>. I hope to see you there!<br />
- See more at: http://www.disruptivewomen.net/2015/05/21/birth-of-the-pull-the-plug-on-tanning-beds/#sthash.J3JLflVi.dpuf</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
Eight
years ago, my daughter Jaime died from melanoma, which the doctors
believed was from her use of tanning beds in high school and college.
She was diagnosed when she was 20 and fought the evil beast of a disease
until her death at 29.<br />
My Jaime’s story gave me the passion and conviction to become “the
indoor tanning industry’s worst nightmare.” The day after Jaime’s
funeral I began going after the indoor tanning industry and their lies
and deception. I drew their wrath by commenting on magazine and
newspaper articles on the internet about the dangers of tanning beds
(see <a href="http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122" target="_blank">http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122</a>). Social media was in its infancy; Facebook and Twitter had not yet been born.<span id="more-20019"></span><br />
I also contacted my state legislators about writing a bill to ban
teens from using tanning beds but I was ignored, and it would take
several years before the Texas legislature would have such a bill
introduced and passed … but it did. Two of them in fact. The first one
was weak, but the one that followed was a full under 18 ban, and I
testified with Jaime’s story for both of these laws.<br />
As Facebook grew and melanoma patients found each other, many groups
were formed. There were groups for skin cancer or melanoma in general,
groups for survivors, groups for support, groups for mothers of melanoma
patients, groups for care-givers, groups for individual melanoma
journeys, groups for fundraising, groups for ocular melanoma, groups for
pediatric melanoma, groups for research, groups for grief &
remembrance, groups for advocacy, groups for sun safety … but I
recognized there was a void. There was no group or page devoted entirely
to the dangers of tanning beds. So Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds was
created.<br />
It has been up and running for about 5 months, and now has almost
1,900 members. January was designated Tanning Bed Dangers Awareness
Month since it is the beginning of the peak tanning bed use time for
teens wanting that “glow” for Prom and Spring Break. The page has
provided photos and information regarding tanning bed risks that have
been shared across Facebook and Twitter.<br />
There have also been numerous activities that the members could
participate in, and many have done so. These include contacting fitness
centers to ask about whether they provide tanning beds at their center
and attempting to educate them to the contradiction between promoting a
healthy lifestyle and offering cancer in the form of tanning. We have
also tried to educate the customers of tanning salons through the
salons’ Facebook pages and to identify any false advertising and notify
the FTC. Another project is to make Facebook aware that tanning salons
with Facebook pages are advertising “self-harm,” which is something that
Facebook has a policy against. And our members are kept up to date on
the latest legislation in all states.<br />
Our largest project has been writing letters/emails/Facebook messages
and posts/tweets to over 200 colleges and universities in the US,
asking whether they have tanning beds on campus or in off-campus housing
and whether tanning salons are merchants in their college cash card
programs. AIM at Melanoma was kind enough to draft up a letter for our
use. We have received over 40 replies, with most stating their tan-free
campus policy. Some, like Michigan State, are reviewing their criteria
for selecting merchants for the student cash card program or for their
discount program. Our message is being heard; colleges now know that
concerned people are watching them. They cannot continue to promote, or
even be perceived to promote, risky behavior in their students by making
tanning beds more easily accessible.<br />
Every day new projects that pertain to tanning beds come to our
attention, and there is something in our group for everyone who wants to
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds" target="_blank">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a>. I hope to see you there!<br />
- See more at: http://www.disruptivewomen.net/2015/05/21/birth-of-the-pull-the-plug-on-tanning-beds/#sthash.J3JLflVi.dpuf</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
Eight
years ago, my daughter Jaime died from melanoma, which the doctors
believed was from her use of tanning beds in high school and college.
She was diagnosed when she was 20 and fought the evil beast of a disease
until her death at 29.<br />
My Jaime’s story gave me the passion and conviction to become “the
indoor tanning industry’s worst nightmare.” The day after Jaime’s
funeral I began going after the indoor tanning industry and their lies
and deception. I drew their wrath by commenting on magazine and
newspaper articles on the internet about the dangers of tanning beds
(see <a href="http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122" target="_blank">http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122</a>). Social media was in its infancy; Facebook and Twitter had not yet been born.<span id="more-20019"></span><br />
I also contacted my state legislators about writing a bill to ban
teens from using tanning beds but I was ignored, and it would take
several years before the Texas legislature would have such a bill
introduced and passed … but it did. Two of them in fact. The first one
was weak, but the one that followed was a full under 18 ban, and I
testified with Jaime’s story for both of these laws.<br />
As Facebook grew and melanoma patients found each other, many groups
were formed. There were groups for skin cancer or melanoma in general,
groups for survivors, groups for support, groups for mothers of melanoma
patients, groups for care-givers, groups for individual melanoma
journeys, groups for fundraising, groups for ocular melanoma, groups for
pediatric melanoma, groups for research, groups for grief &
remembrance, groups for advocacy, groups for sun safety … but I
recognized there was a void. There was no group or page devoted entirely
to the dangers of tanning beds. So Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds was
created.<br />
It has been up and running for about 5 months, and now has almost
1,900 members. January was designated Tanning Bed Dangers Awareness
Month since it is the beginning of the peak tanning bed use time for
teens wanting that “glow” for Prom and Spring Break. The page has
provided photos and information regarding tanning bed risks that have
been shared across Facebook and Twitter.<br />
There have also been numerous activities that the members could
participate in, and many have done so. These include contacting fitness
centers to ask about whether they provide tanning beds at their center
and attempting to educate them to the contradiction between promoting a
healthy lifestyle and offering cancer in the form of tanning. We have
also tried to educate the customers of tanning salons through the
salons’ Facebook pages and to identify any false advertising and notify
the FTC. Another project is to make Facebook aware that tanning salons
with Facebook pages are advertising “self-harm,” which is something that
Facebook has a policy against. And our members are kept up to date on
the latest legislation in all states.<br />
Our largest project has been writing letters/emails/Facebook messages
and posts/tweets to over 200 colleges and universities in the US,
asking whether they have tanning beds on campus or in off-campus housing
and whether tanning salons are merchants in their college cash card
programs. AIM at Melanoma was kind enough to draft up a letter for our
use. We have received over 40 replies, with most stating their tan-free
campus policy. Some, like Michigan State, are reviewing their criteria
for selecting merchants for the student cash card program or for their
discount program. Our message is being heard; colleges now know that
concerned people are watching them. They cannot continue to promote, or
even be perceived to promote, risky behavior in their students by making
tanning beds more easily accessible.<br />
Every day new projects that pertain to tanning beds come to our
attention, and there is something in our group for everyone who wants to
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds" target="_blank">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a>. I hope to see you there!<br />
- See more at: http://www.disruptivewomen.net/2015/05/21/birth-of-the-pull-the-plug-on-tanning-beds/#sthash.J3JLflVi.dpuf</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
Eight
years ago, my daughter Jaime died from melanoma, which the doctors
believed was from her use of tanning beds in high school and college.
She was diagnosed when she was 20 and fought the evil beast of a disease
until her death at 29.<br />
My Jaime’s story gave me the passion and conviction to become “the
indoor tanning industry’s worst nightmare.” The day after Jaime’s
funeral I began going after the indoor tanning industry and their lies
and deception. I drew their wrath by commenting on magazine and
newspaper articles on the internet about the dangers of tanning beds
(see <a href="http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122" target="_blank">http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122</a>). Social media was in its infancy; Facebook and Twitter had not yet been born.<span id="more-20019"></span><br />
I also contacted my state legislators about writing a bill to ban
teens from using tanning beds but I was ignored, and it would take
several years before the Texas legislature would have such a bill
introduced and passed … but it did. Two of them in fact. The first one
was weak, but the one that followed was a full under 18 ban, and I
testified with Jaime’s story for both of these laws.<br />
As Facebook grew and melanoma patients found each other, many groups
were formed. There were groups for skin cancer or melanoma in general,
groups for survivors, groups for support, groups for mothers of melanoma
patients, groups for care-givers, groups for individual melanoma
journeys, groups for fundraising, groups for ocular melanoma, groups for
pediatric melanoma, groups for research, groups for grief &
remembrance, groups for advocacy, groups for sun safety … but I
recognized there was a void. There was no group or page devoted entirely
to the dangers of tanning beds. So Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds was
created.<br />
It has been up and running for about 5 months, and now has almost
1,900 members. January was designated Tanning Bed Dangers Awareness
Month since it is the beginning of the peak tanning bed use time for
teens wanting that “glow” for Prom and Spring Break. The page has
provided photos and information regarding tanning bed risks that have
been shared across Facebook and Twitter.<br />
There have also been numerous activities that the members could
participate in, and many have done so. These include contacting fitness
centers to ask about whether they provide tanning beds at their center
and attempting to educate them to the contradiction between promoting a
healthy lifestyle and offering cancer in the form of tanning. We have
also tried to educate the customers of tanning salons through the
salons’ Facebook pages and to identify any false advertising and notify
the FTC. Another project is to make Facebook aware that tanning salons
with Facebook pages are advertising “self-harm,” which is something that
Facebook has a policy against. And our members are kept up to date on
the latest legislation in all states.<br />
Our largest project has been writing letters/emails/Facebook messages
and posts/tweets to over 200 colleges and universities in the US,
