Yes, Halloween is only two weeks way (how can that be???!!!) but my friend Jess and I were not having a dress rehearsal. Our attire was in celebration of running the inaugural Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon - an event that started at 10pm, brought you through Disney's Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios before ending in Epcot during their food and wine festival. I never had had so much fun during a race - I may just have to don my Tinkerbell outfit for all future events! I guess it was the wings that elicited so many comments; that made folks want to grab a photo with me - well that or the fact that a 42 year old woman was running around Disneyworld in the middle of the night dressed like Tinkerbell... hmm... like I said, I truly enjoyed myself as Disney really knows how to host an event - music, well tended hydration stations and of course - having Mickey himself kick-off the race - made for a great event. Jess looked great in her Minnie gear - so glad I have friends who can embrace a bit of wackiness now and then!
It has been a while since I have written. The days are quickly growing shorter, so much so that I am typing this as I wait for daylight so I can get out and run. October not only brings shorter days and Halloween, it also brings breast cancer awareness month. Seems everything is pink and it leaves me strangely unsettled. Are we losing or gaining focus by branding every consumer item with a pink ribbon? And I mean everything - I have been posting a daily photo on my Facebook page of things that have been "pinked" - from your checkcard to Brillo pads - that pink ribbon is everywhere.
So as a breast cancer survivor I try to do my part. I participated in the NYC Komen Race for the Cure. I am organizing a "pink" bake sale at work. I implore my friends and family to be vigilant in getting their mammograms. However I have a problem with buying wine or potato chips that have a pink ribbon on them. It just seems, well, wrong. No, the idea of Sutter Home or Frito-Lay donating money does not seem wrong to me - I guess it is just the positioning. Or is it the Komen organization I should direct my concern to? Can I blame them for wanting to get their branding out there and having more money funneled to the cause? No, I can't. I admit I did benefit from Komen research funding. I also admit I think it is great to bring such awareness to the cause - even if the pink chin straps and cleats that the NFL donned was a bit of a stretch. I worry that there is so much of it that eventually people will no longer see beyond the "pink" and forget how many are impacted by this disease. I hope that one day there will be no need for pink M&Ms other than Easter; that wearing all pink in October is nothing more than a fashion faux pas and that we can all say - "remember that nasty thing called breast cancer, glad we do not have to deal with that anymore"... until then I will support the cause as best I can and try to not to get so worked up over seeing even dog food "pinkified"!
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