Seriously OT

As in, off topic. Here are a small sampling of photos from my recent trip to Guadeloupe. Click on any picture to enlarge:








A lot of my pictures turned out out of focus. I was using a really crappy camera (it has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I don't know how to us it. :) You can still get a sense of how beautiful it is in Guadeloupe. There see more pictures on my photo page here.

2004 Fundraising goal: $20,000
Raised to date: $25,710

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO DONATE

Thank you for your support.

Questions for Lance Part II and the Mighty Region 7B

Okay everyone. I have submitted the questions for Lance, for me to ask at the "Conversations with Lance" Program in Austin next month (see my previous post for details.) Here are the final contenders:

Do you still experience side effects from your treatment and, if so, what are they?

What exactly was the impetus behind starting the foundation?

How and to what extent are you involved in the operations of the foundation when you are not training?

Do you have any sort of spiritual practice that has aided you in your cancer battle and/or life?

What are your plans with regard to running the NYC marathon this year? (we heard a rumor. :)

Thanks to Jen, Suzanne and Michael, my LAF fundraising mentor, for the great suggestions. If anyone else has questions, please send them to me and I can still submit them in the next few days [mail @ jodisax.com].

And speaking of Michael, my LAF fundraising mentor, in our region we had the highest per fundraiser total raised in the entire Peloton Project. Yay region 7B! (NYC and parts of New Jersey.)

Questions for Lance

Today I was invited to participate in the "Conversation with Lance" program during the Ride for the Roses Weekend in Austin in October. I am one of the cancer survivors who will be on the stage during the program and gets to ask Lance questions. I'm accepting suggestions for questions. Please pass them along if you have any! (Cancer, Surivorship and LAF only please, I've been told. I'm taking this to mean that questions regarding biking and/or Sheryl Crow won't be allowed.)

Here is a description of the program:

A Conversation with Lance presented by Wells Fargo
8:00pm - 9:30pm
The Lance Armstrong Foundation invites Peloton Project members and the general public to "A Conversation with Lance", an educational event focused on cancer survivorship. Lance will be interviewed about the unique issues faced by the millions of people living with cancer. There will also be a question and answer session from a select panel of cancer survivors. The event which is sponsored by Wells Fargo, will take place on Saturday, October 16, from 8:00-9:30 p.m. at the Austin Convention Center with doors opening at 7:00 p.m.

* * *

Another great day for fundraising! Thank you, thank you!

2004 Fundraising goal: $20,000
Raised to date: $25,660

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO DONATE

LAF Envoy and the Big 25K

Tonight I had the honor of being asked by LAF to accept an award on their behalf from CancerCare, an organization that receives funding from LAF. It was really a privilege to take part in the event. I met many new faces in the cancer community. Plus, everybody thought I was Lance's special friend. That was all well and good, except it was hard to convince people that I had no special access privileges with regard to the elusive yellow bracelets.

Today is also momentous in that I have officially passed the $25,000 fundraising mark. I am so very pleased, as I have now raised 25% more than my initial fundraising goal.

2004 Fundraising goal: $20,000
Raised to date: $25,010

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO DONATE

Thank you for your support.

Cupcakes!

Now this is quite delightful...Some forward thinking bakeries in NYC are donating proceeds from cupcake sales this week to CancerCare for Kids. You can find participating cupcakeries here.

This reminded me...Not to make light of anybody's cancer-fighting protocol, but my friend told me recently that as part of her treatment she has been directed to eat a high fat breakfast every day, which came complete with menu recommendations from the donut shop!

Maybe sometimes science really is sweet...

Various (and Sundry)

I want to start off this post by emphasizing, once again, how completely blown away I am at the generosity of everyone who has made my fundraising this year a success. In particular, I wanted to give a special thanks to those whom I don't even know, who have given me donations. I received one such donation today. These heartfelt and completely selfless gestures continue to amaze me and restore my faith in the inherent goodness of humanity. Really.

I also wanted to let all of you know that I will be posting pictures from my recent vacation (since some people have asked). I am a very bad photographer, so a good 3/4 of the photos were out of focus. Many of those that worked though are stunning (because of the scenery, not my camera skills), so please check back. In the meantime, here is a birthday party picture with some friends, since I realize that photos do spice up the blog a bit, and I haven't posted one in a while (and really, how many photos does anyone want to see of my bike? ;)



I had my first official meeting regarding The LifeLab (my non-profit) last week. It was very well-received, and I am so excited to get going. I am going to be filing for non-profit status in the next few weeks and things will start picking up from there. Please stay tuned.

Finally, big birthday wishes today to Annie. I love you little one!

2004 Fundraising goal: $20,000
Raised to date: $24,935

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO DONATE You could be the person to help me reach $25,000!

Thank you for your support.

Here's to the Peloton

This year, the LAF Peloton Project set a $5 million fundraising goal, which has now been met. As of today, the LAF fundraisers have raised $5,056,909.35 for 2004, over 80% of which goes directly toward supporting cancer survivorship, research and awareness. 2004 is the first year in which the Peloton Project's fundraising has topped $5 million. Go, Peloton!

Thank you for your support.

Special Birthday Wishes and Kids in America

A big Happy Birthday hug and kiss go out to my friend Stephanie, the most courageous person I know. She gave me my LIVESTRONG bracelet. Today is dedicated to you, Steph.

Yesterday I was walking past the high school on my block, and noted that a good 75% of the kids standing in packs outside were wearing the yellow LIVESTRONG bracelet. I turned back to ask some of the kids why they were wearing it and if they knew what it stood for.

Two of the girls I asked said that they got the band from their parents, and wanted to wear it to support people with cancer. One of the girls told me she ordered it online. The rest of the group told me that they didn't wear it only because their friends did, but wouldn't wear it if their friends didn't (are you following?). Everyone in the group was very anxious to know when the bracelets would become available again, and some even knew the estimated arrival date.

The kids did have some trouble, however, identifying why the bracelet was yellow. "It has something to do with 9/11 because after 9/11 there were yellow ribbons," "It's because red and pink were taken so they had to come up with a new color," "It's because yellow means you're brave" are a few of the responses I got.

I explained to them about the tie-in with the Tour de France, le maillot jaune, and all that, by which time they were becoming increasingly distracted and seemingly annoyed by my presence, so I carried on down the street, really happy to know that, if not their heads, the hearts of American teens are in the right place.

2004 Fundraising goal: $20,000
Raised to date: $24,835

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO DONATE

Thank you for your support!

The Re-Entry Phase

I learned today that there is actually a clinical term for that strange, anxiety-filled period after treatment for cancer ends and "normal life" resumes: The Re-Entry Phase. I like this term because it is also used by NASA, I recall, for returning space-craft from orbit to earth.

Oh, I forgot the important part. I read about this on a page of articles written by cancer survivors in conjunction with a survivorship conference put on by the National Cancer Institute, sponsored by the Lance Armstrong Foundation. You can read more of these interesting articles here.

2004 Fundraising goal: $20,000
Raised to date: $22,315

Thank you for your support!

I'm back

Just a quick note to say that I am back from my vacation. I had a wonderful time, and will post pictures tomorrow.

Thanks to all who contributed while I was away! There are still fundraising dollars coming in, andf I will continue to post updates.

How exciting!

2004 Fundraising goal: $20,000
Raised to date: $22,165

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO DONATE

Thank you for your support!