asking whether they have tanning beds on campus or in off-campus housing
and whether tanning salons are merchants in their college cash card
programs. AIM at Melanoma was kind enough to draft up a letter for our
use. We have received over 40 replies, with most stating their tan-free
campus policy. Some, like Michigan State, are reviewing their criteria
for selecting merchants for the student cash card program or for their
discount program. Our message is being heard; colleges now know that
concerned people are watching them. They cannot continue to promote, or
even be perceived to promote, risky behavior in their students by making
tanning beds more easily accessible.<br />
Every day new projects that pertain to tanning beds come to our
attention, and there is something in our group for everyone who wants to
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds" target="_blank">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a>. I hope to see you there!<br />
- See more at: http://www.disruptivewomen.net/2015/05/21/birth-of-the-pull-the-plug-on-tanning-beds/#sthash.J3JLflVi.dpuf</div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com3Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-5451550111074410632015-04-19T19:16:00.000-05:002019-01-14T15:28:04.882-06:00Road to Destruction ... of Tanning Beds<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">It's no secret ... I've been waging a war against the indoor tanning industry for many years now, ever since my daughter Jaime died at age 29 from melanoma brought on by years of tanning bed use in high school and college. How did that war begin, you ask? Read on ...</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">It started out as a very bumpy, winding road. The week we buried Jaime,</span></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDfy75dxAXMqUd5Y-_oYivS2lgBIIa_7tyG4gHkqqUH8r0q6y7esAMGgKtQV2lGowNoaZhUk9JbZDEsjmNpRrOkrLJykO6h_Iy-Qf1OB6XcxHsnW7qayCnimmZBCV-G2ClGYgx61Ig_Vc/s1600/promprincess.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDfy75dxAXMqUd5Y-_oYivS2lgBIIa_7tyG4gHkqqUH8r0q6y7esAMGgKtQV2lGowNoaZhUk9JbZDEsjmNpRrOkrLJykO6h_Iy-Qf1OB6XcxHsnW7qayCnimmZBCV-G2ClGYgx61Ig_Vc/s1600/promprincess.jpg" width="156" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I began writing letters to newspapers about the dangers of tanning beds and contacted my state legislators about introducing legislation that would restrict minors' use of these killers (but to no avail). I had the passion, I had the time, I had the story, and I had the anger.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Don't get me wrong. I was not looking for something to blame for Jaime's death. She would often say, "I did this to myself." And she did. Her melanoma (although not everyone's) could have been prevented if she hadn't had an obsession to turn her very pale skin into a shade more similar to cafe au lait. So I don't blame the tanning industry for this horrific hole in my heart ... but they are partly responsible by providing a harmful product.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">When Jaime was using tanning beds, no one really knew how dangerous (and deadly) they were. The Center for Disease Control now says, <a href="http://t.co/j0vyQXJ4D8">"Tanning beds are one of the few industries whose product, if used as the manufacturer intends, puts the user at risk of harm."</a> I won't get into the dangers of tanning bed use here because you can read about that in my other blogs, particularly <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/03/spring-teen-tanning-season.html">Spring: The Teen Tanning Season. </a></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Suddenly, the road took a different turn. Because I was so vocal on the risks of tanning beds (and this was when Facebook was just in its infancy), the American Academy of Dermatology asked me to make a Public Service Announcement video based on <a href="http://t.co/ktdIiVTxOk">Jaime's story</a>. This was when the Academy and I had a good working relationship, prior to their failed insensitive attempt to change melanoma's awareness ribbon from black to orange. Read <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/03/social-media-black-ribbon.html">Social Media and the Black Ribbon</a> and <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/05/it-sounded-so-good-when-i-wrote-it.html">Promises Made Are Not Necessarily Promises Kept</a> for more on that story.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Following that, I was apparently targeted by the indoor tanning industry in a sting operation that failed, but I only learned of this recently: <a href="http://www.vice.com/read/i-was-paid-to-go-undercover-for-the-tanning-industry-122">I Was A Paid Shill for the Tanning Industry.</a> I was getting under their over-baked skin and had struck a nerve, it seems!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Jaime's story, along with that of many other tanning bed victims, has been used to pass under 18 teen tan ban bills in many states, including our home state of Texas (first for an under 16 ban and finally, with my testimony in both House and Senate committees, for an under 18 ban). The only bad part is that because of all my correspondence with state senators and representatives across the country about tanning bed legislation, I am now on ALL of their newsletters ... thousands of newsletters!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpxX6_F56ga60nd2BzUaqDXG69XMjzdpcBHagp-Cr91ciYHgl41UHE8KQUyz_L59FYeJyrW5Oqx2Ji6Lzqs2W3P_FjcFzeLIRMp9OB57ox51BuSldK_tfKHkCpuncduWoLageY2MSSGJE/s1600/clearevidence.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpxX6_F56ga60nd2BzUaqDXG69XMjzdpcBHagp-Cr91ciYHgl41UHE8KQUyz_L59FYeJyrW5Oqx2Ji6Lzqs2W3P_FjcFzeLIRMp9OB57ox51BuSldK_tfKHkCpuncduWoLageY2MSSGJE/s1600/clearevidence.jpg" width="154" /></a>You will often see my posts in the comments sections of online newspaper & magazine articles. I have been told by the opposition that Jaime never had skin cancer or that Jaime is just a figment of my overactive imagination. Really??? Do they think their lies and personal attacks will make me stop? No, they just motivate me even more!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Jaime's story of tanning bed use and melanoma has been told in newspapers, magazines, TV news, and online for over 15 years now. Actually, one newspaper did decide not to print our interview because the reporter thought Jaime's story was too well known (OLD news) ... that was just a seldom-read little tabloid called the <i>New York Times!</i> Others have also stepped forward to tell their stories of tanning bed use and abuse. I hope it is all making a difference. Whether it is or not, I'm not done trying!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Her story was one presented many years ago at hearings of an FDA panel for tighter restriction of tanning beds, and recently we have seen them act on those recommendations. With the US Surgeon General joining our cries against tanning beds, the road to destruction of tanning beds is getting smoother and straighter, soon to be a superhighway! </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">For years I have watched as the Facebook melanoma community found each other and then broke away into smaller, more specific groups -- for support, for sun safety, for melanoma, for skin cancer -- but nothing solely for indoor tanning. So last December I started the group <a href="https://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds"><b><i>Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</i></b>,</a> which now has over 1,860 like-minds [over 3,600 in 2018] who want to create awareness about the pain and suffering that tanning beds create. The story of what I have discovered through <i>Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</i> will be my next blog [see <a href="https://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2015/05/birth-of-anti-tanning-bed-grassroots.html">Birth of an Anti-Tanning Bed Grassroots Movement</a>].</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Many years ago I proclaimed myself to be the indoor tanning industry's worst nightmare, and I believe that I have lived up to that title. The bad news is that there is so much more work to be done, and the more I dig into this industry, the more dirt I find. The good news is, however, that I have found more friends who are also royal pains in the tanning industry's butt ... and together we are getting even <b>LOUDER!!</b></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXm55-2Q4JgWXbGeyGQ9y6YX8k0ggxpQ5Qzv6vqZK61MjlbHmLFddBIPGGhfsqhjllz5H1-TIA420OhC1lSup1Q9h_Mgi6-bo6kLVtucnP4p2Kx1yaXbxJEAbPVOZuD3kgfz9_r4BVrCo/s1600/unplugged.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXm55-2Q4JgWXbGeyGQ9y6YX8k0ggxpQ5Qzv6vqZK61MjlbHmLFddBIPGGhfsqhjllz5H1-TIA420OhC1lSup1Q9h_Mgi6-bo6kLVtucnP4p2Kx1yaXbxJEAbPVOZuD3kgfz9_r4BVrCo/s1600/unplugged.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna) </span> <span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span>Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-43119462651933041312015-01-23T15:50:00.000-06:002015-01-23T15:50:35.946-06:00Happy 1st Blogiversary to Me!<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> My entry into the Blogisphere occurred 1 year ago today with the labor and delivery of my first blog! So Happy Blogiversary to me!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">I want to thank each of you for taking the time to read each blog and sometimes leaving comments. It has been quite an adventure, and I'm glad you all traveled this journey with me. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Some blogs were written with tears; others took on a life of their own. Some stories made the long trip back through memory lane; others were full of more information than you ever wanted to know about melanoma and tanning. I have shared stories that, until that blog, had been held close to my heart and never shared before. You have also seen my sometimes quirky sense of humor and my usual snarky sarcasm. I've earned search key words that I can't print here because they are pornographic in nature; I have gathered readers from all over the world, especially South Africa.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">There are many more blogs waiting to be told, but for now, every ounce of my time and energy is being squeezed into getting my newest Facebook page,<b> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds</a></b>, up and<b> </b>running. I realized a void in the Facebook groups. There are groups for skin cancer or melanoma in general, for support, for sun safety, for remembrance, for advocacy, for combinations of all aspects of melanoma ... but nothing specifically and solely addressing the dangers of tanning beds. </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiviHTIqxMC7J1FpZhVAARdSJNVuEIBtRsMVAI7wvkYrRoqw6quybZxtWjSZ8WdckV196Z9UsOLXJsvLsUAHLSSWfzHtSelzuUDXGKLCq1461ESmJQ2QADb0JiCB-kHAaTrL3FTbs0yyeM/s1600/Turnoutlites.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiviHTIqxMC7J1FpZhVAARdSJNVuEIBtRsMVAI7wvkYrRoqw6quybZxtWjSZ8WdckV196Z9UsOLXJsvLsUAHLSSWfzHtSelzuUDXGKLCq1461ESmJQ2QADb0JiCB-kHAaTrL3FTbs0yyeM/s1600/Turnoutlites.jpg" height="259" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">So <b>Pull the Plug</b> was born, and January, the beginning of the teen indoor tanning season, was designated as <i>Tanning Bed Dangers Awareness Month</i>. My goal was to blanket the social media with information about the risks of using these death beds ... and I think, thanks to its more than 1,300 members and growing, we have accomplished that goal and more. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Along with spreading awareness, we have been contacting colleges and universities about tanning beds on and off their campuses and about making risky behavior more convenient to their students by including tanning salons in their cash card programs. We have battled with tanning salons and their false advertising on Facebook. We are contacting fitness centers about including free cancer with their membership by having tanning beds. And much, much more.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">All this will continue beyond January ... actually, until either I or tanning beds are obsolete! So if you haven't joined us yet on <b>Pull the Plug</b> and you care about the damage being done by these cancer machines, please consider this your invite.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">But back to the celebration for now! One year of blogs behind me and a new blank page just waiting to be filled. I hope you enjoyed reading my blogs and took something good away ... more information, a different point of view, a smile, an understanding ... and I hope you will continue to follow me. Thank you again!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"> Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)
</span></span>Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-85688774424411445852014-11-26T13:34:00.001-06:002014-11-26T13:34:59.744-06:00Tears in the TurkeyThe holidays are upon us ... as we are constantly reminded through TV, radio, magazines, newspapers, store decorations, and the internet ... and they can be a very depressing time for many.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6S6as4tQWi3coRegHsUEBx7pFDw8a8c9yiHs2cUqbtuy2AOhfdHJiyhxxkByuJpRSJSrZixYpKmkp0QuzGoj1qH2vRiDGqZIByyhacWOtMfROYdCmvcIvrBzLFTWMIqT9EcqVLQJ0K5k/s1600/nakedturkey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6S6as4tQWi3coRegHsUEBx7pFDw8a8c9yiHs2cUqbtuy2AOhfdHJiyhxxkByuJpRSJSrZixYpKmkp0QuzGoj1qH2vRiDGqZIByyhacWOtMfROYdCmvcIvrBzLFTWMIqT9EcqVLQJ0K5k/s1600/nakedturkey.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a>This year it seems that we jumped straight from Halloween into Christmas, with Thanksgiving being ignored ... or straight from "give me candy" to "give me presents" and bypassing the "giving thanks" part! Sadly it makes sense because Christmas and Halloween are retail driven, whereas with Thanksgiving, not so much unless you are a turkey farmer!<br />
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But Thanksgiving will happen. It is a warm and fuzzy (and yummy) family-focused holiday that is wonderful for those with families who can gather together for the celebration. However, we should not forget that this is not easy or possible for many, and the feelings that go along with that can be extremely complex.<br />
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Some come from a different culture in which Thanksgiving is not a part of their holidays, and they may feel left out. Some people have no families so a holiday with so much emphasis on family could certainly leave them feeling depressed and isolated. Some families are scattered far apart, and because of finances, health, time, or any other number of reasons cannot be together and they may feel sad, lonely, and even guilt-ridden. I feel their pain; they are not alone!<br />
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Some families have members who are on the other side of the world serving our country and perhaps in harm's way, so the holiday might make them miss those loved ones even more. Some will have to work on Thanksgiving and unable to share the holiday with family, and they may question if their sacrifice is appreciated. Others might have no job and no money to prepare a fest, and they may be concerned over how they will feed their family over the coming weeks and months. I feel their pain; they are not alone!<br />
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Some will be celebrating their first Thanksgiving, and I actually missed Thanksgiving with my family one year when I was in the
hospital delivering my second son Tim. And sadly, some will be celebrating their last.<br />
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Some might be ill and have no energy to join the family in the celebration; they shouldn't feel guilty, but they probably will. Some families only have the strength to sit at the bedside of a frail and dying family member, with no interest in cooking or even eating a holiday meal because they are physically and emotionally drained. Some families will be grieving the loss of a loved one, and the empty chair at the Thanksgiving table will be too much for them to bear. Their hearts will be shattered all over again. I feel their pain; they are not alone!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguCYaQ7FGqSjIjfwfWZ3QbgkcRKODxHPcIv1CHFnkatIGAEc6wtwzyCvQD0Bq_yBAb2mkEXXiZO3lgZtzmNa2ws5F2H6y7SiPz1Rl0-X_oP2t7bIf7JgyBrWQNnIT-foycstdHYrnl7sQ/s1600/i_am_thankful_for_my_family_calendar_print.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguCYaQ7FGqSjIjfwfWZ3QbgkcRKODxHPcIv1CHFnkatIGAEc6wtwzyCvQD0Bq_yBAb2mkEXXiZO3lgZtzmNa2ws5F2H6y7SiPz1Rl0-X_oP2t7bIf7JgyBrWQNnIT-foycstdHYrnl7sQ/s1600/i_am_thankful_for_my_family_calendar_print.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
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So while you are enjoying the warmth and love of your family turkey dinner and contemplating all you have to be thankful for, remember that others may be having a difficult time just getting through the holidays. Open your hearts and let them know that they are not alone. Not everyone's Thanksgiving will look like the pictures on greeting cards!<br />
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Happy Thanksgiving!<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)</span></span></span>Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-37663552185682668902014-10-22T18:15:00.000-05:002014-10-22T18:15:26.462-05:00Pink Sisters, I Feel Your Pain<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQP61_5LJY597yriu1W4F5hXJQKekDPGRnGC1D17qTdX3iX4EZo3kl5WioAFYRhOIjtMZBZLxUwToqcdoIQF3I1uw4qSo5pCX4xkScJQyIQX51IuC6Ty8U2GXAvGynL172cjICZmQmibs/s1600/pink_october.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQP61_5LJY597yriu1W4F5hXJQKekDPGRnGC1D17qTdX3iX4EZo3kl5WioAFYRhOIjtMZBZLxUwToqcdoIQF3I1uw4qSo5pCX4xkScJQyIQX51IuC6Ty8U2GXAvGynL172cjICZmQmibs/s1600/pink_october.jpg" height="184" width="320" /></a>Did you know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month? If not, you must live under a rock! We are constantly reminded of this by the sea of pink surrounding us. Some of us call it Pinktober because of the pink obsessiveness; I have even heard breast cancer patients call it "Puketober." <br />
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While the other cancer communities (like my melanoma community) drool at the amount of awareness and recognition all this pinkness brings to breast cancer, many in their community believe that the pink campaign is excessive and not delivering the right message. A giant case of be careful what you wish for ...<br />
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And I get it. All the pink ribbons have not given the breast cancer patients a cure; they have not given advanced stage breast cancer patients much in the way of hope. Don't get me wrong. Awareness is great, but I think there is a saturation point ... and in my opinion, it has been breached!<br />
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As I discussed in my blog <i>"<a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/10/pinktober-new-october.html">Pinktober</a></i>," businesses are profiting from Pinktober more than breast cancer patients ... and there is definitely something wrong with that picture. But it goes further than that. There are campaigns to save the boobies, save the hooters, save the ta-tas ... but what about saving the men and women who have breast cancer. Sexualizing a cancer will not cure it.<br />
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Unfortunately the breast cancer community is struggling with playful pink as their awareness color and brand as well as all the fun and games supposedly created for awareness. Decorating bras might be a fun thing to do, but probably not a great reminder to those who no longer have a need for bras. We all know, or at least we should, that there is nothing fun or playful or party-like about any cancer. It trivializes those fighting for their lives and disrespects those whose lives have been lost ... and it sure doesn't cure cancer!<br />
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This video points out how out of control Pinktober has become:<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/BSbvArYGIls?feature=player_embedded" width="440"></iframe><br />
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In the melanoma community, we understand too well what the breast cancer community is feeling as far as having their cancer trivialized. We have heard way too many times -- "Melanoma? Oh, that's <i>just</i> skin cancer. Cut it out and you'll be fine." And perhaps you remember back a couple years when the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) tried to turn melanoma's awareness color of black to orange. Black was too depressing, they thought ... <i>NEWSFLASH</i>, melanoma <b>IS</b> depressing! They wanted something more bright and cheerful and attention-getting (like the sun that caused many of the cases of melanoma???).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCcAczIlADCrvhrfg2MvenP38GO51KrhW6a-bXWqgJhfpaCVtLYY2nyxAwcQxolbey5-diLAEJtPs8LfPZvgn8umvUaRmfOhMPJaIYGK3P1fXZGVfqa6ALDEYRs0S-XRQlhHb4GWcl_9w/s1600/IMG_9570.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCcAczIlADCrvhrfg2MvenP38GO51KrhW6a-bXWqgJhfpaCVtLYY2nyxAwcQxolbey5-diLAEJtPs8LfPZvgn8umvUaRmfOhMPJaIYGK3P1fXZGVfqa6ALDEYRs0S-XRQlhHb4GWcl_9w/s1600/IMG_9570.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></div>
For Melanoma Monday, a day reserved not only for spreading awareness but also for honoring melanoma warriors and remembering our fallen, the AAD encouraged dermatologists and their staff to wear orange and throw parties, with orange cupcakes, confetti, and streamers. Can you imagine being given a life-threatening melanoma diagnosis in the midst of such a party or by a doctor blowing orange party favors? <br />
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So, I understand what it is like to have a cancer presented as less evil than it really is, especially one that has severely impacted your life and broken your heart. The marketing people who come up with these ideas of fun and playful awareness obviously have never held a loved one with cancer in their arms while they took their last breath. Their approach is thoughtless and insensitive and, sadly, ... it doesn't cure the cancer!!<br />
