CrazyBusy Mama! (Dot Calm)

For some of you, this may be old news, but if you haven’t heard (and you’re a big ExerciseTV fan), you may want to sit down.

As of December 31, ExerciseTV on Comcast OnDemand, and the accompanying ExerciseTV website, will cease operations. If you go to the website, all you will see is the following message:

I lost over 20 pounds a couple of years ago thanks to ExerciseTV (and my daughter’s constant pushing me to start exercising with her), and even blogged for them for a while. I’m very sorry to see them go. In fact, I’m still holding out hope that some millionaire will come along and rescue the brand before the lights at ExerciseTV are out for good.

Any takers?

If you, like me, have relied on the workouts on ExerciseTV to stay in shape, I’d like to leave you with just a little bit of encouragement. Don’t be discouraged: Keep working out! Every door that closes just means a new door is ready to be opened somewhere. This might be a good time to try something new, like joining a gym or exercise class. Go walking or running. Or if you’re more comfortable working out at home, find your favorite ExTV workouts on iTunes or Amazon.com. Many stores also sell exercise DVDs — try some out and find some new favorites.

If you’ve been relying on ExerciseTV to stay in shape, please leave a comment and tell us what new thing you’ll be doing to stay healthy and fit now.

I once heard someone say — and I’m paraphrasing — that if you don’t give money when you have little, you won’t give money when you have a lot. Real giving is usually a sacrifice, meaning it costs us something. But it’s also rewarding, as we reap dividends of joy and the satisfaction that we have helped others in need. Read on to learn about something you can do — something you must do — to help others who desperately need it right now.

This Christmas season has gotten off to a sad start. Last Sunday in Lakewood, Washington, less than two hours from where I live, four

police officers were murdered by a gun-wielding maniac. My heart is still breaking for these officers and for their families, who are left to face this Christmas — and the rest of their lives — without them. No one can make this go away for these families; no one can bring their loved ones back. But we can show them they are loved and thought of, and that their mother, fathers, wife, and husbands will never be forgotten, and we can do that by donating to a couple of funds set up just for that purpose.

The first I’d like to let you know about has been set up by the Lakewood Police Independent Guild, or www.lpig.us. Once you open the page, you’ll see the “Donate Here” button in the middle of the screen. After donating, be sure to scroll down and read the posts, especially the one called “Stories of Our Fallen,” by Guild President Brian Wurts. You’ll be touched, and you’ll feel like you knew them, too — or at least deeply wish you had.

The other you may contribute to by going into any Bank of America in the United States and telling them it’s for the “Fallen Lakewood Officers Fund.”

Read about other funds set up for the families of the officers — and a warning about scammers taking advantage of this horrible situation — by reading this article at KOMO News.

Thanks so much for helping out.

In 1980, Nancy Goodman Brinker watched her sister, Susan Goodman Komen, suffer and lose her battle with breast cancer. In those days, there wasn’t much research being done regarding that particular type of cancer, and it was barely talked about above a whisper simply because it began with the word “breast.”

Much has happened since then to give breast cancer the national, and now world-wide, attention necessary to find a cure, and it all began as the Komen Foundation, which Nancy began in her living room in 1982 (it is now known as Komen for the Cure). Nancy had promised her sister, as Susan lay dying, that she would do whatever she could to make sure other women didn’t have to suffer from such a hideous disease. She kept that promise.

This week, Nancy was notified that she was nominated to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom — the highest award that can be given to a civilian. An untold number of lives have been saved thanks to Nancy’s promise to Susan, and I’m sure we all agree that this medal is long overdue. Congratulations, Nancy!

Read the full story here: White House to Award Nation’s Highest Civilian Honor to Susan G. Komen for the Cure® Founder Nancy G. Brinker

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