The Assertive Cancer Patient

'Boob Joke' Research

Dee, who has a blog of her own (See Dee Updates), has asked for our help.

She wants to write an academic paper on boob jokes.

Dee is a college professor who lives in Oregon. She is going through her second round of treatment for breast cancer--hence the sudden interest in boob jokes.

Go to Dee's post to leave your jokes, comments, and wise observations:

The Anthropology of Boobs

To read more of what I think of breasts and boobs, go to these categories:

Breasts and Boobs
(scroll down)

The One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show

And:

Retiring Jabba

@ Jeanne Sather 2008.

Komen Accepts $$ from Jingle Jugs

Well, the question posed by our contest, How LOW Will Komen GO?, may have been answered.

Here's a photo showing some unidentified, but smiling, Komen reps accepting a check for $50,000 from the folks at Jingle Jugs, which markets life-sized boobs that dance and sing. It targets the Frat Boy market.

The special pink-ribbon set (there are no post-mastectomy, one-breasted versions) comes with a special tune about breast cancer. Can't wait to hear it.

Komen--What were you thinking? How about good taste? How about the feelings of women who have lost one or both breasts to cancer? Do you think we find this amusing, or even OK?

The answer is, NO. We feel exploited.

Debs' nomination:

How LOW Will Komen GO?: A New Front Runner?

Support this blog:

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

M&Ms & Cancer: The Mosaic

I've been waiting all afternoon for the Elmer's glue to dry on my mosaic so that I could take a digital photo to post. Patience is not my strong suit, as my regular readers know, and one of my friends has been sending me regular e-mails, "Is it dry yet? Is it dry yet?"

The mosaic, made completely of M&Ms, with a few red vines for outlines, is titled: What I See in the Mirror Every Morning (And It Ain't Pretty)

The most difficult artistic challenge was to make sure as many of the M&Ms as possible were right side up, to give Mars Inc. which makes the pink M&Ms, the most exposure possible.

Support this blog:

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

The One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show: Rebel1in8 Jeanne's Black Sweater

Here's another one-of-a-kind piece that Jacqueline made for me.

I took the sweater, a black, stretch velvet that I've had for several years, with me when I went to visit Jacqueline in New York a few weeks ago. We looked through the samples she has in the loft, and I chose one similar to this as a model for Jacqueline to follow.

The sweater should be on its way to me as I write this, and I can't wait. It's the perfect weight for the Seattle fall (at least on clear days), and I think the button really makes it.

Of course, my second home is Japan, and the Japanese look of that button really appeals to me.

It's been more than two weeks since I retired Jabba, my right boob, and I don't miss him at all. In fact, I am sitting in the window of a coffee shop in Vancouver, B.C., wearing a sleeveless black top, Jabba-less, and no one is paying any attention. Not a second glance.

Jacqueline designs and makes Rhea Belle clothes, for one-breasted or no-breasted women, like me. Her slogan: Not a statistic. More than fashion. It's a rebellion.

See a similar sweater Jacqueline has on her slide show Bridges and Bows No. 2.

Go to Jacqueline's blog, Rebel1in8.

To order clothing, contact: Jacqueline@rebel1in8.com.

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

The One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show: Rebel1in8 Comfy Cotton Rusche

It's been more than two weeks since I retired Jabba, my right boob, and I don't miss him at all.

I don't feel embarrassed to go out in public, and, amazingly, no one seems to notice that I don't have a right breast. If people DO stare, I assume they are looking at the great clothes Jacqueline has made for me. Or they are admiring my smile and my sunny attitude!

Talk about coming out of the closet. Another bonus--my back bothers me much less than it did when I wore Jabba. I think because Jabba was uncomfortable, I was fidgeting and fussing and it caused stress and tightness in my upper back.

That's gone now.

Here's the latest of the designs Jacqueline of Rhea Belle has made for me. She e-mailed me the photos, so the shirt isn't in my hands yet. (Wish my waist was anywhere close to as skinny as that of the dressmaker's dummy) When I get it I'll go out and take photos at some good Seattle spot--the Pike Place Market, maybe, or the Space Needle, and e-mail the photos to Jaccqueline for her blog.

Jacqueline designs and makes Rhea Belle clothes, for one breasted or no-breasted women, like me. Her slogan: Not a statistic. More than fashion. It's a rebellion.

See the Comfy Cotton Rusche, and more, on the slide show.

Go to Jacqueline's blog, Rebel1in8.

To order clothing, contact: Jacqueline@rebel1in8.com.

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

Retiring Jabba=One-Breasted Woman Fashion

This is a happy photo of me at Coney Island on Labor Day, one of the best days of my life in recent memory. Jacqueline took the photo.

Right now, the posts on my blog go in two related directions:

Retiring Jabba

and

The One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show

A note on Coney Island:
When Jacqueline and I arrived at Coney Island, there were fire trucks, helicopters, mounted cops, sirens, and all sorts of confusion. Swimmers had been called out of the water, and the boardwalk was crammed with people debating whether or not someone had drowned or been eaten by a shark.