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Many in the breast cancer community and beyond will be grateful to see November push out Pinktober because it has gone too far! The need for breast cancer awareness has passed, and the pink ribbon has now ventured into commercialization. And to make matters even worse, breast cancer patients feel their cancer is being trivialized and sexualized. The pink has gone amuck ... and does all this really help in the search for the cure?<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span> </span>Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com1Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-60964376952216400282014-10-12T17:33:00.003-05:002022-10-23T17:20:34.081-05:00Pinktober: The New OctoberIt's October, and Fall is in the air in many areas of the country (although it is still Summer in my neck of the woods, Texas). Autumn is starting to strut its color palette of the turning leaves: golds, oranges, reds, browns. Mother Nature is showing off her breath-taking display ... but it is being obscured by <i>pinkwashing</i>. Cool, feminine, and flirty pink has become a man-made intrusion into the warm, rich colors of Fall.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-R_z5sHMp36-FnqatatVyuVb0MFDWrcvlKgTCaxautKB1vhY5tSM3IErFsIIXN633sptSfEWzDLO32MNQjSaLhy5xIu1qZPFFu7j-SuYcgJaE5g0WgbqwQutxH0qE6k72TwrPRfx7xGw/s1600/1374299_10151910809109140_1716309387_n.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-R_z5sHMp36-FnqatatVyuVb0MFDWrcvlKgTCaxautKB1vhY5tSM3IErFsIIXN633sptSfEWzDLO32MNQjSaLhy5xIu1qZPFFu7j-SuYcgJaE5g0WgbqwQutxH0qE6k72TwrPRfx7xGw/s1600/1374299_10151910809109140_1716309387_n.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This used to be October ...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipD8-0um7DKureKo2aokV3vaF6eCc0W2Ynl3qVm5v6avQVdD5B73ukvqpMIbMwuF-FOup20kl0oJ04u1tzes1GDIyYT5gV7K82vqR-r8ZL4JWGk-JW9gDCwfJsc9gu1Z9IUxWifJ4O4dk/s1600/35446529.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipD8-0um7DKureKo2aokV3vaF6eCc0W2Ynl3qVm5v6avQVdD5B73ukvqpMIbMwuF-FOup20kl0oJ04u1tzes1GDIyYT5gV7K82vqR-r8ZL4JWGk-JW9gDCwfJsc9gu1Z9IUxWifJ4O4dk/s1600/35446529.jpg" width="191" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and now it looks like this ...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLsRRmlWvnWESeCcQrdg3N-30WgyZ0gdj9zzc7msje2Dkct6Ut6ay9-4EJO9cYJRs9CpGPeF6QM9avkA8eMV68_Df2nGZI39NjunJtljQnhvU5wHg4IXlI0A4Xx8y46YELvMcnq3PAt4s/s1600/b68cf927f40afb46052ec31b4b14e34a.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLsRRmlWvnWESeCcQrdg3N-30WgyZ0gdj9zzc7msje2Dkct6Ut6ay9-4EJO9cYJRs9CpGPeF6QM9avkA8eMV68_Df2nGZI39NjunJtljQnhvU5wHg4IXlI0A4Xx8y46YELvMcnq3PAt4s/s1600/b68cf927f40afb46052ec31b4b14e34a.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and this!!</td></tr>
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This explosion of pink has actually taken over the month of October, all in the name of breast cancer awareness. It has gotten so in-your-face obnoxious that October is now called "Pinktober" by many both in and out of the breast cancer community. But more on that later ...<br />
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First join me as I ponder over the timing of this pinkness. It is interesting to me that the color pink, a very Spring-ish pastel color, is so prevalent in the Fall. Wonder what the thinking was on that? Isn't it curious that a cancer using pink as its awareness color doesn't have March or April as its special awareness month? Do you think the fact that football is a Fall sport and perhaps needed to<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeL72W4CzmIl-kITOvvxg-uP_jRE87OEXnIXvwqEscFIZHAbZMiAdPLVgIQNtfNd_77eRCZOn7_8Vw1h5s2S-gLi3dozUOgCGcUENulCgixzsUhE3z0E6l5ecURqDr2p4pQOEcIlha-JI/s1600/www.usnews.com.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeL72W4CzmIl-kITOvvxg-uP_jRE87OEXnIXvwqEscFIZHAbZMiAdPLVgIQNtfNd_77eRCZOn7_8Vw1h5s2S-gLi3dozUOgCGcUENulCgixzsUhE3z0E6l5ecURqDr2p4pQOEcIlha-JI/s1600/www.usnews.com.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
be spiced up with lots of pink accessories was part of the decision-making on that? If the powers-that-be wanted October as their awareness month, why didn't they select a typical Fall color ... like orange? Marketing companies get paid big bucks to figure out these things ... but the logic just isn't there for me. Not that any of this matters; it is just one of those things rattling around in my brain looking for answers. Thanks for indulging me!<br />
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Now getting back to Pinktober, it is no secret that I am not a fan. But please don't just call me a hater and dismiss me. I don't hate breasts (I actually have a couple of those myself); I don't hate pink (it was my daughter Jaime's favorite color but not so much mine) ... but I DO hate cancer (and melanoma, the cancer that killed my Jaime, in particular)! I DO support breast cancer awareness and research. I was one of the founding members of the Susan G. Komen chapter in our county about 30 years ago. I have lost too many friends and family members to this disease, and I actually, because of a pre-breast cancer condition diagnosed earlier this year, have my own breast cancer surgeon whom I visit often. [Update 2022: I am now also a Stage 1 breast cancer patient.]<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO-wyTH4w9bam_Cdev-URSZIUthKnvdLVODKfDt8jBEOt0IAk2clt7Ng1KAGj9tbDiGTchZy-i5TTaI9WjjspM8Zawo8FJX4ox9OSubuegxcNFmG001l_G60l2BSBLhLs1yKwdN3-pKJQ/s1600/promo_pf-changs-horse.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO-wyTH4w9bam_Cdev-URSZIUthKnvdLVODKfDt8jBEOt0IAk2clt7Ng1KAGj9tbDiGTchZy-i5TTaI9WjjspM8Zawo8FJX4ox9OSubuegxcNFmG001l_G60l2BSBLhLs1yKwdN3-pKJQ/s1600/promo_pf-changs-horse.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH3erIiv7LrE_lABbXo4_xFGC89frdvR3ENm0Hvd-Hg-dVm0AD5sgfgckbnHo3_nuASbyhEjkdWj2Z1lbOeWWySurQmyhfhXIpGIVkEpbxYV7j7ZhXdmhnYmf6irgz1SzUhoG9IhZhiJ0/s1600/Pink-Cart---cut.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH3erIiv7LrE_lABbXo4_xFGC89frdvR3ENm0Hvd-Hg-dVm0AD5sgfgckbnHo3_nuASbyhEjkdWj2Z1lbOeWWySurQmyhfhXIpGIVkEpbxYV7j7ZhXdmhnYmf6irgz1SzUhoG9IhZhiJ0/s1600/Pink-Cart---cut.jpg" width="135" /></a>But enough is enough already with the pink!! Pink is everywhere ... from trash cans to PF Chang horse statues ... even drill bits used for fracking. Pink ribbons adorn almost every product on store shelves. You don't have to look hard in the Hunt for the PINK OCTOBER! If you love pink, you are in pink cotton-candy heaven. But for some of us, it just makes us feel like we are drowning in a sea of Pepto-Bismal!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhwYTvM39Mi6RgndLtGdpX0PKkWUtRzB52fE-zCItl81ktTpyoQH_BpAHaTmAvtX_Zn6L_cND0XBDYz9Ij45Nx7WlT9xHy16Rhg5lprQzbqoOLU-zu0O291N9VQkvhx8fBwGEG-n8LNDI/s1600/pinktimthumb.php.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhwYTvM39Mi6RgndLtGdpX0PKkWUtRzB52fE-zCItl81ktTpyoQH_BpAHaTmAvtX_Zn6L_cND0XBDYz9Ij45Nx7WlT9xHy16Rhg5lprQzbqoOLU-zu0O291N9VQkvhx8fBwGEG-n8LNDI/s1600/pinktimthumb.php.jpg" width="200" /></a>Is this crazy pinkness doing its job to raise breast cancer awareness? Better question: Is there anyone out there who already isn't aware of breast cancer? And an even better question: How many lives are being saved by this awareness campaign? Is it raising funding for research? Possibly, but not near what it should be. Most likely it is raising money for the businesses that advertise the pinkness. Pink has become a commercial honey pot!<br />
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Buying your drink in a pink cup may make you feel all warm and fuzzy, but that is probably all it will do. My guess is that businesses are jumping on the pink bandwagon to capture your business and not because of their strong desire to cure breast cancer. Unfortunately, most consumers are not aware that there are no regulations on which products can advertise with the pink ribbon ... even products not remotely connected to cancer or that contain chemicals that research has shown possibly cause breast cancer. Now in defense of cat litter, read my blog <a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/07/from-litterbox-to-laboratory.html">From Litterbox to Laboratory</a>!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5dMo0AM4pJ9h0z8VYI-M6MVmM7M9XhdGTPtzS-OB-1FMOi81XBIC-EQz6o3lcAZhh41S8SOc6Y3vnpa8nhBFltvFCLjSs52B1PicwYwCmi27inpO3COLqBoL6CO8BCEC7dSNtnvSmSoU/s1600/44876_433009380668_505945668_5251212_7409949_n.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5dMo0AM4pJ9h0z8VYI-M6MVmM7M9XhdGTPtzS-OB-1FMOi81XBIC-EQz6o3lcAZhh41S8SOc6Y3vnpa8nhBFltvFCLjSs52B1PicwYwCmi27inpO3COLqBoL6CO8BCEC7dSNtnvSmSoU/s1600/44876_433009380668_505945668_5251212_7409949_n.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div>
And what about all the other cancers, many you have probably not even heard of? What about awareness and research funding for those? Shouldn't we be concerned about ALL cancers ... about finding a cure for ALL cancers and not just the pink one?<br />
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Today I saw an ad for Swarovski crystals, stating that for this month a donation would be given to a breast cancer foundation based on all pink crystals sold. Before Jaime died, she designed and created <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">awareness bracelets</a> for all cancers using Swarovski crystals. I have continued to make them in her honor so I am aware of the different colors used for different cancers. I have never seen donations made for buying gold crystals for childhood cancer in September or black crystals for melanoma in May, etc. ... just pink in October.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcyG3Ek_A9qdF6oCozF3041uG_pxXK2S6kItpS1gEAjB9OQG_utegMM4tZ3ip6Jx7YrpVuGiwGbC9KjUzGqou2ySfmUX6jrLtLaEbhUbY50dEDlEmxVWR24mdJJV4NckM6C85NIdn7vK0/s1600/creative-breast-theme-soft-silicone-case-for-iphone-4g-pink-p13172256720.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcyG3Ek_A9qdF6oCozF3041uG_pxXK2S6kItpS1gEAjB9OQG_utegMM4tZ3ip6Jx7YrpVuGiwGbC9KjUzGqou2ySfmUX6jrLtLaEbhUbY50dEDlEmxVWR24mdJJV4NckM6C85NIdn7vK0/s1600/creative-breast-theme-soft-silicone-case-for-iphone-4g-pink-p13172256720.jpg" width="200" /></a>My point? There are more colors than pink, and there are more cancers than breast cancer. Everyone is so fixated on breasts ... but what about colons, lungs, livers, thyroids, brains, skin? Last I checked there is no cure for any of these cancers once they have reached an advanced stage. As a melanoma advocate, I admit to being biased and even a bit (okay, a lot!) jealous of all the attention and funding that breast cancer gets, but recently, to be quite honest, the pinkness has become overwhelming and its results questionable.</div>
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And why the focus on breasts instead of on the lives of those who have the <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKTZcToXSsEzvcplk6seMVJHFCUwObqqPk06APsKLHzwR8xpm5m_PvTtH-woQrTu8sbPVxl7PqThs3gbMl-q2i1v9SzG0RDrw87G1dQCkvPJjIgOHObuNCfvoykupu4ddUv0VNrFG6dhA/s1600/$_35.JPG" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKTZcToXSsEzvcplk6seMVJHFCUwObqqPk06APsKLHzwR8xpm5m_PvTtH-woQrTu8sbPVxl7PqThs3gbMl-q2i1v9SzG0RDrw87G1dQCkvPJjIgOHObuNCfvoykupu4ddUv0VNrFG6dhA/s1600/$_35.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
breasts? Decorating bras may be fun, but it must be hurtful to those who no longer have a need for bras. But that is another blog for another day ...<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span face="Verdana,sans-serif"><span><span>Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
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<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></span>
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Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com2Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-64414262645381369702014-09-08T12:38:00.000-05:002014-09-08T12:38:52.378-05:00Not Music to My EarsI admit it. I have a lot of anger toward the indoor tanning industry. My daughter Jaime was a tanning bed addict when she was in high school and college ... up until she was diagnosed with melanoma, a potentially fatal type of skin cancer, when she was 20. She fought this damn disease for her entire adult life but died when she was 29. A beautiful young life cut way too short, all because of tanning bed use. So I think my anger is justified.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEbPh9GXN5egODXWKXKeiUbxB1S-AA5WiJ3kqCw0lYFSNaqT0iv-sBwyTRTjWhb_bd1gXtrTk20uEAY2frOranO0jNhman5nobm-qfI-y0YSQC0mfxkJ6aHVv4-Ajfhw36eJTD9VgA2VE/s1600/angry_dragon_may_eat_you_angry_woman_dangerous_magnet-r6fd44e157bff40fd8a2e10536bb1b7f8_x7js9_8byvr_512.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEbPh9GXN5egODXWKXKeiUbxB1S-AA5WiJ3kqCw0lYFSNaqT0iv-sBwyTRTjWhb_bd1gXtrTk20uEAY2frOranO0jNhman5nobm-qfI-y0YSQC0mfxkJ6aHVv4-Ajfhw36eJTD9VgA2VE/s1600/angry_dragon_may_eat_you_angry_woman_dangerous_magnet-r6fd44e157bff40fd8a2e10536bb1b7f8_x7js9_8byvr_512.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
