My Honored Teammate

Well, the race is only 2 1/2 days away, and I thought it was important to remind everyone why I chose to do Team in Training with The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Everyone knows now that I went through treatment for acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) 2 1/2 years ago, and I went into remission following my first chemotherapy in the hospital. However, for my survival story, there are unfortunately many stories about patients who succumbed to blood cancers. And I want to take some time to introduce you to my honored teammate, George Blatnik. I am walking in his memory.

George was my cousins' cousin, and he was diagnosed with AML in 1993. At the time, he was going for his Master's of Science in Business Administration. Although I never met him, I have heard stories, and family, friends and coworkers describe him as kind, conscientious, considerate, and very lovable. His faith played a central role in his life, as did humor...he loved to laugh. He was responsible, hard-working, and dedicated. When he was diagnosed, he was in his late twenties and his future was bright with possibility.

He received a bone marrow transplant following diagnosis, but he passed away not long after. He was 28. When you look at these photos of him, you can get a sense of the personality that was described to me, and it makes me wonder, "Why did he die and I live?", "Will they ever know enough about this disease to truly understand it?" These questions don't have answers, at least not yet. Maybe we don't need answers to these questions right now--we just need to maintain hope that research will address them and perhaps even one day result in the eradication of blood cancers.

I hope George is looking down on me on Sunday and smiling at all the Team members who are running and walking to cure blood cancers...I know I will be thinking of him when I pass each mileage post and cross the finish line. I am so lucky to be here and to be healthy enough to participate, but I will carry his spirit with me for strength and hope, and thinking of his smile in these photos will help push me along when I start feeling tired.

So if you say a prayer for me on race day, don't forget George and his family because I consider them all my honored teammates.

Less Than a Week Away!!

Lori and Tim got married Saturday---woooohooo!!!! It was just the perfect day...well, they had to have the wedding inside instead of out due to the heat, but you cannot pick your weather! When I say "the perfect day", I'm referring to everything else---the ceremony, the reception, of course the dancing. :) They have such a wonderful network of family and friends, and it was the celebration we were all awaiting.

The only negative thing I could say is that it just went by way too quickly!!! I'm looking forward to seeing all their pictures and the wedding video....
well, except for one thing. The videographer taped almost all the dancing---I mean, it's good and it's bad. I was out on the dance floor pretty much the whole evening, as were many other guests--I mean, this was a dancing wedding!!!--not much sitting on the sidelines. Sooooo, this means he got all my moves on tape...and don't get me wrong, I've got some good moves (if I do say so myself!!), but I'm also a bit goofy and I was supersweaty---yah, not so sexy. :) Oh well, Laura will be right there with me in all the shots so I shouldn't be too worried, right?

I do have some slight injuries from dancing---some bruises on my right foot---don't ask me how that happened! And no, I was not drunk!! I was just in my dancing zone, and apparently when I'm there, I feel no pain. I'll survive though---no permanent damage that should affect my walking in the race on Sunday! I definitely think my dancing Saturday was a wonderful substitution for my walking 6 miles...maybe I should suggest a dance-a-thon to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for fundraising!

I think dancing must also help blood numbers because I got another wonderful report yesterday!!! My hemoglobin, hematocrit, white count and platelets all look almost normal!!! Woohoo!! I don't know what to attribute it too, so I think I'll just keep up with all the following: dancing, walking, and drinking red wine and sangria. After I left the doctor's office, I treated myself to An Arby's roast beef sandwich, curly fries and a jamoca shake--mmmmm---it was a nice reward!!!

And now I'm off to the gym! I will miss Chuck, but I know I can do this alone!! I will keep you posted! I have to keep up the workout so I can wear more hot pink strapless dresses in the future!!! I loved that dress!! And Lori, isn't she goooorgeous?!!!! And Tim, of course, is very handsome!!!! :)

