I started this huge task of clearing out my closet. Why? Because, I decided it is time for me to streamline, downsize, and find my center.

Cheesy yes. But my need for purging some of my clothing from a decade ago trumps the cheese factor…

Oddly now, I am craving nachos.

So, what do I do with old handbags that I don’t need anymore?

Swap, switch, sell, or buy gently loved handbags.

What to do with your old clothing? Gather your friends together and have a clothing swap. A cheap and fun way to hang with your friends and maybe score a new outfit for your next hot date.

Written by a surgeon,

I’ll never forget the look in my patient’s eyes when I had to tell them they had to go home with the drains, new exercises and no breast. I remember begging the doctors to keep these women in the hospital longer, only to hear that they would, but their hands were tied by the insurance companies.

So there I sat with my patient giving them the instructions they needed to take care of themselves, knowing full well they didn’t grasp half of what I was saying, because the glazed, hopeless, frightened look spoke louder than the quiet ‘Thank you’ they muttered.

A mastectomy is when a woman’s breast is removed in order to remove cancerous breast cells/tissue. If you know anyone who has had a mastectomy, you may know that there is a lot of discomfort and pain afterwards. Insurance companies are trying to make mastectomies an outpatient procedure. Let’s give women the chance to recover properly in the hospital for 2 days after surgery.

This Mastectomy Bill is in Congress now. It takes 2 seconds to do this and is very important. Please take the time and do it really quick! The Breast Cancer Hospitalization Bill is important legislation for all women.

Please send this to everyone in your address book. If there was ever a time when our voices and choices should be heard, this is one of those times. If you’re receiving this, it’s because I think you will take the 30 seconds to go to vote on this issue and send it on to others you know who will do the same.

There’s a bill called the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act which will require insurance companies to cover a minimum 48-hour hospital stay for patients undergoing a mastectomy. It’s about eliminating the ‘drive-through mastectomy’ where women are forced to go home just a few hours after surgery, against the wishes of their doctor, still groggy from anesthesia and sometimes with drainage tubes still attached.

Lifetime Television has put this bill on their web page with a petition drive to show your support.. Last year over half the House signed on. PLEASE! Sign the petition by clicking on the web site below. You need not give more than your name and zip code number..

http://www.mylifetime.com/community/my-lifetime-commitment/breast-cancer/petition/breast-cancer-petition

Apex Youth Olympics on 5/16/09 in Santa Monica needs volunteers.

Want to donate to a charitable cause, just by eating really good food?

On Thursday, April 30, 2009 join us at these restaurants thoughout LA for Dining Out For Life. Where 25% or more of your bill be donated to Project Angel Food, which delivers food to those that are homebound people with life threatening illnesses.

A few of the participating restaurants include: Cliff’s Edge, Chaya Brasserie, Damon’s Steakhouse, The Farm, iL Cielo, Jar, The Little Door, The Little Next Door, Mr. Chow, Nirvana Lounge, Nook Bistro, Tiara Cafe, and Whist at Viceroy.

http://diningoutforlifela.org/