Today is the last day, but have you ever heard of "Movember"? It started in Australia 10 years ago, but these days it is celebrated in many other countries. In Australia a moustache is called a "mo". It's a shortening of the English word "moustache". "Movember" came from combining the words "mo" and "November".
Movember is when men grow a moustache during November. You probably want to ask "Why?". The reason is to have fun whilst fundraising. Also, it's to increase the instance of men getting cancer health checks. For example, prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and also for mental health. It is said that in western society, men don't like to go to the doctor. So if they have any illness it is discovered very late. In order to prevent that, the message of Movember to men is "You'd better get a health-check done".
In 2003 in the city of Melbourne, Australia, two blokes had an idea. For the whole month of November, they would bring back an outdated fashion statement: the moustache - also known in Australia as the "mo". They decided to get as many of their mates on board, and chose to raise the awareness of prostate cancer and men's health in the process. About 30 of their friends took up the challenge.
Now, ten years later, Movember has become an international sensation, with about 1.1 million Mo Bros registered around the world in 2012. And this year the number is sure to grow as fast as the facial hair.
But Movember is not just for the men - any women wishing to support the cause can become a Mo Sista and get involved in a number of ways, without growing a moustache. (I can hear the sighs of relief from here!).
I've decided for the first time ever to become a Mo Sista this year. I've just registered and am now deciding how I will get involved. You can check out my Mo Space here:
Of course I will happily accept donations for the Movember cause, but I think my main focus this year will be awareness, especially here in Japan. I think it would be great for Japan to be involved, so I plan to spread the word. Although it may be a little difficult, culturally.
You see, back when I was having my initial training as an ALT, our company told us that according to Japanese culture, it's inappropriate for a guy to grow facial hair on the job. One guy in our group, who had a well established goatee thing happening (sorry, I'm yet to expand my "Mocabulary"), looked a little concerned and asked "You're saying I have to shave this off?" "Oh no," the reply came, "having facial hair is fine. It's growing facial hair that's the problem. So if any of you men decide you want facial hair, you'd better grow it during the holidays." If this is true, Movember may not take off quickly here.
But, if it's for a good cause, I believe that allowances could be made. After all, the Japanese are always up for a little bit of novelty and fun. I think everyone just needs to know about it first. All they'll need is a cute cartoon mascot with a catchy name, and it'll be game on!
Now, BLOKES! What do you do if you want to be a Mo Bro? Here are a few simple guidelines:
2. Start on 1st November clean shaven (if you're a little late, it's okay). 3. Grow a moustache for the entire month of November (no beards or goatees - remember you're supposed to draw some attention ;).
4. Talk to your friends, colleagues or puzzled bystanders about your mo!
5. Collect donations.
If you can't grow a mo for whatever reason, or the woman in your life won't let you (the above video portrays a possible reason), there are still a lot of ways you can get involved, including raising awareness or donating to the cause. So what are you waiting for men? Grow That Mo!
