Short Hair Diva

Tonight I’m going to see Les Misérables! My friend and I couldn’t convince our husbands to tag along and spend $80 each to watch a bunch of people dancing and singing on stage, but hey we need them to baby-sit anyway.

During my years as a music education major (and yes, if you’re wondering, I did graduate–I used to have a neighbor who constantly brought up the fact that she was a drama major, which led me to believe she never actually earned a degree) I saw a lot of musicals but I haven’t been to one in years. I’m beyond excited!

Image: StrazCenter.org

As much as I brag about the fact that Greg Grunberg mentioned me on Twitter back in 2010–yeah I’ll shut up about it now–I am super-duper excited that Lisa Loeb retweeted one of my replies to her 30,000+ followers. Awww.

I love Lisa’s music and her always-adorable glasses, even though I hate wearing mine and get ticked off when I run out of contacts.

November is nearing its end, which means that my good intentions of promoting Epilepsy Awareness month on a weekly basis didn’t happen. That’s why I decided to post this little spiel today.

Epilepsy is a neurological condition characterized by seizures. Seizures occur when the brain’s electrical balance is interrupted by overactive electrical discharges.  Seizures can occur after brain damage or injury, or for unknown reasons. If someone has two or more unprovoked seizures, they’re usually diagnosed with epilepsy. According to the Epilepsy Foundation, it affects roughly 3 million Americans and 50 million people around the world. It’s not contagious.

Living with Epilepsy

Epilepsy can be controlled by medication and surgery, but it has no cure. Epilepsy affects your life–and your caregivers’ lives–in ways you can’t even imagine. I have been seizure-free for nearly four years, but my monthly medication costs with the insurance discount are more than some people’s monthly car payments.

Learn About Epilepsy

I completely understand that it would be impossible to support every single charity or cause in the world (hey, I’ll admit that I change the channel when those sad pet abuse commercials come on) but I find it irritating that so many people could not care less about epilepsy. Many people don’t even know what it is, or they assume it’s some form of retardation. My friends and family have been wonderful and most of them made generous donations when I participated in the National Walk for Epilepsy in 2009 and again in 2010.

Greg Grunberg Talks About It!

I urge you all to visit TalkAboutIt.org, a website founded by Greg Grunberg of Felicity, Alias, and Heroes fame. It is a site where you can learn about epilepsy in a fun environment and hear from Greg and other celebrities.