I was just remembering that it was about two years ago that I went into the hospital with a low-grade fever, about a month or so after my final chemo. That evening, the fever reached 106.8, and my entire family (well, everyone except my mom...she was already at the hospital with me, my loyal roommate) showed up in the hospital room at 2 in the morning, apparently racing through red lights to get there. I was conscious throughout, although I felt like I was seeing things through a cloud. When they all showed up, I told them they were scaring me--why were they there in the middle of the night? They stayed for a while, and the nurses were able to lower my temp with the help of a cooling blanket and ice packs.
Talking with my family later on, I realized that I was actually the one who scared them. The temperature was the highest the 9th floor at Fairfax had seen. Luckily I never had a seizure which was a very good thing, but I learned that everyone thought they might lose me that night, the evening before a picnic Katie scheduled to help raise money for the "Light the Night Walk" with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
It's funny how your mind works---the thought of dying never crossed my mind that night until I saw the reactions of my family. It scared me, and I realized that no matter what I did---my walking 1 mile a day for exercise, cleaning my catheter, monitoring my symptoms, eating and drinking well---I was at the mercy of my body and any infections that might arise. I thought more about dying and about how dangerous leukemia was. For a long time I worried about it. But then I thought, "What will my worrying do to change things? All I can do is what the doctors tell me and I can stay positive and surround myself with everyone who makes me laugh and smile and look forward to each day. After that, I have no control." Thinking like this has helped me a lot. There are still times when I get scared or worried...and sometimes cry, but I remind myself that I am here today, and if the leukemia were to ever come back, I can always beat it again.
I know, this is a serious posting. :) I thought it was important to contrast this August with the one two years past. I am so proud that I walked 12 miles yesterday. Doing that one mile when I was sick was often a challenge, so 12 miles is a feat I thought unsurpassable two years ago. Yesterday, I felt like I could have done several more!
Last night I went to a "celebrate life" party for a friend in my young adult support group and it was wonderful! It's so important to just take the time and enjoy your friends and family and celebrate your health. Two years ago, I spent about a week in the hospital wondering when or if my life would ever be normal again, and now I am so happy...that's really just the best word for it. I feel like I am constantly adding to a growing network of friends--with Team in Training and my Life with Cancer support group, and all those I meet along the way.
The walking seems like an analogy for life: the trails differ and sometimes the people change, but you keep your head up and your eyes looking forward, and you will reach your destination, wherever it may be...and the best thing about it is the encouragement you receive along the way from familiar faces.

This image is a picture of what I saw when I left my house at 5:15 this morning to meet up with my team and walk 12 miles. It's actually a very rare star that you only see early in the morning.....just kidding, it's my doorbell! :) hahahaha I bet you believed me. Anyway, I just wanted everyone to get a sense of the commitment I have to get my butt up at 4 AM---YES, you read right!--4 AM so I can eat breakfast 2 hours before walking, and then get all my stuff together.
The walking went really well--I felt good the entire time! My legs are a little tired right now, but for doing 12 miles (in 3 hours, 9 minutes, thank you!), they are doing well. We walked on the Capital Crescent Trail which is a beautiful, shady trail that runs from Georgetown to Silver Spring, MD. There weren't as many bikers on this trail, but there were several who were totally crazy and flew through the center of the trail without a care about the walkers and runners crowded around. Honestly, they need to just calm down. The culprits were not the lycra-clad-hunched-over-their-handlebars-types, but rather the non-helmet-wearing-stupid-young-guys-types. But, I still enjoyed the walk! Having people to talk to makes it go by so much faster, and everytime you see someone else from Team in Training on the trail, you cheer each other on--it's very motivational. I'm sad because it was my last training before the race, which is two weeks from tomorrow!! Next Saturday I can't make it because my friend, Lori, is getting married. I figured I would just substitute dancing for my 6-mile walk. :)
I also found out that the top fundraisers get special bib #s (1-10) which is cool!! They congratulated me for being one of the top people----thanks to all of you, of course!!! You're making me look good. :)
Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys this gorgeous weekend--it is breezy and beautiful outside, just the perfect day. I will enjoy it some more later; for now, I'm off to take a little nap. What? Don't give me a hard time---I deserve it today!

An Adventurous Day!