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To fan the flames of my anger, tanning beds are still very popular, particularly among teens and young adults. Vanity wins over sanity every time. Everyone knows how dangerous UV radiation is ... or at least everyone should know ... and yet the indoor tanning business is thriving while leaving behind a trail of young dead bodies.<br />
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The American Cancer Society and various skin cancer/melanoma foundations and medical organizations, the FDA, the CDC, the US Surgeon General (and me!) have all come out with warnings about the use of tanning beds ... but our pleas are basically ignored.<br />
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Why? Because our culture promotes being tan. Reality TV shows and magazines equate being tan with being sexy, and fitness centers promote the idea that a tan is healthy, when, in fact, neither is true. A tan is just the often deadly result of UV radiation damage.<br />
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A friend who understands my obsession with getting the message out about the dangers of tanning beds made me aware of this music video (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pT2UbN1AHo0"><i>UV Love</i></a>) by Clinton Sparks. A sweet little romantic ballad it's NOT, so consider yourself warned if you watch it! From the title, you can probably guess that it is filmed in a tanning salon with young women roasting in tanning beds.<br />
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I can't understand the lyrics when I listen to the song, but I still don't understand them when I read them! (<a href="http://www.lyricsontop.com/clinton-sparks-songs/uv-love-feat-t-i-lyrics.html">lyrics</a>) But the lyrics don't even matter. It is the visual that gives the perception that tanning is a positive and acceptable activity. <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/pT2UbN1AHo0?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Now I know I am out of touch with the current music scene (<i>The Lettermen</i> is still one of my favorite groups), and I admit that I have never heard of this guy. My hope is that this recording artist (term used very loosely) is not very popular because the message he is sending, that frying your skin in a tanning bed is sexy, is just flirting with death.<br />
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I'm not going to kid myself or you into thinking that kids listen to my preaching (or their parents') about staying out of tanning beds more than they listen to music videos like this one that are targeted to their age group and reach out and grab them.<br />
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Kids don't have to use any time or effort thinking about what this video is projecting ... that being tan makes you sexy and desirable and popular and fun. After all, these videos are made to make money; same goal as the indoor tanning industry, no matter the damage they do. <br />
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In contrast, my message tells them that tanning could kill them, but kids are certain that will not happen to them. They're too young to worry about that, right? That's what my Jaime thought too!<br />
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We must change the way our culture promotes tan bodies ... from the media to the fitness centers to the world of music. Some may claim this video was created with artistic license, but I claim it is irresponsible and driving kids and young adults to participate in an activity that is similar to playing Russian roulette with their lives. Reminds me of the cigarette ads with the sexy, manly Marlboro man!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusmISjA-l5KAkI8Nt8EEPy-pMKsUNfXwYS-HdmNOTq2g-n1sp8ncSZCY-YYdOIwnpjHs0-ods2BnfjprZCfrk3l4BKFcrwucEtaSegZkStVbZrMgmsHfCOOcCJ72acGuAkJd8GjuN3nw/s1600/4nTBxaziA.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusmISjA-l5KAkI8Nt8EEPy-pMKsUNfXwYS-HdmNOTq2g-n1sp8ncSZCY-YYdOIwnpjHs0-ods2BnfjprZCfrk3l4BKFcrwucEtaSegZkStVbZrMgmsHfCOOcCJ72acGuAkJd8GjuN3nw/s1600/4nTBxaziA.jpeg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
When the US Surgeon General recently released a Call to Action against skin cancer, he was reaching out to <b>everyone</b> to do their part. Clint Sparks apparently thinks he is exempt. Some people, like the indoor tanning industry, will do anything for a buck ... even put young lives at risk. Why should freedom of artistic expression be acceptable when it is promoting dangerous activity?<br />
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Can you see why I'm so angry???<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"> <span><span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
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<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></span></span>Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-27331111012538543422014-08-31T16:14:00.000-05:002014-08-31T16:14:11.377-05:00Labors of LoveLabor Day ... marks the unofficial end of summer (but no excuse to stop using your sunscreen!) and the welcoming of the Fall season. Not only is it celebrated with cookouts and a 3-day holiday but tons of sales, sales, and more sales! According to Wikipedia, Labor Day "is a celebration of the American labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of workers."<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKyw_kFcuv3P1hK6XEeuUFaaKK_lpUM83eSW5B5UZZ4Vtn5ydGyktWx5dL0O4SItuaZq9Ss9B_zSUzbTKdctxLcrw5lh_5MYsK-k4tubl6u62cLT6fIWsL6Yyuh6mrGwLNPPRTbfcSza8/s1600/labor-day-hard-work.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKyw_kFcuv3P1hK6XEeuUFaaKK_lpUM83eSW5B5UZZ4Vtn5ydGyktWx5dL0O4SItuaZq9Ss9B_zSUzbTKdctxLcrw5lh_5MYsK-k4tubl6u62cLT6fIWsL6Yyuh6mrGwLNPPRTbfcSza8/s1600/labor-day-hard-work.jpg" height="185" width="320" /></a> Okay, so we have a holiday to pay tribute to the American workforce and economic achievement, and don't get me wrong, working for a wage and being financially stable is important ... but does everything have to be about making a buck? What about a long weekend designated to celebrate "labors of love"?<br />
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I define <b><i>labors of love</i></b> as meaningful actions that you do with no financial compensation, and we could come up with a long list of those. Giving birth (the true meaning of<b> </b>LABOR), raising a family, being a loving and patient caregiver to an elderly parent or a loved one with illness, adopting a pet, volunteering ... all extremely important although none makes us wealthy.<br />
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We have probably all performed many labors of love throughout our lives, but there is still time to do so much more ... and so much more is needed.<br />
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There are small labors of love that are simply random acts of kindness that we all should remember to do ... smile at a stranger, say thank you to a store clerk, call or send a card to someone who would be cheered by just knowing you are thinking of them, take a meal to someone who is sick or grieving, hand a cold bottle of water (in summer heat) or a cup of hot chocolate (in winter cold) to your mailman, make a donation to your favorite charity. The possibilities are endless, and they truly make a difference to someone's day!<br />
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But I'm really thinking of larger labors of love that take more effort and time and commitment ... plan or participate in a fundraiser, donate blood, volunteer at a nursing home or hospital or school or animal shelter, become a coach for a kid's sports team or a leader for a scout troop, teach a Sunday school class. Get the idea?<br />
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I've always been a little (okay, a lot) obsessive about volunteering ... so much so that my efforts were acknowledged with the Volunteer of the Year award in my community of Plano, TX, many years ago. I didn't set out to be so involved in our schools and community; there's just so many wonderful projects that need (wo)manpower that I couldn't resist. Volunteering can be addictive!<br />
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When my only daughter Jaime died from melanoma 7 years ago, that following week I did what I swore I would never, ever do. I became a melanoma advocate and the indoor tanning industry's worst nightmare. Watching her struggle with this evil disease, I had thought that once her fight was over, I never wanted to hear the word <i>melanoma</i> again. But over the 9 years of her journey with this cancer, it is what I had come to know and experience, and what I had come to hate ... and something I didn't want other families to have in their lives. <br />
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So melanoma advocacy has been my constant labor of love since my last labor of love as Jaime's caregiver ended. I didn't choose it; it chose me. Some think I do this to heal ... but if you have ever lost a child, you know that you can never heal, no matter what actions you take or don't take!<br />
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To be honest, I don't even particularly enjoy this labor of love that has attached itself to me, especially as I shed tears watching wonderful people die (too often young adults) and friends and families suffer on what seems like a daily basis. I question why I do what I do when I hear the lies and deception that comes out of the indoor tanning industry and sun worshipers. I scream when I hear the false reasoning of many state legislators regarding the protection of their youth from tanning bed use. I beat my head against the wall when I hear the excuses coming from schools about why the kids can't bring sunscreen to school or wear hats when outside. But this is MY labor of love so I keep doing it, hoping to make a small difference, ... and I will continue to do so until I am no longer able or until melanoma no longer exists.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP0nbF1OSvFefVWz96DjBSA247FKLNrRnwhghwBc0AMlJHg3vXPZrzOMpMsaBcZidb2rKu8fzlkG0eFef-07PYXTqqwPN79zbJQzw2BXdCcEyJlDeHSBEJ_3Yi44eej4iupelwNIcYgto/s1600/happy-labor-day-quotes-2014-4.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP0nbF1OSvFefVWz96DjBSA247FKLNrRnwhghwBc0AMlJHg3vXPZrzOMpMsaBcZidb2rKu8fzlkG0eFef-07PYXTqqwPN79zbJQzw2BXdCcEyJlDeHSBEJ_3Yi44eej4iupelwNIcYgto/s1600/happy-labor-day-quotes-2014-4.gif" height="200" width="200" /></a>But you have lots and lots of choices for your own labor of love. Don't worry about "what's in it for me," because what you get out of your labor of love will be so much greater than what you put in ... even if you can't take it to the bank.<br />
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Just pick something already, something you are passionate about or have a curiosity to learn more about. Maybe even step out of your comfort zone and try something challenging. You can't fail and many can benefit. Don't wait for a designated holiday ... make the effort to participate in a labor of love as often as you can!<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"> <span><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
