Yes I have been SLACK....

I had intended to write in this blog every day but that kind of went out the window over the past few weeks!

So here is a little run down on what's been happening... I turned another year older at the start of Oct and am now the ripe old age of ..... 27! I though I would feel different at this age, strangely I don't but I know I have changed since I was 21... 3 years till I am 30 - in the olden days I would be married, have had all my children and look after the house and children all day whilst my husband brings home the bacon.

Career-wise since my hip has enabled me time to breath/think I am at least certain  that once I get my Dip in Photography that will be my main career choice with my Massage Therapy complementing it.

I also attended my niece's 4th Birthday in late Sept - which was a lot of fun, I was the queen of fairy bread lol. I got her lots of girly things & it was fun shopping for them!

Physiowise it has been prett painful - we are down to once a week for hands-on manipulations with cupping/accupuncture and I wish I could say each week the muscles around the hip/butt were slightly improving but they aren't as yet. The other week the cups got put on around the glute muscles and "Migratory Cupping" was done - which is when the cup is suctioned onto the skin and moved up and down in strokes along the muscle.

Now unless you have had this done I do not think you can comprehend the pain - the first 3-4 sweeps are pure insane agony, it basicly feels like the muscle fibres are ripping and separating (which the sort of are) them after those passes it does ease as the muscles loosen. At one point it was so sore I could not muster myself to say anything and as a reflex ended up bursting into tears and flapping my arms.... not pretty!!

Yesterday's appointment only involved deep tissue massage and normal cupping - that was bad enough as I had not been for a week & a half and everything was very tight. For my recovery I am now supposed to go to the pool 3 times a week & complete my 20 strengthening exercises on the swiss ball twice a day...... any one got spare energies for me :)

One good thing was my flexibility has improved & I can now bring my knee up to my chest to 105oC - considering my first visit was 680C then it went to 75oC so there is improvement there, yay.

Joint pain is still there.... but I don't want to go into that today.

PINK RIBBON DAY - For the last 5 years I have organised the Pink Ribbon Street Appeal for Timaru, Temuka, Fairlie & Geraldine & this year no one else came forward to organise it & I didn't want to let everyone down so with the help of great friends & family we pulled it off for the 6th year.

What first got me interested in making a difference was seeing my grandmother go through Breast Cancer when I was in 7th form. She knew she had a lump but waited far too long to tell anyone about it & when she did it was in an advanced stage. So she had the double mastectomy followed up with radiation therapy & jumbles of cancer fighting drugs. However

complications from the radiation therapy caused numerous blood clots which in turn caused her to have two large strokes

with the second one leaving her unable to speak & function.

I remember visiting her is hospital and holding her hand looking into her eyes - you could see there was light there and

her brain was still active but she was unable to communicate. Her eyes sparkled and that was enough. I spent time

with her and later that night she passed. She was only 65.

So I decided I wanted to do something to make a difference and to increase awareness as if she had told people earlier

the outcome would have been a lot different. SAVE BREASTS SAVE LIVES is one of the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation's

motos. So to all that are reading this - do regular breast checks - it doesn't matter if your 15 or 50, male or female!

Breast Cancer does not only effect the older generation - however most of the public think this. Also MEN CAN GET

BREAST CANCER TOO - every year around 20 MEN are diagnosed with breast cancer - so get checking boys, you have

breast tissue too.

This year for the appeal we were so lucky with the weather - it was on Friday 10th October & that was the National Street Appeal

Day. We had a beautiful sunny spring day with light norwesters in the afternoon bringing the temp to around 20oC.

Everywhere was busy & people were so generous - thank you to all that donated! This year there was a increase in

men donating - even teenage boy & they put their pink wristbands on or their pink ribbon without a second thought.

At the end of the day everywhere you went someone was wearing a band or a ribbon & to me that means we

did our job. Business men in flash suits looked very smart with their pink ribbon or wristband on :) So far we have raised

around $6,500 with more to come in before the end of October, so I anyone want a Pink Wristband or Pink Ribbon

let me know!!

You might be wondering how my hip coped with all this running around - little things called PAIN KILLERS got me through it!

I have managed to get myself off the Morphine and am now relying on Codine in highish doses and hoping my tum handles

it ok. Friday night I was wrecked, Saturday we were at Pak & Save collecting & I did 3 hours and crashed in the afternoon.

Sunday - well I am not sure where Sunday went lol.

But I managed it through everything that was going on and that makes me proud as I know the money raised will

help in the fight against Breast Cancer.

My new Goal it to be fit enough to do the RELAY FOR LIFE in March 09. So I have something to work towards! Off to get

some lunch now & will post again this afternoon - promise!!