The challenge

  Greetings friends! I am back from summer vacation—well actually, just a blog vacation. I follow the European blogging model, where you take a long vacation in the summer. As a result, my prose is tanned, rested, and more insightful and effective than ever.   Since I left the blogosphere, it seems the world has gone to hell. But there have been bright spots—and ABMP joined in the fun this week. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has taken the country (and some of the world) by storm, resulting in countless numbers of people dumping buckets of ice water on their heads and, most importantly, significant awareness of and financial support for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.   We joined the fun on Monday, doused ourselves, donated, and challenged some of the (in)famous names in the massage profession—social media supermaven Allissa Haines, known pot-stirrer Laura Allen, the inimitable CG Funk, our fantastic 80,000+ members of ABMP, and for good measure, our friends at the American Massage Therapy Association. Here we are in our glory: If you are reading this, consider yourself challenged! Dump some ice water on your head or, even better, donate to the ALS Association (www.alsa.org/donate/) and help eradicate one of the most sinister diseases.   Talk to you soon.