NaNoWriMo + Movember = NaNoWriMovember

Last updated on March 29th, 2021 at 03:36 am

If you talk to creators in Toronto’s social scene, you’ll find that November brings two major events to the fore—National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo for short, and Movember, a global movement to support men’s mental health. We had all sorts of events to support them—virtual and in-person alike—and used them to put a little creative juice and goodwill back into the world.

But before we go there… let me talk a bit about Halloween.

When Did Your Inner Children Die?

Here’s a question for everyone: when did people forget how to have fun? When did anyone worry about whether dressing up was “cool” or not? Seriously—when did you people let your inner children die?

I wore my aforementioned Ghostbusters outfit (sans proton pack, which I haven’t fixed yet) to work, only to discover that I was the only one dressed up.

Totally uncool. The fact that everyone was so worried about keeping up appearances (or on the other end of the spectrum, didn’t care enough to bother dressing up) that they couldn’t cut loose for a day and have a little fun (or, again on the flip side, are too beaten down by life to bother) really bothers me. Policies? Guidelines? Permission???

Are you kidding me? It’s HALLOWEEN!!!

Anyway. Gives me a lot to think about—the environments I’m in, the people I hang with—but that’s not the point of this post.

NANOWRIMOvember—Where I Grow Facial Hair and Grow Tired of Writing!

“Suddenly, a wild November appeared!”

–no one in the Pokémon game series ever

So we’ve finally reached the final stretch of 2012, where we wonder where the year went, worry about what to get people for Christmas and get fat off of all the holiday parties that tend to go down!

Well, we’re not quite there yet. We still have to make it through November.

November is an anomaly of a month. Not only is it one of the few months without a statutory holiday in Ontario, unlike its cousin named June, there’s very little that we tend to like about it. No hot weather, no looking forward to the summer—just reminders that we’re getting back to layering up and grey—oh so grey—skies above.

But not all is lost in November…

NANOWRIMO: I Got 50K Problems, Finishing Ain’t One

As if I’m not busy enough (because we Torontonians love being busy), I decided that writing something for National Novel Writing Month (NANOWRIMO for short) would be a good idea this year.

The basic premise: write a 50,000-word novel through the month of November. To put that in perspective:

• a good length for a blog post is around 400-500 words
• when you’re writing an essay for school, a double-spaced page is about 500 words

So about 100 blogs and/or 20 or so essays over the course of a month on top of regular blog posts and Mansformation.

Not exactly my brightest idea, but no one can ever say I’m unambitious! But fortunately, I’m brimming full of ideas, so stay tuned, amigos!

Movember: Gimme Some Mo’!!!

With Movember comes events, awareness and a solid excuse for guys to grow some wicked awesome beards! I’ll admit that I never got around to participating until this year, but I look forward to seeing what I can come up with after a month! (If my post-Africa pics are any indication, apparently not much.)

I’ve drawn a quick mock-up in good ol’ Photoshop to let you see what my facial hair would look like at the end of Movember in an ideal world…

…but I fear that a beard of awesome won’t be a dream soon realized.

I don’t fight alone against prostate cancer, though—friends like Amanda Blake are throwing events in support of Movember! You can find me at her After Work Drinks Toronto event (or #AWDTO for the hashtag-inclined) on November 8^th snapping photos and hanging out with some great company. With a $10 price tag (going right to Movember) to have free beer samples, more fun than you usually ever do and the chance to win some great prizes, I definitely encourage you to show up!

But no Movember blog post would be complete without a little self-promotion! I believe in supporting causes to help humanity improve—I support friends who climb towers, ride bikes and do all sorts of activities through the year in the name of various causes, but I rarely enter the fray myself. So now that I have, I hope that friends can give generously and help contribute to the fight for a better (and prostate cancer-free) future!

Play Me Off, Keyboard Cat

So while the news might tell you that it’s time to get yourself in Christmas mode (only 53 shopping days left, people!), November is no month to be glossed over!

So while I’m rockin’ the Mo’ and writing fo’ sho — what the heck will YOU be doing all month?