Fundraising Goal - $5K !! :)

CURES ROCK!!! We hit my $5000 goal mark this week with many thanks to all of your generosity!!! Those dollars get us closer to finding a cure...and who knows how close one is! And yes, I will keep on fundraising until the end of April...it is never too late to donate, and there is no such thing as an end to raising money for a cure. (You know me -- I'm a compulsive overachiever, so now I'll be trying to hit $10,000!! )

In fact, this short article on Leukemia Vaccination research was published on 2/17 in the San Diego Union Tribune: http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/business/biotech/20080217-9999-1m17leukemia.html Awesome.

Oh...and we did track practice last night at Cal State San Marcos. It's now my usual Tuesday night torture activity! I signed up for this? More speedwork...more interval training...it took everything I had to go home and crawl into bed. Still love it all though, which is sooo wierd. lol.

8 Miles! (End of Week 4)

Greetings, earthlings! Wow -- another week of running has come and gone. As much as I keep saying to people, "I'm not really a runner" -- uh -- I'm thinking that I might actually be turning into one. I love it! I am so happy for your support. Together, we've raised over $4600 for charity, so we're hitting my goal of $1000/week. At this rate, we can hit $10,000 for the season. Overall, our TNT group has raised $61,000 (our goal is $2.2 Million). Wow!!! However -- it's not all about the fundraising (although it's a worthy cause) -- it's about us all coming together to celebrate my survivorship and for our honored teammates, who are survivors or going through cancer battles right now. So please, even if you cannot afford to donate or have other charities you support instead...that's ok!!! Please feel free to stay involved: post comments to my blog at the bottom of this page, send me emails, cheer our TNT team on! It's all a part of the process of CELEBRATING! And hey, we all know us Irish-folk love a good party.

So, what am I learning? Well, I've learned that running can be a team sport. I have met some great people already and feel so blessed to be a part of this running team. Truly, all good folk. I've learned that when I don't feel like running after work, this charity cause comes to mind and I pull on my running shoes to run for our honored teammates (Sarah and Vince) who had days when they couldn't train due to their cancer. Pic to the right is from Saturday. Our honored teammate (and leukemia survivor), Sarah, showed up and ran a few miles with TNT. I've added new pictures to my slideshow, so scroll to the bottom and see the new pics!

Our mileage is increasing per week, which is crazy amazing!! This past Tuesday was the dreaded track practice. It was so strange to stand under the stadium lights, feel the misty grass under our feet, and have a bunch of coaches teaching us form and interval techniques. My form was good according to Coach...but man o' man...I was sooooo tired and hurt for days after that workout!! :)

This past Saturday, we ran 8 miles as a team!! Can you believe it?! I never thought I could do it, and our B Team Coach Pattie said we ran about 10 min/miles. Thank goodness for Coach Pattie -- she got me up a hill I thought I would not survive. "If you're going through hell, keep going." (Winston Churchill) Wow. I purchased a new fuel belt. Still not sure how I feel about these darn things, and they seriously look ugly, but I'm being told that I'll need 'em to run 26.2 miles (did you read that?! 26.2 miles!!). The pics included in this post are of me and my B Team coach, Coach Pattie, and the other pic is my new running pal, Jen (in sassy pink shirt), our happy Mentor Amy (middle) and me.

Well...it was a great week of training. I still gasp for air those first 2 miles of every run, but slowly find my rythm after that. It's awesome. I love it. I am turning into one of those running geeks that gets up early on Saturdays and Sundays, rain or shine, to go running. And yes, it's raining today, and I just completed a 3 mile run in the rain. :)

Happy (running) trails!

7mi Encinitas TNT Run

I just ran 7 miles!!! No kidding, folks. Our TNT long run today was down gorgeous Highway 1o1 in Encinitas and Cardiff....and we covered 7 beautiful miles right next to the beach (I bet all the mid-western folks are jealous now!). :) Believe it or not, my "B" team ran it in 1hr/10mins (yes, I had a stop-watch going), which was waayyy faster than I'd ever do on my own! Whenever I'd want to stop, my new running pal, Jen, would say "just to the stoplight" or something, and I'd hit the pavement for a few more feet. But we made it! I think our timeing might have something to do with the fact that the Aid Stations for our water had candy, too. There's nothing like a few gummy bears to get ones legs moving. Hee hee...