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<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></span>Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com1Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-63048941987223522462014-08-12T21:49:00.000-05:002014-08-15T16:09:34.083-05:00Bzzzing for a Cancer CureLately, we have been reading about a lot of bizarre "possible" cures for cancer. Most recently I have written blogs about the miraculous cure possibilities of smelling farts (<a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/07/pull-my-fingersave-life.html">Pull My Finger...Save a Life</a>) and then came the amazing potential of cat poop (<a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/07/from-litterbox-to-laboratory.html">From Litterbox to Laboratory</a>) as THE cure. And now today, part 3 of this suspenseful trilogy just streamed into my newsfeed.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxoO5jG3aT0yEHWMKC9AEuj2Dws_HgaeySZZrPD4JOumF114WT9W07chWvXGWF1u6DHr4OT-9Y9YZLtBBE0QcW63-EGxJcRa-BFfrTKglHAwzV-9c7i6qvubMaNLGNSEdyCGY79m5-8IU/s1600/zeusd1-KIMR-898105.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxoO5jG3aT0yEHWMKC9AEuj2Dws_HgaeySZZrPD4JOumF114WT9W07chWvXGWF1u6DHr4OT-9Y9YZLtBBE0QcW63-EGxJcRa-BFfrTKglHAwzV-9c7i6qvubMaNLGNSEdyCGY79m5-8IU/s1600/zeusd1-KIMR-898105.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
It seems everyone is <i>buzz</i>ing about the discovery that the venom from bees, scorpions, and snakes may offer the promise of a future cure (<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/12/health/venom-nanotechnology-cancer/">Bee, Scorpion, and Snake Venom May Hold Cancer Cure</a>) using nanotechnology. It's all very <i>sssss</i>lick <i>sssss</i>cience, and here is another article about the role of nanoparticles in curing cancer (<a href="http://www.wallstreetdaily.com/2014/08/12/nanoparticles/">Nanoparticles -- The Next Cure for Cancer</a>), but,<br />
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<i><b>could we just please find a cure for cancer already???</b></i><br />
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(<i>Side note:</i> Speaking of venom, where you aware that the male duck-billed platypus, which carries venom inside ankle spurs, is one of the few venomous mammals? Consider your life enriched with this piece of trivia!) <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijKC3pL1EXhJ8pUGlckgmRq8HG8zG6oV447Zh68sRDT_H7poUwiH8T97VhF5W911cQ4Pwhkqe1UA4wZsOrHJZUUtAgUcsQSSb-aJs9sP64gvTufozoMK7NxfFOV-maFn2DCoBFiwGtXos/s1600/Scorpion.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijKC3pL1EXhJ8pUGlckgmRq8HG8zG6oV447Zh68sRDT_H7poUwiH8T97VhF5W911cQ4Pwhkqe1UA4wZsOrHJZUUtAgUcsQSSb-aJs9sP64gvTufozoMK7NxfFOV-maFn2DCoBFiwGtXos/s1600/Scorpion.png" height="200" width="200" /></a></div>
But back to the bees, scorpions, and snakes (Ugh ... gives me the creeps but it's for the common good!!). Actually, the idea of venom-based<i><b> </b></i>cures from fangs and stingers is not new. There is history of their use as far back as 67 BC. And the Brazilian pit viper venom has led to development of ACE inhibitors for high blood pressure.<i><b> </b></i>So perhaps this line of research isn't quite as bizarre as it might first appear, but,<br />
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<i><b>could we just please find a cure for cancer already???</b></i><br />
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When my daughter Jaime was fighting cancer, there was talk about birch tree bark and mushrooms as a cure for her melanoma. NCI wanted to inject her with the herpes virus for their research. Some of her fellow melanoma patients were getting jolts of electricity. It's good that scientists are reaching ... really reaching and thinking outside the box ... to find a possible cure for cancer, but,<br />
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<i><b>could we just please find a cure for cancer already???</b></i><br />
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Over the years, so many "encouraging" possibilities as cures for cancer have been suggested -- red wine, coffee, pine bark, peanut butter, blueberries, antioxidants (and then not antioxidants), vitamin C (or maybe vitamin C makes cancer worse), and even tanning beds according to the indoor tanning industry (but <b>NOT</b> to be believed). Just do a Google search for cancer cures -- cannabis oil, zebrafish, gold, cow urine, aspirin, frankincense, sloths. What the heck is a sloth anyway??? So it doesn't seem like I am asking too much when I plead,<br />
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<i><b>could we just please find a cure for cancer already???</b></i><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggxC92i-kLXnIaQ9Ai6P4QiRGKOrklVfdVwl_oYY_FZ3X3aG7-mY8ShRmUipFzVpR0m4cXZsG7z9htzud1SdR8cZCeKCgukxQaSbNGEwGgyX_rJEfpXyCRMrbgiq2LAu7Ti29zuvRrQOU/s1600/Honey_honey_bees_art.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggxC92i-kLXnIaQ9Ai6P4QiRGKOrklVfdVwl_oYY_FZ3X3aG7-mY8ShRmUipFzVpR0m4cXZsG7z9htzud1SdR8cZCeKCgukxQaSbNGEwGgyX_rJEfpXyCRMrbgiq2LAu7Ti29zuvRrQOU/s1600/Honey_honey_bees_art.png" height="161" width="200" /></a></div>
Now, I admit that I am not a patient person. But billions of dollars have been donated to cancer research over the many years of our "War on Cancer," and sadly, as you read this, way too many cancer patients are clinging to life, hoping and praying for a cure. It is too late for my forever-29-year-old Jaime and our family, but a cancer cure could make a huge difference in the lives of millions of others. So please keep these warriors and their families in mind when you experiment with cat poop parasites and odiferous gases and "nanobees," and maybe, just maybe,<br />
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<i><b>could we just please find a cure for cancer already???</b></i><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span>Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-80388931943904248482014-07-30T15:30:00.001-05:002016-08-06T16:18:48.624-05:00There Goes Another Little Piece of My LifeMost of you reading this are probably a lot younger than I am, with most of your life ahead of you instead of behind you, so you may not understand this blog. That's okay ... just come back when you're older and maybe you will get it then.<br />
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One day, years ago, when my dad was in his early 90s, I asked him why he seemed so sad. He told me that his past was dying as, one by one, each person he had known in his younger years was departing. I didn't understand then ... but I am getting the picture now.<br />
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When I watched melanoma devour my 29-year-old daughter Jaime, I felt like I was losing her piece by piece. Whether it was the disease or the surgery to try to stop the cancer, all I could do was sit by her and hold her hand and love her while she left me one piece at a time.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQybjwX0YssETjTVE_p6O0zIXJUID4qdIJT1Had6U5Rh-YGzlMX2M2LNiCk5I8pkwZMP69Rm_ZrQa71US9Ji77DkL9ljs1q_1Y3OBRC5v-TVTjxvzX85l3wDQUngPRoJ9KxXs4liMKqOs/s1600/Missing-Puzzle-Pieces-600x398.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQybjwX0YssETjTVE_p6O0zIXJUID4qdIJT1Had6U5Rh-YGzlMX2M2LNiCk5I8pkwZMP69Rm_ZrQa71US9Ji77DkL9ljs1q_1Y3OBRC5v-TVTjxvzX85l3wDQUngPRoJ9KxXs4liMKqOs/s1600/Missing-Puzzle-Pieces-600x398.jpg" width="200" /></a>Then when Jaime died, she took a huge part of me with her ... so many pieces from the past, present, and future. How many pieces did I have left? I have tried to make the most of what was left of me, with the love and support of my dear husband and sons ... but it is like trying to put together a puzzle with half the pieces missing.<br />
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Over the years since she has been gone, more pieces have disappeared ... her pets die, her husband becomes part of a new family, her car is traded in. Piece by piece, I grieve the lose of each one because it is a part of her that is no longer. <br />
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With each year that passes, I am losing more pieces of my past ... piece by piece ... although I really didn't think about it until this week. This week I was slapped in the face with reality; my past is being torn away, just like Jaime was, one piece at a time.</div>
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Last week I received the news that Gary, my 1965 prom date (Fairmont West High School, Kettering, Ohio) and my first serious boyfriend (not counting Elvis), had died. Gary and I shared a past together of about 5 years during high school and college. It was a Romeo and Juliet-type romance, and like the play, it didn't end well. But he has always had a place in<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig6xtvnDEgwfjXvXNv6Q5p9jtmMswNmECTZcI_IcBJ7LQHVMWYce9BVwadyTLp4TXKa0gfNL6tDRLCll2Rkdf-qxbhEebNlFB5RAwlIwc-4LNjzw8xp2rH9pq3wLKEsezIB39SAJK1aa8/s1600/prom1965.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig6xtvnDEgwfjXvXNv6Q5p9jtmMswNmECTZcI_IcBJ7LQHVMWYce9BVwadyTLp4TXKa0gfNL6tDRLCll2Rkdf-qxbhEebNlFB5RAwlIwc-4LNjzw8xp2rH9pq3wLKEsezIB39SAJK1aa8/s1600/prom1965.jpg" width="260" /></a></div>
my heart.<br />
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I last saw Gary at our 25th high school reunion; our 50th will be next year. We had a wonderful week-end catching up and learning about our families and current lives and the people we had become over our lost 20 years. After that we corresponded for a while and then lost touch. My thoughts and condolences are, of course, with his 4 sons and his ex-wife, whom I met and is delightful.<br />
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Gary's death has had a profound effect on me that I wasn't expecting. Every time I read one of my classmates' obituaries, even if I did not know them well, I feel like "there goes another little piece of my life." It seems so many are leaving me behind with memories once shared that now only live in me. Gary and I shared years of memories, some good and some not, but they were memories that only we shared. Now there is just me, mourning not only the loss of an old friend but also the pieces of me and my youth that he took with him.<br />
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Rest in peace, Gary ... goodbye, my friend. You were not perfect, but you were perfectly Gary! I'm glad you were a part of my life, and you will not be forgotten.<br />
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I am not a deep-thinker so this blog is giving me a headache, but please consider this as a reminder that we need to live each day the best we can because tomorrow is not promised. Tell your friends and loved ones what you want them to know because there might not be another chance. And work on your legacy so when your obituary is written, it will say that you kicked some butt or were a bonafide badass or really did something with the time you were here.<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i> “What you are is what you have been. What you’ll be is what you do now.”</i> – Buddha</blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
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</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/melanoma_mama">@melanoma_mama</a><br />
Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
Etsy: <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
Ebay: <a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></div>
<br />Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com2Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-18850298764622595592014-07-21T08:00:00.000-05:002014-07-21T08:00:06.136-05:00From Litterbox to LaboratoryMy blogs seem to be stuck in the genre of "potty humor" (or some would say, crappy humor!), but don't kill the messenger. I just report the news; I don't make it. So follow me here as I transition from smelling farts (read my blog <i><a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/07/pull-my-fingersave-life.html">Pull My Finger ... Save a Life</a></i>) to scooping cat poop, all in the name of cancer research.<br />