We carried on with our mission, which was to take photos of me, Jabba-less, wearing Jacqueline's clothing, in front of the famous ferris wheel. We succeeded, and didn't learn what had happened until we returned home. Apparently, a baby shark had gotten in among the swimmers and was rescued by a brave lifeguard who swam it back out to sea.

If this is an urban legend, please don't e-mail and tell me so. I like this story.

If you are looking for my personal ad, or an update on what is happening with my search for a Canadian husband, go to this link: Dating

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

Retiring Jabba

For those of you who are new to my blog, Jabba is my right breast. Actually, by my definition, Jabba is a boob, not a breast, because he is made of silicone, not skin, fat, glands, and nerves.

In any case, Jabba has been around for almost nine years, ever since my mastectomy in October of 1998. The Jabba in the photo is, in fact, Jabba IV, since I have lost several Jabbas to cat attacks and other similar disasters.

In case you haven't guessed, Jabba was named for Jabba the Hutt, of "Starwars" fame, and he resides, when not tucked into the right cup of my 36-D underwire bra, in a special box made by my cousin and labeled, "Jabba's Hut."

Despite my humor on the subject of Jabba, our relationship has been a rocky one. I never wear Jabba at home, and don't wear him when I walk my dog. The only time Jabba is part of my attire is when I get dressed, put on makeup, and go out, for appointments and meetings of various types or to do errands--the bank, grocery store, and so on.

The first thing I do when I get home is pull Jabba out of my bra and throw him somewhere. I used to just throw him on the bed or couch, or maybe tuck him under a pillow on the couch, to avoid embarrassing my then-teenaged sons, but I've learned that it is safest to actually put him away, to avoid the aforementioned cat attacks.

The first cat attack that doomed Jabba was a subtle one. If you have a cat, you know that cats like to knead their claws into their owners when being held and stroked. If I hold one of my cats up to my shoulder, he automatically kneads my chest. But, because Jabba isn't real, I can't feel those sharp claws.

Result--pinprick holes, oozing silicone jell.

Temporary Solution--Bandaids.

Real Solution--Buy a new Jabba, at a cost of $200 to $400.

The second cat attack was a deliberate one. I had thrown Jabba (II or III, I forget) onto the chair in my bedroom when I went to bed. During the night, two cats attacked Jabba, leaving long brutal wounds, again oozing large amounts of silicone. There was no way that bandaids were going to repair this boob, even temporarily, and I learned that no matter how tired I was, I needed to put Jabba away before bed.

A very expensive lesson. I ordered my newest Jabba online and paid something like $200 for him.

After long years of ambivalence, I was getting very tired of Jabba. (A sidenote: I never considered having reconstruction, and wouldn't. The biggest reason is all that surgery. The second is that all you end up with is a "breast shape." But to each her own. Please do not e-mail me recommending reconstruction--I have already solved this problem.)

As I said, I was getting tired of Jabba. Even with a well-fitting bra, I am aware that I’m wearing him, and I sweat under the prosthesis in the summer, and sometimes end up with a rash, which is not comfortable.

Then just as I was leaning toward ditching Jabba altogether and going out into the world with only one breast, along came Jacqueline, of Rebel1in8.

Amazing. Another woman who feels as I do, and who has done something about it. A whole lot of something: Jacqueline designed a whole line of clothing for women who have had mastectomies and don't want reconstruction or a prosthesis.

As I've said elsewhere on this blog, I went to New York City over the Labor Day weekend to meet Jacqueline and have her make me some clothes. She produced the first two shirts almost immediately, while I was still there, and we took pictures of me in her loft and also at Coney Island, my favorite.

I just got an e-mail from Jacqueline this morning saying that two more of my shirts will be on their way to me shortly.

In the meantime, see the One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show

A footnote: I haven't worn Jabba since Labor Day, and I don't intend to. I guess he is retired for good.

Read more about breasts and boobs:

I never wanted a mastectomy, but who does?:
Of Boobs and Breasts, Real and Silicone

I didn't kiss it goodbye, but almost:
Saying Goodbye

The innocence of children, or perhaps a perverse interest in all things medical:
Waking Up After Surgery: “Did You Lose the Breast?”

Do you want a "breast shape"? Not me:
Reconstruction: to Rebuild, or Not?

This was a tough one. I took the innocent kid along for protection:
Shopping for a New Boob

Introducing Jabba
A Boob Named Jabba

More on Jabba:
Life With Jabba

Yes, there is sex after a mastectomy:
Sex and the One-Breasted Woman

"Well, at least you only have to get it on one side," my aunt jokes:
The One-Breasted Woman Gets a Mammogram, Reluctantly

Don’t like that word, “prosthesis,” never have, never will:
Fake Body Parts

Sara contributed this tidbit of knowledge: the German word for a woman's breast is masculine in gender:
More Fake Body Parts

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

The One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show: The Designer, Jacqueline Skaggs

You say ree-bel, I say reb-el.

No matter how you pronounce it, Rebel1in8 and the Rhea Belle line of clothing and jewelry are revolutionary.

