DadCentric

You're Gonna Drive Your Kids around on Those Tires?

I'm in the middle of the five eastbound lanes of the 8 (we live in SoCal, where the freeways have definite articles), doing about 75 and starting to think about moving over to the right in preparation for my upcoming exit.  I check my right side-view mirror, then do an over-the-shoulder head-check to make sure there's nothing in my blind spot.  Textbook, Driver's Ed circa 1983.

I can't see anything coming up on my right, and I click the turn indicator on. As I do, I become aware of something gaining on me to my left.  It's a noise.

The unmistakable sound of tires screeching grows louder on the left, and finally its source becomes visible, first in my side-view mirror, and then through the window.  It's a sleek black Beemer, going fast enough that it's about to pass me.  Sideways.

I move over one lane to the right as quickly as I can, careful not to get all squirrelly with panic.  I'm sure that the Beemer is going to launch off of the asphalt and roll like a kicked-can, but it doesn't.  The last I see of the mangled car is its taillights as it slams against the median barrier.

My wife, in the seat next to me, gasps.  She's a gasper.

"It's all right," I say, in an unconvincing staccato.  Probably 2 seconds have passed since I first heard the tires screech.

But now, out of the corner of my eye, I see a white smear hurtling towards us.  It comes into focus in my rear-view mirror: an SUV in mid-spin.  I'm also aware of a red vehicle pinballing back and forth behind that one.  Like the Beemer, the white SUV seems to be gaining on us, even though it's going backwards.  I accelerate for all my little minivan is worth and move over the two more lanes to the shoulder.

"It's all right. It's all right," I keep saying.

Watch A Guy Shave Off His Mustache

FREE AT LAST. The Thing has been removed from my face; no longer will I frighten my small children or repulse my wife. So there's one happy ending for Movember. The other? The good folks at Philips Norelco heard about our Mega-Dad Team and offered to donate $15,000; in return, a bunch of us, myself included, agreed to use a couple of Philips Norelco products - the Vacuum Stubble And Beard Trimmer and the SensoTouch 3D Shaver, provided at no cost to us by the folks at Philips Norelco - to rid ourselves of our lip hair and capture the magic on video. I reviewed an older model of the SensoTouch last year as part of our 2010 Holiday Gift Guide, and really liked it. But would the SensoTouch 3D be able to hack its way through the ferocious jungle beneath my nose? Watch:

Worked like a charm; the mustache is gone, and the Asshole Jaw is once again the prominent feature on my face. If you want to see how some of the other Movember dads fared, check out their videos here. (For you ladies, that Busy Dad Blog guy is in his tanktop.) And if you're looking for a good gift for the hirsute man in your life, Philips Norelco is offering a nice rebate on the SensoTouch shaver. And if you want to know why vlogging should be left to the pros, or at the very least people who are enthusiastic about appearing on camera, Exhibit A: my video. So, everybody wins: me, my wife, my kids, Philips Norelco, and most important, some guys in the future who will never have to worry about getting prostate cancer because a bunch of mustachioed dudes in the past helped to kick its ass once and for all.

Movember, Day 30: The Final Countdown

 

Tomorrow, the DadCentricians who took part in this year's Movember fundraiser will at least be ridding ourselves of our facial folicles. We've endured the comments and the looks for a worthy cause, and if sporting a mustache helps in the never-ending fight against prostate cancer, we're happy to oblige. But before we say goodbye to our 'staches - and thanks to a sponsored opportunity from the good folks at Philips Norelco, who gave a generous matching donation to the dad collective team, you'll get to watch some of us shave these suckers off - we offer you a final look at our mustachioed meins.

Kevin, feeling Indiana, looking decidedly Deadwood.

Andy, finally at peace with his 'stache.

Whit bids farewell to Movember.

Me, with my commemorative souvenir t-shirt.

Thanks to everyone who donated to any of our massive team's members (wait - that didn't come out right). Our big group raised over $17,000. Next year, I think I'll go with a different look. What I have in mind is pictured after the jump.

Stiff Upper Lips: Movember, Week 2

It's Day 7 of Movember. So far the massive Team Of Dads is crushing all expectations; we've past the $5,000 mark and are on our way to $6,000 in donations - all in the first week. So what are you getting in return for your donation? Well, along with the satisfaction of knowing that you've contributed to the fight against prostate cancer and other men's health issues, there's the fun of seeing us looking like the nerdiest biker gang ever. Here's how some of your participating DadCentricians are faring, facial-folically speaking:

As of Thursday, Kevin was starting to show a bit of shadow.

The Holmes hit the Restart button on his beard.

True to form, The Muskrat is growing whiskers.

I'm looking a bit Edge-y.

More updates as we go along. Feel free to pass along your sympathies to our wives.

 

THE MOVEMBER JUGGERNAUT IS UNLEASHED!

We had a great time doing Movember last year. What? You don't know what Movember is? Well! Here's a brief recap, from last year. To repeat: 

Cancer sucks. It may actually suck more for guys - 1 in 2 men, compared to 1 in 3 women, will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes. 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer. And prostate cancer kills - an estimate 32,000 American men will die from it this year.

So as we did last year, a few of your DadCentricians will be growing out the hair on our upperlip to raise money for the cause. Unlike last year, we've joined forces with a bunch of other great dads to form The Ultimate Movember Team. It's like a 70's version of Justice League International, starring our fearless leader, the guy who put together this massive coalition, Harry Reems lookalike Doug French! (Google "Harry Reems" at your own risk.) And we're off to a roaring start - over $2,500 has been raised already. To donate, go here. We'll be posting pictorial updates on a weekly basis; to see how the DadCentric guys are doing, check out our Facebook page, which will include more photos and links to our individual sites. Will we feel self-conscious about our 'staches? Hell no. For we follow in the footsteps of giants: