Another chance to donate

One of the reasons that I joined and rejoin Team in Training over and over again is because my dad had multiple myeloma. I think the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society does a wonderful job at their stated purposes of patient advocacy, patient services and research. They also have many creative ways to raise money, TnT being the most famous and maybe the most lucrative. Another way is through their Man and Woman of the Year Campaigns.

A couple of years ago I was happy to hear that my nephew Noah (ok, technically he's my step-nephew for those who are counting) had joined TnT's triathlon team, in part to honor the memory of his grandpa, my dad. I felt that even though he had misguidedly picked the wrong sport - heh heh - he was joining the right Team. At the time I warned him that TnT (not to mention the sport) can get under your skin and not let go. He completed his Half Ironman in such good form that he turned around and immediately did another one, taking first place in his division! Wow! To make a long story short (way too late!) he was asked by the Society to participate in their Man of the Year campaign and agreed. In support of that he's now training for a full Ironman!

I asked Noah if I could join his group of Team Cuttler Athletes and he enthusiastically agreed to let me. I can't tell you how thrilled I am to be helping him to raise money for this fabulous cause. Go to his website and read his blog to find out how he plans to raise $150,000 in a 2 month period for the Society. Even better, come back on April 16, the day you pay your taxes (and my birthday, yay!) and follow the link I'll have here to contribute your tax refund -- er, I mean donate as much as your heart tells you to. I'll thank you, Noah will thank you, the Society will thank you and thousands of cancer patients and their families will thank you.

After all that, talking about my short run last night seems a little lame. It was Buddy Run night on the Iron Horse Trail. There were 4 of us plus Mentor Marcie's dog (who had eaten 2 boxes of Girl Scout cookies and had to run them off). I was pretty happy to be on my own since my legs were still weary from Sunday. I managed 2 miles, with a little walking thrown in. I'm resting my legs tonight, they deserve it! It was another warm night, fine for short sleeves and shorts.

Today's GBotD is Honey Bear. Very shortly after arriving in California I went to the Oakland Zoo. After walking around and seeing all the live animals I went to the gift shop and saw this adorable stuffed bear. Her name was on the tag, and this became one of the few times I've called a bear by their tag name. Honey is my traveling bear, and has been everywhere out-of-town that I've been, pretty much since I bought her. She's small enough to fit in the smallest carry-on bag and surprises TSA every time they open my luggage to check for -- well, whatever contraband they're checking for at that point.