Think Pink...

I've said it before, but I will say it again: I am surrounded by incredible people. Each of my friends has their own unique strengths, talents, and passions, and I am fortunate to have each and every one of them in my life. For example, tonight I found myself in the burbs once again (for the fourth consecutive weekend in a row!) to attend a fund-raising party being held by my friend Taryn, whom I have known since we were in middle school.

Taryn's family lost their grandfather to breast cancer (yes, it affects men too), and the disease has also afflicted other members of her family. As a result, she is passionate about raising awareness as well as money for breast cancer research. For the past few years, she has participated in the Susan G. Komen 3-Day For the Cure, in which participants walk over 60 miles in the name of raising money for research. Personally, I can't even conceive of walking for three consecutive days for any reason short of finding myself in a post-apocalyptic world where there was no other means of transportation, so I'm amazed by Taryn's dedication to her favorite cause.

Tonight, to raise money for this year's 3-Day, Taryn held a flippy cup fundraiser in her parents' backyard. Since I went to a private university and never once attended a frat party, I'd managed to make it to the ripe old age of 26 without so much as even seeing other people play a game of flippy cup, but I wanted to be on hand to support my friend and contribute to the cause. More surprisingly to me, Justin had never played flippy cup either despite attending state universities for both his undergraduate and graduate degrees, but as it turned out, our mutual lack of experience proved to be of little consequence.

Sarah's boyfriend Zach made this stunning creation from Chex Mix and candy. I'm pretty sure most heterosexual men share that sentiment.

In fact, we made it through the entire evening without playing a single game. We made our donation, but focused mostly on the company of my other high school friends who were in attendance. In my flurry of recent social activity, I'd actually seen most of them within the span of a couple weeks, but it was nice to see them again, and weather-wise it was a perfect evening for spending time outdoors, though we did get assailed by hordes of mosquitoes.

Stephanie, Ashley, me, Sarah, and Jessica. Apparently Sarah was the only one who didn't read the "wear pink" part of the invite...

It was great to see everyone again, and even better that I could donate to a worthy cause in the process. If you'd like to sponsor Taryn on her 3-Day journey, click here for her fund-raising page.