ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
BOOKS
can
do it
With a little bit of help, girlfriend!
By Irene Middleman Thomas
You Can Do It: The Merit Badge Handbook for Grown-Up Girls tells women
to “dare to dream, learn something new
and do something just for you!” Lauren
Catuzzi Grandcolas was in the midst of writing the book, her long-time passion, when she
died tragically aboard Flight 93, the plane that
went down in a Pennsylvania field on
September 11, 2001. In her honor, her sisters,
Vaughn Lohec and Dara Near, brought the
project to completion.
You Can Do It offers 60 different “
grown-up Girl Scout badges” with specific mentor-ing, advice, resources and girlfriend-like
encouragement to achieve each badge’s goals.
The activities range from car repair and filmmaking to art appreciation and stand-up comedy. There’s an unrealized dream there for just
about anyone.
COPYRIGHT BARBARA CATUZZI
step on any toes or kick anyone. I did get very
dizzy again, and had to sit out.
After Lauren Catuzzi Grandcolas (left) died
on September 11, 2001, Vaughn Catuzzi Lohec
(center) and Dara Catuzzi Near finished
their sister’s pet project: You Can Do It.
But that won’t stop me. I bought some
motion-sickness pills today, and I’ll be back
next week for the lesson. After all, “you’ll
never know how far you can go until you get
going.” Thanks to that advice from the book,
who knows how far I’ll go with my salsa?
Here I go, uno, dos, tres. … C
kicked him in the shins. Yet I loved watching
the others and felt determined to try the
class again.
Irene Middleman Thomas is a Colorado-based
writer for many local, national and international publications. She hopes to be a “dancing
queen” in the near future.
OK. So, of all the badges, I picked dancing. I couldn’t get any worse than I already
was—the bottom was a good place to start.
I’ve lived and worked in Latin America,
speak fluent Spanish and have always been
chagrined that I couldn’t dance salsa. I was
following the Dance Badge’s Step One:
“Know what moves you.” Coincidentally, a
girlfriend had been urging me to join her at
her weekly class. Now, with Lauren’s extra
encouragement, I would!
The next week, I again contemplated
skipping the class, but didn’t let myself. I
thought I had forgotten everything, but amazingly, I got it! I was moving my hips in tandem and I could feel the music’s beat. I didn’t
You Can Do It events:
To help women get started on earning their
You Can Do It badges (see story on page
21), Costco is hosting several events.
Learn to be crafty on May 1, from noon to 2
“Do go to class. If you’re grumpy, tired
and feel like anything but dancing, remember
how much better you’ll feel after class,” the
book admonished me. OK, OK!
Dance-class night came and I was very
tired. I tried to get out of going, but my friend
wouldn’t hear of it. “You’re going. Push
yourself!” Sounded like the book echoing in
my ears. So I went. As I entered the studio,
the lively music awakened me. I watched the
teacher and his best student warming up. I
was intimidated but intrigued. They looked
so fluid, so sensuous, so smooth.
p.m., at the Aurora Village, Washington,
Costco, at 1175 N. 205th with Susan
Dory and Roberta Torgerson.
You Can Do It was inspired
partially by a quote from the
movie The Shawshank
Redemption, which said “Get
busy living, or get busy dying.”
Lauren Catuzzi Grandcolas, a
real grown-up Girl Scout, never
stopped doing, learning and experiencing.
Her sisters say she treasured her girlfriends
and nurtured her relationships with them.
True to Lauren’s vision for all women to
succeed in getting in touch with and achieving their dreams, proceeds from You Can
Do It go to the Lauren Catuzzi Grandcolas
Foundation, which supports charitable
causes of interest to her, such as helping
abused women and their children.
Learn to surf on May 7, from noon to
2 p.m., at the Carlsbad, California,
Costco, at 951 Palomar Airport Road
with Izzy Tihanyi.
Learn about wine on May 21, from noon to
2 p.m., at the Santa Rosa, California,
Costco, at 1900 Santa Rosa Ave. with Cailyn
McCauley and Heidi Cusick-Dickerson.
THE COSTCO CONNECTION
When the teacher called the beginners, I
felt proud that I had the guts to at least try. That
first night, I admit, I was pretty klutzy. One
man groaned, as politely as possible, when I
You Can Do It: The Merit Badge Handbook
for Grown-Up Girls is available in most
Costco warehouses.