It will be a fun week of training. We start track practice on Tuesday night. I last did track...well...a long, long time ago. Coach Bill promised that he'd start slow (as in, "This is a track."), which is a pace I think I can handle. For all my friends and family out there, my mom dragged out some great pictures from our Girl Scout Olympics in 1984 (see pic: I'm the freak in the light blue shirt in the lane on the right, my twin Angie is in the lane to the left of me in the matching blue shirt kickin' my bootie). This might have been the last time I was on a track (j/k). Wish me luck!

We're off and running!

Well, we're off and poundin' the pavement with TNT training!!! This past weekend was our 2nd long run meeting, plus a shoe/form clinic. Yup, this baby has a new pair of shoes!! Before we went off on our run, Mentor Mike gave the TNT "Mission Moment." It really meant a lot to me to hear him giving back through his work with this charity, and it's hard to recap unless you are there listening --- but, it certainly got us rallied for our run practice. Our training run was great, but hard. It's been a loonnnggg time since I've run 6 miles without stopping to gasp for air or walk. But, I hung in there! I've met a great new running pal, Jen. We run about the same pace so far, and she is such a bright, happy soul! (see pic, that's Jen on the left and me on the right, in the front). In fact, we were behind the "B" running team at first, but met up with them at the first aid station. From there on out, we hung with them, and actually found ourselves in the front of the pack pacing the group (eek! Why they followed us as we were gasping for air, I have no idea!). On Sunday, I complete a 4 mile run, and wasn't sore -- in fact, I actually enjoyed it! The beach was GORGEOUS!

So, thank you all for you support and cheerleading. On days, like today, when I don't feel like training, I still pull on my shoes and go workout 'cause I know ya'll are behind me. THANK YOU!!! I think I have the biggest cheering squad around!

Fundraising is going great, thanks to all of the very generous donors. We hit the $3000 mark in donations today! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! It was my goal to hit that this week -- and I am so excited about it. Every dollar gets us that much closer to a cure, and I can't wait to celebrate the day when one is found. Cures rock, and ya'll rock!!!

Have a very happy week!

TNT Fundraising

I am very excited to share with you that I am training to participate in an endurance event as a member of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training. All of us on Team In Training (TNT) are raising funds to help stop leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma from taking more lives. We need your support to cross the ultimate finish line - a cure!

So...why am I running a marathon instead of going to the day spa on June 1, 2008?
I am running the San Diego Rock 'N' Roll Marathon (yup, all 26.2 miles!) in celebration of being a cancer survivor.

Pictured: Joe, Me, Mike (w/ Jackson) & Judy at the 2007 Rock ‘N’ Roll Marathon: Mike ran for “Team Julie” and at the finish line, we toasted to my recovery & running it together in 2008! I figure that my running training will be tough (& hilarious for anyone watching), but nowhere near as tough as the endurance challenge I faced last year. In fall 2006, I was diagnosed with blood cancer (Acute Myelogenous Leukemia - AML). I fought my way through chemotherapy treatments last year, and I wasn’t alone. Every 5 minutes, someone is diagnosed with a blood cancer, with over 135,000 new cases diagnosed last year. I am happy to report that I have successfully kicked deadbeat "Luke" (my nickname for leukemia) to the curb, and I am in remission.

I couldn’t have done it without your support, and once again, I need your help. In return for my dedication to the training/running of this marathon, and to our honored teammates battling blood cancer, I am asking for your support. I have committed to raise a minimum of $5000 for the cause by March 7th. Would you please join me in this effort?

There are two ways to make your 100% tax deductible donation in support (or in sheer disbelief) that I’m running a marathon!

1. Go straight to my personal web site at: www.active.com/donate/tntsdh/tysontwin where you can read my story and donate online. Or,

2. Send me an email or post a comment, and I will send you a hard copy donation form.

What else can you do? Pass it on! I encourage you to pass on this letter and donation form (or my web site link) to anyone else you think may be interested in this cause. Every penny helps save lives!

CURES ROCK! Look at it this way: The faster we raise the funds, the closer we are to finding the cure --- and that cure will make a difference to someone you know... me. Thank you for your support!