Janelle's Blog

Ceiling on the Floor, Ceiling on the Floor--Lookin’ Like a Fool With My Ceiling on the Floor

2010-02-15T14:59:00Z

A shriek and loud thud came from my attic. I had been in the garage puttering around while my handyman was changing the filter on my AC/Heater. I scrambled up the ladder that hung from the attic door opening in the ceiling. My eyes darted in the direction of the AC/Heating Unit which was obscured by mounds of insulation. "Are you hurt?" I yelled out. "No, I slid on the insulation and fell backward. I'm OK, but I broke a board." I thought, If he is OK, we can get that fixed...(read more)

Behind the Scenes of Did You Hear About the Morgans?

2009-12-14T01:29:00Z

With the making of the movie, Did You Hear About the Morgans? , a scene for the National Breast Cancer Foundation was written into the script by Director Marc Lawrence . When I asked him why he chose NBCF to be in the movie, he said he wanted to do some good and help a real charity. We were additionally invited to be in the scene as extras. Our son, Kevin Hail-COO and his wife, Amanda, as well as my husband, Neal, and I headed for NYC for the filming of the movie. My immediate thoughts: What am I...(read more)

The Turkey That Didn’t Get the Word

2009-11-26T13:31:00Z

Since when do turkeys think they have the right to chase people? They need to quit getting their feathers so ruffled up and head for the hills. If I seem overly confident about turkeys, it is because I have overcome a run-in I had with a turkey when I was a young girl. I grew up on the flat plains of West Texas, in Lubbock, a place large enough to be called a city. So, during my childhood years, I related everything to the city even to the point that I loved traffic jams and disliked dirt. To the...(read more)

Mammograms Still Save Women’s Lives

2009-11-18T00:07:00Z

My son, Kevin Hail, COO of National Breast Cancer Foundation arrived at work before me today. As he walked down the hallway at our NBCF headquarters, he looked in my empty office and said aloud, "I thank God Mom got a mammogram before the age of 50." At 34 years old, I felt a lump while performing a breast self-exam. Concerned, I got a mammogram that detected breast cancer. If it had not been for breast self-exams and a mammogram, I would not be alive today and the National Breast Cancer...(read more)

What Women Say About Mammograms

2009-10-21T21:37:00Z

During October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the news is filled with reminders of early detection. Why is this so important? Every one of us is touched by breast cancer, whether personally or by a friend, loved one, or acquaintance. When I had breast cancer 29 years ago, it was 1 in 11 women who had breast cancer in her lifetime. Now it is 1 in 8. At National Breast Cancer Foundation, we are saving lives. We provide mammograms for women who cannot afford them. We work with hospitals nationwide...(read more)

The Fly That Wouldn’t Die

2009-08-21T22:27:00Z

My eyes were blurry red from reading, while the muscles in my arms and shoulders burned from working late. Time for lights out. As soon as I crawled between the cool sheets under my comforter, my eyelids dipped closed a couple of times in the relaxing darkness of the night. Suddenly, my eyes popped open to the sound of a loud, buzzing noise from something that swirled past my face. I knew that sound. It was a pesky fly. Why tonight? I threw the covers off and scampered out of bed, making a straight...(read more)

Larry King and Friends

2009-07-26T22:04:00Z

Larry King , an icon of talk show hosts, has interviewed the world's most influential people for over half a century. Actor Paul Newman once told Larry King that when he arrived in a city halfway around the world, he would turn on the hotel TV so he could see Larry King Live . That was his connection to America, to home. That is why I was surprised when the server seated me at an adjoining table to Larry King, even though I wasn't in his party. [BREAK] What Led to the Surprise My husband...(read more)

Insulted by a Burned Chicken

2009-07-14T20:52:00Z

You know from my blog last week that I am still recovering from my lost culinary skills, known as BCS (Burned Chicken Syndrome). Please click here to read all about it. When you can bare your chicken breasts to the world, you know you are open to share your inner most thoughts unashamedly. Neal and I don't mention the chicken episode anymore. He finds he gets better meals if we bury the bones of this fiasco. I am trying to take my mind off the trauma, so as I de-stress at the end of the day,...(read more)

What’s For Dinner—Burned Chicken or Honey Smacks?

2009-07-06T15:29:00Z

A sweltering 100+ degree day in July was not the time for our newly installed home air conditioner to register 80 degrees. During the four hour ordeal that the electrician worked on it, my husband, Neal, and I escaped outside to sit in the shade of the patio while grilling a whole chicken. Yes, you are looking at the result of my attempt at gourmet cooking on the grill. This organic chicken was a fine specimen of chickenhood. In fact, its feet probably never touched the ground. I hand massaged it...(read more)

Where Have All the Relationships Gone?

2009-06-27T21:35:00Z

First Lady Michelle Obama and President Obama were recently criticized for enjoying a private night out. It made me stop and wonder why people in any position in life are not allowed to have some time off high-pressure situations to refresh their minds, emotions, and bodies without criticism. Life is demanding, and when pressures build without a release valve, you cannot be as mentally sharp to make decisions that may have weighty consequences on your life. What concerns me is that people do not...(read more)

A Surprising Connection to Good Health

2009-05-23T20:35:00Z

For centuries the Rosetans, a close community of Italians, forged trails to work in the marble quarries in surrounding hills of the Italian province of Foggia or cultivate the terraced fields in the valley beneath the mountain where they lived. These peasants had little hope of ever overcoming their illiterate and poverty-stricken condition. Malcolm Gladwell tells this amazing story in his book, Outliers . In 1882 eleven Rosetans ventured to the New World of opportunity to New York. The following...(read more)

First Class—No Class

2009-05-07T03:40:00Z

Occasionally I am able to upgrade my American Airline ticket to First Class, using my air miles, which means I can fly for a minimal $5 fee. But, I have discovered that First Class isn't what it used to be. This picture is of a guy sitting in front of me in First Class with his stinking bare feet propped up during the flight. I just wanted to clear that up in the beginning of my story so you wouldn't think those were my feet. What Has Happened to First Class? Since the weather was cold in...(read more)

Stress & the Automatic Face Lift

2009-04-28T16:24:00Z

With an upcoming video shoot at the NBCF Headquarters in a few hours, the timing was unacceptable to have a sinus cold. As I awoke with head spinning and blurry eyes, I thought, I'm going to have to stay in bed a while longer this morning to shake this loose. 11:00 – I forced myself to get out of bed to start getting ready. The shoot was at 2:00 p.m., so I had plenty of time. 1:00 – While walking around my house in slow motion and still not ready, I finally sat down and called the...(read more)

All Stressed Up With Nowhere to Go

2009-03-31T10:32:00Z

For years women believe they have been falsely labeled as imagining physical ailments. When I was in the doctor's office one time, I was describing a physical problem that I had never experienced before. The doctor's response was, "Well, you are over 40, you know." If looks could kill, he wouldn't be in practice today. You may have heard a doctor say an illness is psychosomatic. The words go in one ear and come out the other meaning, "You really don't have anything...(read more)

The Survivors Club-Part 2 of 2

2009-03-02T04:43:00Z

I set the book, The Survivors Club , on the night stand beside my bed after I had turned the last spell-binding page. Most people never have events in their lives that compare to the stories told by Ben Sherwood , New York Times bestselling author. My mind wandered through the stories I had read in the book…stories of people who survived extreme experiences—stories of those who wouldn't give up. Read The Survivors Club- Part 1 to learn more of Ben Sherwood's background in survival...(read more)