Jacqueline Skaggs and I met through our cancer blogs and our mutual distaste for pink ribbon marketing (See Boycott October). She is a breast cancer survivor, and also an artist, and a jewelry and clothing designer.

Jacqueline's clothing and her jewelry are political. The beading on the jewelry "represents the 2004 statistic 'one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer,'" Jacqueline says. But the message is subtle. You can wear the jewelry because you want to make a political statement about the growing numbers of women diagnosed with breast cancer, or you can wear them because you like the elegant designs, or both.

Jacqueline describes her clothing as "renovated fashion designed to embrace a women's natural architecture."

She writes, "Rhea Belle is a post-mastectomy clothing concept born from a passion to create clothing for women who have had a single or bi-lateral mastectomy and are moving forward without reconstructive surgery or prostheses.

"With a utilitarian approach Rhea Belle garments are created by renovating existing garments and design elements. Rhea Belle invites women to embrace their natural architecture with comfort and peaceful resolve at every dawn."

In other words, throw away that uncomfortable, expensive prosthesis (typically, a breast prosthesis costs $200-$300) and gets some fun, funky clothes that make you feel and look good about the body you have.

Jacqueline does not discriminate: women who have not had breast cancer are welcome to buy and wear her clothes as well as those of us who are breast cancer survivors.

Jacqueline was born in Indiana, and now lives in a loft in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband John, also an artist. She is "number eight" in a family of eight children, and her identical twin sister lives in the loft next door with her husband.

"After my second breast cancer diagnosis at the age of 40, I became a committed crusader--out to rally for dignity in a post-mastectomy world of oppressive conventions that lie deep in the folds of a pink satin ribbon," she says.

Go to her blog to see what Jacqueline has done with the annoying, ubiquitous pink ribbon:

Rebel1in8

See the rest of the One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show

To order clothing, contact: Jacqueline@rebel1in8.com.

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

The One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show: Rebel1in8 Jeanne's Red Wrap

This is MY shirt.

Jacqueline made it for me Labor Day weekend when I went to visit her in New York. I wore it to Coney Island on Labor Day, and it was my first trip out in public without my prosthesis in the nine years since my mastectomy (except for a couple of times that I accidentally ran out of the house without Jabba, the prosthesis, because I was in a hurry).

I'm wearing this shirt now as I type. I wore it again to head down to Pioneer Square in Seattle last Saturday to get a massage.

It's a great shirt--comfortable to wear and a perfect rosy-red color. You can wrap it four or five different ways, which is fun.

See Jeanne's red wrap, back view.

Jacqueline designs and makes Rhea Belle clothes, for one-breasted or no-breasted women, like me. Her slogan: Not a statistic. More than fashion. It's a rebellion.

Go to the Rhea Belle store.

Go to Jacqueline's blog, Rebel1in8.

To order clothing, contact: Jacqueline@rebel1in8.com.

This photo is Jacqueline and me on Coney Island, Labor Day 2007.

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

The One-Breasted Woman Fashion Show: Rebel1in8 Cotton Summer Cowl

This great shirt was a custom design Jacqueline made just for me when I was visiting her in New York.

The purpose of my visit was to meet her, as we'd been corresponding by e-mail and through our blogs for almost a year, and to order some clothes, since I had decided to retire Jabba, my prosthesis, and go out in public as a one-breasted woman.

The shirt is large, and with the loose cowl can be worn all sorts of ways. It is a variation of the white Comfy Cotton Summer Cowl that Jacqueline has in her slide show and also in her online store. As you can see from the photo, if you LOOK, you will notice that I don't have a right breast, but with the way the shirt drapes it is not obvious. I feel comfortable in public like this.

See the Comfy Cotton Summer Cowl.

Here's Jacqueline's description of the basic cowl:

This incredibly comfortable T-cowl was created with two men's fruit-of-the-loom cotton T-shirts (size small). While it washes nicely, it shrinks a tad bit as with any cotton garment. This will fit women sizes small to medium and possibly large (of course getting more form fitting). I generally wear a size s/m and this men's small fits just right as it gracefully hangs slightly off of my shoulders in a care-free kind of way.

I made myself one and I have been known to wear it four to five days straight... only to regrettably have to put it in the laundry bag. It is fabulous with a pair of jeans, comfy skirt or over a bathing suit. If you know how a men's T-shirt fits on you and you would prefer a different size I'll be thrilled to make one for you in the size of your choice--simply make a note to me after purchase. Custom orders will take me a few days (3-5) longer to ship.

Note: Mine (Jeanne's) was made from a medium men's T-shirt, and I wear a M size (10-12) in misses' clothing. I'm going to wash it today for the first time, and I expect it will shrink a bit.

You can order the white shirt through the online store, or e-mail Jacqueline if you want a custom shirt or if you have questions.

Jacqueline designs and makes Rhea Belle clothes, for one-breasted or no-breasted women, like me. Her slogan: Not a statistic. More than fashion. It's a rebellion.

Go to the Rhea Belle store.

Go to Jacqueline's blog, Rebel1in8.

To order clothing, contact: Jacqueline@rebel1in8.com.

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.