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Last week was a busy news week that had our attention riveted on the heavier, horrific news of wars and plane crashes ... and my thoughts and prayers go out to all who were touched personally by these events. However, some rather bizarre medical news came out of Dartmouth that shouldn't go unnoticed, and thanks to my fellow blogger <a href="http://blackispink.blogspot.com/">Black Is the New Pink</a> for calling it to my attention.<br />
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For this blog, you must imagine the song <i>"What's New Pussy Cat?"</i> playing in the background. Why? ... because researchers are studying feline feces as a way to cure cancer, especially melanoma (or as my son Tim suggested for this blog, meow-anoma) and ovarian cancer. An article, <i><a href="http://news.discovery.com/animals/pets/cat-poop-parasite-shows-promise-in-treating-cancer-140717.htm">Cat Poop Parasite Shows Promise in Treating Cancer,</a></i> says that a parasite in the intestines of cats might find its way from a clump in the kitty litter to a cancer vaccine. Now that is recycling at its finest!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghfnG_wCdnXN23Wlq6KWm1gEOl_D5uvL-xexSpISfgNTYoWJzBI1xQ0KPziXIaAb1J96lBRsqoyMAzQSqjA3wCyzhert43Y_2rjKok3CpAfR2cPWL_UEjvFTNv3jhnR63wDaWV6qYp3eU/s1600/TawtITawPuddyTat.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghfnG_wCdnXN23Wlq6KWm1gEOl_D5uvL-xexSpISfgNTYoWJzBI1xQ0KPziXIaAb1J96lBRsqoyMAzQSqjA3wCyzhert43Y_2rjKok3CpAfR2cPWL_UEjvFTNv3jhnR63wDaWV6qYp3eU/s1600/TawtITawPuddyTat.png" height="181" width="200" /></a></div>
I admit that I'm a cat lover, and our family has always had cats (even before we knew that cat poop was so valuable). Over a span of 40 years, we have been allowed to share our home with many, including a shy black kitty who was very sweet, even if scared of his own shadow; an orange tabby who loved to cause trouble and eat cantaloupe and Ben-Gay; and an orange-and-white long-haired sweetheart who played fetch and was a mama's girl who never left my side after Jaime died. We seriously would have had tons of cat poop to donate to cancer research over the years!<br />
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Which brings me to some "catty" questions ... does one breed or type of cat produce parasites more worthy of a cancer cure than others? Does a cat with a diet of mice and birds have a more valuable end-product than one fed Friskies? Does a cat who prefers dry kibble over wet canned food pack more power into its parasites? I'm thinking that more research needs to be done here before we have a melanoma vaccine that is the cat's meow.<br />
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My daughter Jaime was owned by two cats before her death from melanoma at age 29. The first (Stoney) adopted Jaime when we were at a no-kill animal shelter looking for a kitten for me (well, actually as a new companion for our cat Bubba, who had recently lost the love of his life Missy and wouldn't stop moaning and crying out for her for over a month). He desperately needed a diversion.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz0vlmHLOghCVQbgtcQGKA_UHQ0xP7U2dapt5PNrTwsC7aeaNVQd2iaB6nSH6YrGcdhmqQR85_Ia9ceG20pgXT7ABzw9hHyuOfgGCjlDT_knivQaeNTxw7hGRKEz_5GZUrHOowHThNnM8/s1600/J_Stoney_1996.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz0vlmHLOghCVQbgtcQGKA_UHQ0xP7U2dapt5PNrTwsC7aeaNVQd2iaB6nSH6YrGcdhmqQR85_Ia9ceG20pgXT7ABzw9hHyuOfgGCjlDT_knivQaeNTxw7hGRKEz_5GZUrHOowHThNnM8/s1600/J_Stoney_1996.jpg" height="219" width="320" /></a><br />
Jaime and I were sitting on the floor of the kitten room to watch how they interacted in an attempt to get an idea of their personalities. A tiny gray tabby kept crawling up onto Jaime's shoulder and loudly purring in her ear. The die had been cast. What a salesperson that kitten was ... and what suckers we were! Needless to say we ended up taking two kittens home with us (one to our house and one to Jaime's apartment) instead of just the one we came for. Well played, Stoney ... well played!<br />
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It didn't take long for Jaime's sweet little gray kitten to show her true stripes! Stoney grew into an arrogant, independent, snobby, anti-social cat ... but Jaime's brothers always thought that living at Jaime's apartment, she had probably inhaled too much second-hand smoke from an illegal substance. Perhaps she really had grown into her name?? The stories that cat could tell if she could have talked are probably beyond what a mother wants to know!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUXIh7G2w-QIcuZYfQHXupKAZIIBjMFpd7AuTFm9EPl33oiwWM96Ltd_bMCovT0-8-5d3SgIvz-FiRhZgGY_5jOyxpf1uYsBSZu-xwHdIS9e5z5lly53OJ1QM_fQPvSyVX8qCbGyaM-ik/s1600/Jaime&Toby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUXIh7G2w-QIcuZYfQHXupKAZIIBjMFpd7AuTFm9EPl33oiwWM96Ltd_bMCovT0-8-5d3SgIvz-FiRhZgGY_5jOyxpf1uYsBSZu-xwHdIS9e5z5lly53OJ1QM_fQPvSyVX8qCbGyaM-ik/s1600/Jaime&Toby.jpg" height="320" width="267" /></a></div>
Jaime thought perhaps if Stoney had a furry friend, she would be happier. After all, that had worked for our Bubba, right? So a tiny, timid black and white tuxedo kitten named Toby was added to Jaime's little family. Except Toby, once he got to his new home, showed his true character, displaying his Attention Deficient Disorder. There was nothing timid about him! Of course, Stoney wanted nothing to do with this strange fur ball bouncing off the walls.<br />
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After many months of Stoney becoming more depressed and crabby, Jaime then decided that Stoney would be happier in her "retirement home" (our house instead of Jaime's), and that bad-attitude cat came to live with us and immediately attached herself to my husband. They were best buds for years. Stoney refused to acknowledge Jaime's presence (or anyone else's for that matter) from then on.<br />
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Tiny Toby liked to eat, and he thought his mouth was a front-end loader! He grew ... and grew ... and grew, until he was about 30 pounds. Jaime called him "Bear," and for good reason! To take Toby (Tubby?) to the vet, we didn't carry him in ... we wore him. Belly to belly, with his back legs wrapped around our waist and his front legs wrapped around our neck, we must have looked a tad bit strange, but it worked. Toby adored Jaime and was happy ... until Jaime started adding dogs to her menagerie!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLaogbUuiGgOyxlqtVFeoNqzEr4lYNA4KNg8x4Fg5s0b338grzFzVJllqREhrgNnLjy8Kk_2WWOlY4Opiz7cFjN90dpOdm4ecKH3tYqEOO_5g2CrMHFEOC4c_bfrLIzixHKQJPiDvlYs0/s1600/Coco&Toby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLaogbUuiGgOyxlqtVFeoNqzEr4lYNA4KNg8x4Fg5s0b338grzFzVJllqREhrgNnLjy8Kk_2WWOlY4Opiz7cFjN90dpOdm4ecKH3tYqEOO_5g2CrMHFEOC4c_bfrLIzixHKQJPiDvlYs0/s1600/Coco&Toby.jpg" height="209" width="320" /></a></div>
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The dogs did, however, keep her litterbox clean because they saw the mounds of cat poop as tasty treats! Perhaps dogs have always known what a treasure these little poop piles are?<br />
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NOTE: If you are being treated for cancer, don't stop your current treatment and resort instead to eating cat poop. Ewwww! Actually the parasites can be very harmful until the researchers work their magic. But whether you are healthy or a cancer warrior, the rescue of a furry friend from a shelter and its unconditional love would be good for your heart and your health!<br />
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And lastly, why are we limiting our thinking here, in the search for the purr-fect cancer vaccine, to little balls of fluff? <i>"In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight ..."</i> Here kitty, kitty, kitty ...<br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <span>Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span></span>
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<br />Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-16413909742709453002014-07-12T20:23:00.000-05:002014-07-12T20:23:35.647-05:00Pull My Finger...Save a Life!<h3>
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BREAKING NEWS!!! A new study takes cancer prevention to a whole new level. </h3>
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My recent booty blog (<a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/07/pretoria-revisited-shake-that-booty.html">Pretoria Revisited: Shake That Booty!</a>) caused a friend who saw a rather bizarre article on cancer prevention to immediately think of me! Not sure I'm flattered ... but let's just go with it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4pOVegUBoKsD0ICyWRdbjVZTFv7ClhcjADAn9n4M9qdSOVuE-KorAFcRchKY1L57RCjRJAB1r00pXLeYLd57o23nWbfsIPQWZWoBQlCRvda5GGJK6f1Zba6R8V0aO2YjP6BlucgP-3qs/s1600/1087278-fart_large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4pOVegUBoKsD0ICyWRdbjVZTFv7ClhcjADAn9n4M9qdSOVuE-KorAFcRchKY1L57RCjRJAB1r00pXLeYLd57o23nWbfsIPQWZWoBQlCRvda5GGJK6f1Zba6R8V0aO2YjP6BlucgP-3qs/s1600/1087278-fart_large.jpg" height="200" width="146" /></a>Believe it or not, a study has recently been published (<a href="http://time.com/2976464/scientists-say-smelling-farts-might-prevent-cancer/">Smelling Farts Might Prevent Cancer</a>) that has found that inhaling pungent flatulence can possibly save lives. Hydrogen sulfide, produced by bacteria in the gut as it breaks down food, is the gas expelled, and smelling it is said to have potential health benefits ... like preventing cancer, strokes, heart attacks, arthritis, and dementia. Keep in mind, however, that inhaling large amounts of this gas can be deadly so don't get carried away!<br />
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Ladies, you might not want your boyfriends or husbands to read this
blog or hear about this study. Males are normally (in my many years of experience with a
husband and two sons) overly proud of their form of air pollution (aka
flatulence, gas, breaking wind, cutting cheese, toots, farts) ... and after reading this, they will view
this activity as a public service and will be out to save all mankind
with their odoriferous propellants. Just beware of this possibly brutal side
effect of this newest research!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9TRYSXvtJfXQ47eWmdhMv3tfjFgFoyQNyZMKUF8PTrkCaRbVKjxBWJSx4QCdFY6GB2GyNy5NQgcI9LBzke-SmwMeajMPF0RGgNzOjw1vykNXh9dgFBm2HfIZIlVydDhxmfOspRh_Lv2c/s1600/see-the-fart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9TRYSXvtJfXQ47eWmdhMv3tfjFgFoyQNyZMKUF8PTrkCaRbVKjxBWJSx4QCdFY6GB2GyNy5NQgcI9LBzke-SmwMeajMPF0RGgNzOjw1vykNXh9dgFBm2HfIZIlVydDhxmfOspRh_Lv2c/s1600/see-the-fart.jpg" height="195" width="320" /></a></div>
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Now medically speaking, we are all aware that ladies don't fart; they expel poofs of glitter and rainbows. Some men would claim that females just hold in their gas until it comes out as drama. So it appears that we will need to rely on men to protect us from cancer! Putting art into farts for the benefit of cancer prevention is a campaign I'm sure our guys will embrace. Passing gas will no longer be just for their entertainment ... but will be for the medical well-being of all around them. Heaven help us all!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb4GWzyjXup6iBJ2Su44A38gYniqLkBDSVvFJBuUmWmjPXBRzeFpsbptc8nHxtLGbiIsroowEX7wBLITXDCS1QKwDEWQx0golrs1DKpYKSTk1xXBoI8HGNIaukwR3r4d05ltbdVCebuas/s1600/funny-cat-pics-the-dog-farted.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb4GWzyjXup6iBJ2Su44A38gYniqLkBDSVvFJBuUmWmjPXBRzeFpsbptc8nHxtLGbiIsroowEX7wBLITXDCS1QKwDEWQx0golrs1DKpYKSTk1xXBoI8HGNIaukwR3r4d05ltbdVCebuas/s1600/funny-cat-pics-the-dog-farted.jpg" height="320" width="221" /></a>There is even an app for that! In 2008 iPhone came out with a farting app. Wonder if that app is considered a medical device requiring FDA approval? Or will it be our medical miracle??? <br />