Well, today started out as any other Monday. I met with Chuck to do some weight training, and afterwards I treated myself to a Caribou coffee and one of their "mountain berry" muffins---they are deeeeelicious AND low-fat!!! Then I came home to do a couple things before running some errands. Jameson and Guinness were waiting by the window, tails a waggin', tongues leaving sloppy kisses on the glass. Jameson ran past me as I opened the door and headed straight for his ball. I threw him the ball and tossed the frisbee several times to Guinness, however Guinness gets easily sidetracked so he left to go sniff bushes, grass, poop and whatever else he could find. Jameson focused all his Border Collie energy on the ball.
We were deeply involved in our game when I heard Guinness make a strange sound (not a bad sound, just like he was very excited about something). I turned around and saw he was playing with what I thought was Bella, our cat...but alas it was not. It was a skunk. Well, I can't say I handled this very calmly. Guinness was face to face with the cute little guy and I figured if he hadn't already been sprayed, the danger of this happening was imminent. I yelled and Guinness ran toward me, excited to show me what he had found. That's strange, I didn't notice the smell yet so maybe I had a chance. I grabbed him and took him in the house and he did not smell!!! Woohoo!! I turned around to find that Jameson had shifted his focus from the ball.
He cornered the skunk against the house and they confronted each other face to face. I figured I would spend the rest of the day...and week, bathing Jameson with tomato juice, but instead of spraying, the skunk stuck his little head up and bit Jameson on the nose. Jameson cried and came inside and he did not smell!!! Man, was I lucky! I checked him for cuts and punctures and couldn't find anything. I spoke with someone at my vet's office and they said to just monitor him and make sure there's no broken skin or puncture wound. He's fine...a little shaken up by the skunk who kicked his butt, but OK. :)
So while the dogs were going crazy in the house running and barking, I decided to go back out to document our little visitor. Yah, maybe not smart, but I figured my luck would continue. And because of my bravery, you have the beautiful photo I have included (I also got a video, but I'm not sure how to put it on the blog). The skunk was pretty freakin' cute, but he just moseyed through our yard like he didn't have a care in the world...well, technically, I guess he waddled. I don't think they're the fastest creatures. When I followed him to the side of the yard, I came upon this beautiful deer, who promptly ran off as soon as "Flower" (isn't that the skunk's name in "Bambi"? :) ) waddled out of the bushes into the grass. He went into the woods and continued on his merry way. Will he come back for another visit? I'll let you know! Keep your fingers crossed that if he does, he doesn't decide to give us a more "scent"ual greeting!
As for my training, I feel like I am on track (no pun intended)!! I found out today that there are 61 people in my race. I think my fundraising last week will definitely kick that other person out of second place!! :)

So what did you all do this morning? I woke up at 4:15 and drove out
to Sterling to walk 10 miles! There was a bit of a rough stretch
about 2 miles into it, but the cramps only lasted about 1 1/2 miles--I
write "only" now, but then it felt like they lasted forever!! Finally
I was able to pick up my speed and make up some time. The 10 miles
took me a little over 3 hours which isn't great, but given my very
slow saunter in the middle of the walk, I was happy with myself! It
didn't feel like 10 miles. I think the trick is just adding a couple
more miles at a time. You start talking to people, and the mileage
just rolls by. When you think of it as 2 or 3 miles at a time, before
you know it, you've hit 7 or 8 miles, and you only have a couple to
go! And the cool thing about walking is that, no matter how fast
you're going, each foot you place in front of the other puts you
closer to your destination (hmm...that seems like something Yogi Berra
would say!). You're always moving forward, and anyone is capable of
doing it...that is what I took out of today's workout!!
I received an e-mail the other day from Team in Training listing the
amount that participants have raised for the fall season...this
includes all the races. The amount so far is $$837,465.79---isn't
that amazing? AND, even more exciting, they list the top three
fundraisers for each race, and I am #3 for the VA Beach 1/2 marathon!
This includes runners, walkers and run-walkers---I'm not sure how many
there are, but there are definitely more than 3. :) Following my
fundraising at Grevey's this past week, which went really well, and
donations I've received recently, I will go up to the number 2 top
fundraiser!! So, thank you everyone. I have exceeded my goal,
although this is not reflected on my website yet because everything
has to go through the accounting side at The Leukemia and Lymphoma
Society. So far, I have raised $5,786.75!

One final note: click here to check out my radio spot on WJFK (see my
blog from Friday, June 22). They sent me a copy recently and I wanted
to share it!

Things are looking up!!

