I have been using Jan Marini’s Antioxidant Daily Face Protectant SPF 30 for about a year, and in my quest to look as good and youthful as possible, I considered trying something else. But then I reflected on the fact that almost every day I get a compliment on my skin and along with it the question, “What do you use?” Sometimes I ask, “Do you mean my make-up?” The answer unvariably is, “No, what you put on underneath it.”

I was in a group of people last week and one woman came up to me and said, “You have such beautiful skin, I just enjoy looking at you.” This came as quite a surprise to me. I’m a senior citizen!

So, after thinking about it and the compliments I get, I decided why tamper with success. It goes on smoothly, it’s light and doesn’t feel like there’s anything on your skin and you get UV protection taboot.

If you’re not getting good results, that’s the time to change but as long as my skin looks good and I receive the kind of compliments that I do, I’m staying with Jan Marini. You can call them direct to order (800) 347-2223 or to find a location near you.

This is very exciting to me … mostly to be able to speak in my own voice to a vast number of people on how to prevent skin cancer.

So if you’re in L.A., take a look on the 28th … and keep taking care of yourself with sunscreen, broad-brimmed hat, UV umbrella, and other protective items. If we’re out in the sun (or even the clouds) we need to protect ourselves. Period!

A young woman, Paige Wood, 27 is fighting skin cancer after starting to use tanning beds at the age of 18. She’s using herself as an example to warn others.

I have to laugh although it definitely isn’t funny: “The indoor tanning association told CBS News that they have ‘always emphasized the importance of moderation’ when it comes to UV light from either the sun or a tanning bed.” Yeah, they’ve been right out there with their warnings, as they welcome young teens inside and ply them with all the UV radiation they can pay for.

If tanning beds were really concerned, they would shut themselves down and I don’t see them doing that. In lieu of that they should insist customers read the story of Paige Wood or Claire Oliver (the young Australian woman who died from melanoma after using tanning salons for years) before they pay up. They might live to see their 30′s.

The purpose of sending the umbrella was to encourage her to finally set down some guidelines for what sunscreens do what so the buying public could be confident in their decisions, knowing that they would be protected. As it is now, “tens of millions of Americans buy products [referring to sunscreens] each year that they erroneously believe are protecting them from cancer and premature aging and other skin damage caused by the sun.”

You can read the Press Release and the letter to the commissioner at: http://www.ewg.org/node/28123.

That was better than coffee to wake me up this morning!

That’s what my husband faced. He faced it better than I would have, but he did face it.

Isn’t it so much easier just to protect yourself and never have to go through this?

Now, of course, many people who don’t protect themselves may never get skin cancer. And certainly, you can roll the dice, if you wish. And I don’t mean to make myself out to be perfect, but there are certain things I do regularly so that it has become natural for me and I don’t have to remember to do it. It’s automatic. And, by the way, I was never this careful or disciplined before my husband died of skin cancer. That tragedy was an unfortunate motivator.

But maybe you could use me as your motivator, knowing a little bit about what my husband, Jerry, went through and what I went through as his wiife.

From the moment he was diagnosed to the day he died 6 years later, I had my heart in my mouth. I was in a quiet panic, sometimes not so quiet. I did everything I could for him, starting with researach for doctors and hospitals to treatments and calling anyone I knew who had experience with skin cancer for advice.

I was careful not to have us socialize with anyone who had even the slighest cold. It might compromise his immune system.

Right off the bat he had a very bad diagnosis. I knew one day in the not too distant future it would take his life. I had never gone through death before like I knew I would have to with him. And I was panicked about that, too.

And I loved him. Everything he had to go through was hell for him, and a different kind of hell for me.

And then there was what would become false hope…a new drug, in trials. Could that save him? He tried it. He tried everything suggested. He was a trooper.

But in the end he died. And for what? Skin cancer…a disease that can be prevented.

I hope you check yourself once a month after reading this. I hope if you see a mole that doesn’t look right or a sore that doesn’t heal, you’ll make an appointment with your dermatologist and not let it wait.

I hope you will take the opportunity my husband didn’t take, and that’s to use sunscreen, and reapply it liberally every two hours if you swim or sweat and wear a wide-brimmed hat and don’t bake in the sun or at a tanning salon (he never saw the inside of a tanning salon but 3 million people a year do). In short, I hope you choose to save yourself. Only you can do it.

I had no idea when I lost my husband to skin cancer that I would one day be manufacturing sun umbrellas and sun hats. It was to some extent serendipitous finding the UV fabric which is where it all began, but the fact that I stuck to it like glue meant the seeds of power and passion were already there.

The task of developing the fabric into umbrellas and later hats was so daunting, nothing less than the power of passion could have accomplished it. I had no background and no training in manufacturing anything, let alone in China. I knew nothing about importing. I never heard of the term, ‘freight forwarder’ or F.O.B. or any of the numerous terms and functions that accompanied making these products.

The process could give the term ‘premature aging’ a whole new meaning. Learning something new every 3 seconds, however, turned out to be an extremely stimulating experience and at the end of the manufacturing journey, selling to customers, was the most satisfying.

When I received emails thanking me for making these products…from customers who had Lupus, or another medical issue, to people who were just going on a trip and wanted protection while they were sightseeing, all the challenges seemed worthwhile.

If something strikes you in a certain way and you think you want to carve out a path for yourself in a new profession or even hobby, look deep. You may find the power behind the passion behind it and enabling that to come forward may propel you to greater heights than you could have ever imagined.

When I tried to stop smoking, I honestly don’t know what was worse…smoking and trying to ignore those voices in my head that told me I could get lung cancer, or not smoking and fighting the cravings morning, noon and night.

I actually think the voices of peril were worse because they finally won out. I eventually stopped. At first, I wouldn’t even consider thinking about it. My family smoked and I started smoking as a young woman.

It was many, many years later that the voices of peril started to have an effect on me. I told myself I could cut down first, and that’s what I did. First, I got down to about 12 cigarettes a day. No mean feat. Then 8, then 6. But I couldn’t give it up entirely. I still heard the voices of peril and they were driving me crazy.

I was as mentally obsessed with smoking as ever, maybe worse. I thought about it all the time.

Finally, one day I got an odd break. My father who had smoked for 50 years quit cold turkey. And I thought if he could do that I could go the rest of the way. I had to go the rest of the way.

I don’t know how it would have turned out if he hadn’t quit. It obviously was going to take some kind of shocker to get me to complete the goal, but, as I said, I got strangely lucky.

Now, as to sun protection. Many people ignore the warnings. “I won’t get cancer until I’m older,” some say. Then, when you’re older, “It’s too late now, anyway, the damage was done when I was younger.”

There’s nothing like a good rationalization.

Then, maybe you wear sunscreen…once in awhile. Those voices start inside your head. Once in awhile you start wearing a hat but don’t really pay attention as to what kind of hat it is or how wide the brim. You think you’re helping yourself. Rather, you tell yourself your helping yourself.

But one day you may wake up. A good friend tells you she has skin cancer. Or you have your first bout with skin cancer. Maybe somebody you know dies from it. Does anyone really die of skin cancer? Yes. Yes, they do.

But the sun feels so good. Yes, it does. I agree with you! So take 5 minutes — with sunscreen on and hat nearby. Get 5 good minutes of feeling that wonderful warmth. And then protect yourself. The voices will stop, the wonder will stop, and you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing you’re taking good care of yourself. And that’s worth something, isn’t it?

Do you use any excuse to get a tan? Do you feel you look your best with a tan? Before you go out on a date or to a special event is going to a tanning salon on your to-do list?

How could someone be addicted to sun?

Ans. The same way they can be addicted to sex, overspending, smoking, drugs.

If it makes you feel good, and you COUNT on it to make you feel good, and you don’t feel the same about yourself if you don’t do it and if in the end it could be deadly, you’re pretty much addicted.

How can you feel good about yourself without it? Well, there are other, safer ways of getting a tan…like using the fake stuff. Well, it’s not as much fun as baking in the sun, but what the heck, you can have your cake and eat it, too. That’s worth something, isn’t it?

If you use a tanning salon under age 35, your chances for getting melanoma increases by 75%.

Melanoma is now #2 of the most common cancers to hit young women between 20-29.

It’s not just old people that are getting melanoma anymore. If’s affecting younger and younger people, sometimes even children.

What can you do to stop the addiction?

1. Have a talk with yourself. Your addiction isn’t you.
2. You could have a serious self-esteem issue. For this, you may need counseling.
3. This is drastic so be prepared: go to a hospital and ask to visit with a melanoma patient. See what
life is like for them.
4. Be glad you’re still alive and healthy and have your life ahead of you…to self-destruct, or pave a positive
path for yourself.

Aside from any money you might make, really reaching people is a powerful validation, and a great motivator for continuing to give speeches.

Another validation, perhaps even more powerful, is to receive a separate comment made by an individual in the group. To this point, I received a letter from a woman who had been in the group to whom I was speaking. She wrote that after hearing me speak she went to see her dermatologist and he had discovered some skin damage that was of concern and that she would be getting treatment for it, and she wanted me to know that she took this action as a result of listening to me.

Now I was the one who was touched.

This letter was completely unsolicited, but a good reason for inviting feedback (I give a form to every individual). It lets people know you’re open to receiving the good, the bad and the ugly (well, maybe not the ugly). And this paves the way for someone to drop you an unsolicited email to you sometime after the speech is given.

I didn’t plan this out but I recall that some of the people in the group started asking questions just a few minutes after I began. I must have given off an open-to-hear-you vibe and it made for a much livelier evening than if I had just talked endlessly.

So, when you go to give a speech, by just keeping openness in mind, not only will you be giving something precious to your audience, but you yourself may receive unexpected and prized jewels as a result which will make your life much richer and deeper than if you had kept the channels to communication closed.

My husband, Jerry, was ill with skin cancer and we were fairly limited in the things we could do. I hadn’t given one second’s thought to a puppy.

And then one day my life changed. We were living in an apartment that didn’t allow dogs, but on this day, I walked into the apartment lobby and I saw some people playing with a puppy.

“What’s his name?” I asked. They told me the name. I called the puppy and he came over to me, but he didn’t walk like other dogs. He raised his entire body and, with legs straight, hopped over to me like a rabbit. I had never seen anything like it.

I said, “What is it?”

“Wheaten terrier,” he answered.

I was mesmerized.

“I met the most remarkable puppy,” I told Jerry later. I don’t remember his reaction, but I know I had become obsessed.

I got the name of a breeder with wheaten puppies and made an appointment.

The breeder let me into her home and led me upstairs to the puppies. She told me on the way up that no decisions would be made until they were about 9 weeks old, that they wanted to see who would be a show dog and who wouldn’t.

I was completely taken by the little boy with the turquoise ribbon around the neck. But she would make no commitment.

I saw the puppy two weeks later and was even more enchanted. But still the breeder would not commit.

Two weeks later there was a message on my machine. “We just wanted to let you know we feel you’ll give the puppy a good home and …”

And that’s all I needed to hear. I was ecstatic, literally jumping up and down. Jerry was so very ill, but he was smiling and so happy for me. It was sweet and so touching.

Every minute spent with Zacky was great. He was such a novelty to us both.

Three months went by like nothing. We took Zacky to Marina del Rey to see the boats and the ducks (he could have cared less!), we took him to the park after he got all his shots, and we took him to breakfast outdoors. We had someone to play with who made us chuckle and that was a good thing.

And then one day, suddenly, Jerry had a severe downturn. It was clear he was dying.

No matter how much you expect death, nothing can prepare you for the unbearable silence after a loved one is gone. If it hadn’t been for Zacky, I don’t know how I would have gotten through it.

Zacky gave me many gifts, but the greatest gift was that by having a dog, that meant part of my “job” was to play with him. He was born to play. The concept delighted me.

Honestly, most of the time I felt I had a human being living with me. We’d play hide and seek the way I did with my childhood dog, Rusty. But Zacky couldn’t find me worth his soul. He’s be one foot from me and couldn’t see me sticking out behind the bathroom door.

Zacky and I were together for 12 years and 4 months. I adored him. He gave me such tremendous joy, and I tried to make him happy in any way I could.

After he died last year, May 6, 2008, I was inconsolable. If I could have died with him I would have. He was everything to me.

As long as I live, I will never forget him. I will never stop wishing he was with me. I gave him a million hugs, but a million more would never be enough.

I hope maybe one day to get another wheaten puppy, but I don’t know if it will be possible. I don’t know how I could love it and not constantly think of Zacky.

But I suspect that if and when I’m ready to have another loving relationship with a pet, I will get some advice from a few good friends who have gone through this. To enjoy a pet’s very unique and precious gifts of boundless love and limitless joy is worth anything.