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But the question that pops out at me (pun intended) is ... <b>are all farts created equal?</b> Does gas released after eating, say, onion or garlic protect us from disease better than farts formed from chili or baked beans? Are animal farts more medically desirable than human farts? Just think about all the lives that could be saved by a dog who has been eating cheese! Further research is definitely needed.<br />
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In addition I wonder if this potential environmental hazard has been cleared with the EPA, considering the possible significant source of greenhouse gases. <br />
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When I contacted a flatulence expert (my son, Ben) as research for this blog, he suggested that "a fart a day might keep the doctor away." However he is being modest to suggest that his capabilities are limited to one fart a day. As an overachiever, he could be destined to become a health care hero!<br />
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In the meantime, keep up with your more conventional forms of cancer and heart attack prevention. Don't stop using sunscreen or taking that baby aspirin to rely on the fragrant gas coming from your male partner. But next time you are stuck in an enclosed area like an elevator or airplane and catch a whiff of an obnoxious odor, just say thank you and breathe in deeply. :-) <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj97BRds4GKrip9Nyo4FHK7YTyZ8Zl85ULcztUsjKxYLOAIS8XE8Dk6JRcy28xEN6db_HM__qO1kfheaq570HX3IE2hIREqHtO-w5uXpWi9qI7sQO37HAa2Q68rYKsrndklBG-OsfgaxKc/s1600/farting2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj97BRds4GKrip9Nyo4FHK7YTyZ8Zl85ULcztUsjKxYLOAIS8XE8Dk6JRcy28xEN6db_HM__qO1kfheaq570HX3IE2hIREqHtO-w5uXpWi9qI7sQO37HAa2Q68rYKsrndklBG-OsfgaxKc/s1600/farting2.jpg" height="172" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)<br />
<a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
<a href="http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321">http://stores.ebay.com/Sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations) </span></span><br />
<br />Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com2Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7614056834268086825.post-62514554501295735282014-07-06T20:18:00.000-05:002016-08-06T16:20:39.279-05:00Shake That Booty!The keywords that bring people to my blog have taken an interesting turn. But I'm not complaining because they do bring new visitors to the blog, even if by accident, and hopefully they actually learn something while they are here.<br />
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My last blog was about the keywords <i><a href="http://melanoma-mama.blogspot.com/2014/06/sweety-mama-for-sex-in-pretoria.html">Sweety Mama for Sex in Pretoria</a> </i>that another visitor used to reach my blog. In that blog we learned that Pretoria is the capital of South Africa. I went on to explain that there is nothing sexy about melanoma, which as a melanoma advocate is the main reason for my blogging. But that blog brought an unsuspecting visitor to my page from South Africa using the keywords <i>Pretoria Mama with Big Booty</i>. And so it goes ...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWOpxsTH_p6BiT1Nb12NWo55s806hyphenhyphen-JuAxuTvl08r4k7BFIBIaeccEdoxDiE0USI4KKDZaXr_xpt4rXI-vdYfjDHZiiyaHSdunQdQNSSwvSxWfoIb4mLjxkKJ9DqgU9EkHYjVIs13NrI/s1600/1439&v=fit512.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWOpxsTH_p6BiT1Nb12NWo55s806hyphenhyphen-JuAxuTvl08r4k7BFIBIaeccEdoxDiE0USI4KKDZaXr_xpt4rXI-vdYfjDHZiiyaHSdunQdQNSSwvSxWfoIb4mLjxkKJ9DqgU9EkHYjVIs13NrI/s1600/1439&v=fit512.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
So while we are speaking of booty (aka tushy, buttocks, bottom, posterior, bum, etc), did you know that melanoma, the type of skin cancer that can be and often is deadly, can develop anywhere it wants? That's right. It even likes your booty ... and anywhere else you have skin, which is, by the way, your largest organ (your skin, not your booty).<br />
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This is the reason why you need to carefully check your entire body every month with a mirror to see those areas (including your booty) that are difficult to view or have a partner assist you. You can find step-by-step instructions for doing a self skin check at <a href="https://www.aimatmelanoma.org/en/aim-for-answers/early-detection/how-to-do-a-skin-self-exam.html">AIM at Melanoma</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGYECzgnZq9FDzRF-uEYZlzkbaZMdtntvngs3kBBF4ZxTYO1HWBC0RzoJddcNDFVlvNiduy_wAbyopP2TIs3NxHdxu0o-rcYtCNRIo8N0ZQjHDHkhMsLc7gCgKCNv7jGcAWfrz8H5HcC4/s1600/abcsmelanoma.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGYECzgnZq9FDzRF-uEYZlzkbaZMdtntvngs3kBBF4ZxTYO1HWBC0RzoJddcNDFVlvNiduy_wAbyopP2TIs3NxHdxu0o-rcYtCNRIo8N0ZQjHDHkhMsLc7gCgKCNv7jGcAWfrz8H5HcC4/s1600/abcsmelanoma.jpg" width="252" /></a>You are looking for any new or changing or unusual looking mole. Use the ABCDEs, as shown in the photo, as a guideline. If you find something that concerns you, make an appointment to see your doctor (preferably a medical [not cosmetic] dermatologist who specializes in melanoma) ASAP. The best chance of beating melanoma is catching it early.<br />
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In addition to your monthly skin self-examinations, the American Cancer Society recommends that you see a physician for a complete skin check every 3 years if you are 20-40 years old or every year if you are older than 40. Melanoma needs to be taken very seriously. It is estimated that 76,100 invasive melanoma cases will be diagnosed this year in the US, making it the fastest growing cancer, and 9,710 people will die from it. <br />
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Let's take this discussion of booty and melanoma a little further. Were you aware that melanoma most commonly develops on the skin but can also start in the eye (ocular melanoma) or in areas where the sun don't shine ... like, yes, the genital and anal areas?<br />
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Mucosal melanoma is very rare (1-2% of melanomas) but also very aggressive. Common symptoms of melanoma in the anus-rectal area are rectal bleeding, pain or discomfort, and weight loss. In this area of the body, melanoma is often misdiagnosed as hemorrhoids. For melanoma in the uro-genital area (most commonly the female genital tract), bleeding, lump, itching, pain or irritation, and discharge might be present.<br />
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Treatment options for mucosal melanoma are the same as for cutaneous; however, the prognosis for mucosal melanoma is poor because it is usually not identified until it has advanced. Be sure to see your doctor immediately if you experience any symptoms.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipGaa3dkB4lz_Ve_MrRqIG-OG07SNB1RL6VF6Rna7nI2OobPf50uDCF5CIV3L5P_ghTIuslKS96EsGWVJsD3Fj15MxSc99MWeQhZmtBq6QbAVbfzVnMEilaB6LW-BLsBPfXoJFBxTDggU/s1600/mia-bum-shot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipGaa3dkB4lz_Ve_MrRqIG-OG07SNB1RL6VF6Rna7nI2OobPf50uDCF5CIV3L5P_ghTIuslKS96EsGWVJsD3Fj15MxSc99MWeQhZmtBq6QbAVbfzVnMEilaB6LW-BLsBPfXoJFBxTDggU/s1600/mia-bum-shot.jpg" width="233" /></a>And now that you have read the educational portion of my blog, I'll share my booty story with you. My daughter Jaime, as many of you know, was diagnosed with melanoma when she was 20, thanks to her tanning bed use during her teens, and fought it with everything she had for 9 years. When she was hospitalized in the weeks before her death, she was very weak, heavily sedated, and barely able to get to her bedside commode even with assistance. One time when she was sitting on that commode, I noticed that she was making rhythmic motions. I asked her if she was okay. Her answer, along with the huge smile she gave me, was classic Jaime: "I'm doing my Booty Boogie!" Weak as she was, she was moving to the music on the TV, dancing while seated. Death was in the doorway, but Jaime was still shaking her booty.<br />
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So keep shaking your booty ... but check it out monthly, along with the rest of your body, for signs of moles that have gone astray! T<span data-ft="{"tn":"K"}" data-reactid=".2.1:3:1:$comment800383476668194_800389693334239:0.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1:$comment-body"><span class="UFICommentBody" data-reactid=".2.1:3:1:$comment800383476668194_800389693334239:0.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1:$comment-body.0"><span data-reactid=".2.1:3:1:$comment800383476668194_800389693334239:0.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1:$comment-body.0.$end:0:$0:0">he best booty call you could ever make is the one to your dermatologist for a full body check.</span></span></span> It could save your life!!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiom50FGfI5_-TWjUhNebhRMwhdsPi8ELKPE7m4Fi5a-CHFtwUI6wtjo3PAngYBOhhBNdiPu5uWaBhzf_s5hk5QVyXCJT_kad-4HsunRPphWhhWEgEtF0C8RqaMT41pQBP8rrQ5mnfFbtE/s1600/keep-calm-and-shake-your-booty-4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiom50FGfI5_-TWjUhNebhRMwhdsPi8ELKPE7m4Fi5a-CHFtwUI6wtjo3PAngYBOhhBNdiPu5uWaBhzf_s5hk5QVyXCJT_kad-4HsunRPphWhhWEgEtF0C8RqaMT41pQBP8rrQ5mnfFbtE/s1600/keep-calm-and-shake-your-booty-4.png" width="171" /></a></div>
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<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
It
is estimated that there will be 76,100 invasive melanomas diagnosed in
the United States in 2014, and there will be 9,710 deaths - See more at:
http://www.aimatmelanoma.org/en/aim-for-answers/about-melanoma-and-other-lesions.html#sthash.7ujdX777.dpuf</div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Melanoma Mama (Jaime's mom, Donna)<br />
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</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Twitter: <a href="https://twitter.com/melanoma_mama">@melanoma_mama</a><br />
Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen">http://www.facebook.com/donna.h.regen</a><br />
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea">http://www.facebook.com/jaime.regen.rea</a> (Remember Jaime)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds">http://www.facebook.com/BanTheBeds</a> (Pull the Plug on Tanning Beds)<br />
Etsy: <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321">https://www.etsy.com/shop/sweetpea321</a> (Jjem Creations)<br />
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The
American Cancer Society recommends regular cancer-related checkups,
including a skin exam every 3 years if you're 20 to 40 years of age and
every year for people 40 and older. - See more at:
http://www.aimatmelanoma.org/en/aim-for-answers/early-detection/regular-skin-examinations-by-your-doctor.html#sthash.jFuZn6wi.dpuf</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
The
American Cancer Society recommends regular cancer-related checkups,
including a skin exam every 3 years if you're 20 to 40 years of age and
every year for people 40 and older. - See more at:
http://www.aimatmelanoma.org/en/aim-for-answers/early-detection/regular-skin-examinations-by-your-doctor.html#sthash.jFuZn6wi.dpuf</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
The
American Cancer Society recommends regular cancer-related checkups,
including a skin exam every 3 years if you're 20 to 40 years of age and
every year for people 40 and older. - See more at:
http://www.aimatmelanoma.org/en/aim-for-answers/early-detection/regular-skin-examinations-by-your-doctor.html#sthash.jFuZn6wi.dpuf</div>
Melanoma Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15479067196648537648noreply@blogger.com0Allen, TX, USA33.1031744 -96.670550332.9967769 -96.8319118 33.2095719 -96.5091888