Well, I don't know whether it's all the exercise, the sangría I've enjoyed this summer, or a combination of both, but my hemoglobin and hematocrit are the highest they've been! (I only mention sangría because I like to think that consuming any type of red wine helps with the red cell count...you know, red cells, red wine...there must be some correlation!) I saw my doctor Monday and he was very excited to share my numbers with me...well, white count still isn't superspectacular, but it's not bad either, BUT my hemoglobin was 10.4 and my hematocrit 31.1! I haven't had a hematocrit over 29 in I don't know how long!!! It's been fluctuating between 27 or so and 29 for so many months. And another thing, my platelets are at 147,000! My mom said it's so nice to look at my "report card" of blood numbers and not see an "L" next to some of them (it stands for "low").

As far as my training, I did my cross training yesterday--yoga--and I slept well last night! I have been having lots of weird nightmares lately and have had trouble sleeping, so last night was a nice treat. :) However, because I was sleeping so well, when my alarm went off at 5:30 this morning to get my butt up and go do some speed training on the track at Lake Braddock, I decided that I should enjoy sleeping a little longer since it's been so elusive lately...and I did it again at 6:30...and 8:30. I like to tell myself that it's important to listen to my body because, after all, I did have leukemia and I need to take care of it. But I am npw realizing that I overuse that excuse, when the real reason I'm not getting up is simply because I don't feel like it. I can sleep, so I do! Boy will it be a shock when I do find a job and have to get up early EVERY morning!

So as for today's training, I've decided to go to the gym and do it on a treadmill because I absolutely cannot bear the thought of being outside for any amount of time. I know, I know, my race will be outside, but I am really banking on the fact that this nasty, unsafe weather will be gone by then. It's always good to hope for the best!

Only One Month Away!

August 2nd, only one month away (to the day) from my race!! Thanks for rooting for me, everyone!! Today was an excellent training day. I started off with a visit to Chuck who has really helped me get back into shape following leukemia--we meet twice a week and work on strength training, and I have improved a lot since I first started lifting again (if I do say so myself!--I hope Chuck agrees!!). He makes it fun so working out is something I look forward to, and he encourages me so it's something that I now know I can do! Thanks, Chuck!!! You have to look really hard, but maybe you'll see some muscle tone in my arms. :) Yah, I know, you have to have supersonic vision...my legs are much stronger, but I'm working on it!!
To end my day, I walked around Burke Lake again. I was only supposed to do 3 1/2 miles today (Burke Lake is 4 1/2), but I just couldn't bear the idea of walking somewhere that wasn't shaded (i.e. most of my neighborhood). The photos are from yesterday, when Laura joined me on the trails.
I must say that bikers and yes, some runners, are really starting to irritate me now. So many bikers hog the whole trail and force you onto the side--this is especially annoying when they're speeding and they come from out of nowhere! As for runners, well, the only thing I can think is that they have the mindset that running trumps walking (even if I'm being superspeedy!!) so even if there are only two of them side by side, they decide it's necessary to monopolize the ENTIRE trail, forcing myself (and Laura or whoever is with me) off to the side! Well, NOT ANY MORE!! I will stand my ground and force them to their side--maybe I'll even accidentally knock some of the bikers off to the ground (I always remember that funny scene from "Big Daddy" where Adam Sandler and the little boy throw sticks in the road at the park to watch people fall. :) ). OK, I probably won't do that, but I'm not budging!! Unless of course it appears to be an imminent collision--I'm not willing to injure myself just to prove a point!
Whew--I'm glad I got that off my chest...so if you happen to be one of these thoughtless, I'm-the-only-important-one-on-the-trail biker or runner, cut it out!!!! No one thinks you're cool.
Anywayyyyy, so tomorrow is a rest day and I'm looking forward to that!!! I wish the nasty weather would improve! I heard on the news today that on these code orange days, a typical adult loses up to 20% of his lung capacity! I can certainly feel it! No worries though--I'm constantly listening to cues from my body (as I think I will for the rest of my life!!!) and I drink Gatorade or water throughout the day. I always thought I hated Gatorade, but I have come to love the grape and fruit punch flavors, and I'm very thankful to whoever invented it...it really is the "thirst quencher". Now I just have to find an energy snack that doesn't taste like crap...I don't mind the Luna bars, and I've heard about some Jelly Bellies that are good! They require us to carry a snack now that our weekend mileage is long. Any recommendations anyone?