Carpe Diem!

Carpe Diem!

Did you relish today’s little moments
Though the skies were quite leaden and grey?
Did you whine and complain, or take a walk in the rain?
Did you remember to live fully the day?

It’s the small things give life the most meaning
Like a sunrise’s first golden ray,
A walk on a beach, the taste of a peach,
Little rewards from seizing the day.

Within every life rain must fall, so
While the sun shines, remember, make hay
Make the most of your life, don’t be mastered by strife
Live, love, laugh - all while seizing the day.

Some day you will see your last sunrise,
The Grim Reaper no more kept at bay.
Will you have the regret of things not done yet
Or be at peace, for you seized every day?

So to you, I proclaim “Carpe Diem!”
For this instant but once comes your way
Taste all of life’s flavor, deliciously savor
The enjoyment of living each day.

Art Ritter
February, 2009

Checking My Y-Chromosome at the Door

My training schedule today called for 16 miles. But my legs were so sore after last Saturday’s training in Charlottesville that it was painful even to walk for several days, and the only miles I did all week were four on Thursday morning. By Thursday, they no longer felt sore. So how many should I do today – 16 or 11 (or some number in between)? The 30-something year old guy in me said to do 16. The little red devil said to do 16. The 57 year old man that I actually am said to do 16, although maybe 13 would be better. But the little white angel said to do 9. And the 10 year old boy in me said to heck with this running, let’s go play ball or something. I discussed my lack of activity for the week with Coach Vicki and she said to do 11. I said “Well, what about if I am feeling pretty good, should I do 13?” Her sensible reply was to do 11 – I hadn’t gotten in any real training to speak of, and there is plenty of time before the marathon.

I checked my Y-chromosome at the door, swallowed my male pride and did 11.

Coach Chuck led us in some warm up exercises: "wiping the goose poo off our shoes", "Frankensteins", "Butt kicks", and "Over the fence". Then he led us in a team cheer, and we did a warm-up 0.4 mile lap around the lake, and headed towards the Fan. From there we ran down Monument Avenue to the West, and zig-zagged down to Westhampton, reaching the half-way point at Patterson and Libby right in front of the Westhampton Pastry Shop. I stiffled a sob as I glanced into the window of this amazing bakery, seeing the incredible baked goods on display. I turned around to head back and chewed on a power bar, fantasizing that it was one of their delicious donuts.

It was a mercifully flat route, 5.5 miles out and 5.5 miles back. It was cold at first, but gradually warmed up, so it was one of those days that it is tough to dress for. At some point, you are going to be too hot or too cold. The team was spread all over the place today – some of us were doing 9, 11, 13, and 16 miles. Many of the team are fighting painful injuries as the miles and the pounding add up. I feel pretty good after this mileage, although it is clear now how badly worn out my old shoes are. The difference in the new ones and the old ones is so notable. I will have to make a real effort to break in the new ones this week, so I can wear them for next Saturday's long training. My feet and legs seemed to jar everytime they hit the pavement. It is also clear that 11 miles was a good choice, now that I am running more often but hadn't done much training all week. 16 miles would have been too much today.

Here are a few photos from the morning:


Lexi and Leslie, two of my mentees, have recommited to Shamrock in Virginia Beach. They both have done great with their fundraising!

Sunrise just before training with Swan Lake in the foreground.

Some of the team chatting and stretching before training

General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson guards the approach to Monument Avenue.

TGIF!

Well, just a quick post this relaxing Friday evening...

First, my miles for the week were not bad, despite missing 13 miles of training due to extremely sore quads. I trained for 23.7 miles and traveled a total of 49.9 miles on foot, from last Friday through yesterday.

Second, we had a great injury prevention clinic for the team last night, led by Dr. Tim Dey, who is also a team coach for the fall season every year and, very impressively, a TNT Triple Crown recipient. We had a small turnout, but most of us there were nursing one ailment or another as the miles add up, so we covered some "what to do when you get (whatever)" in addition to injury prevention and core conditioning. As Tim said, it sounds a little late for injury prevention right now - we need to get through the season and complete our event. Interestingly, not one biker or tri-athlete was there.

Third, I spoke as a survivor at the Summer Team Kick-off Wednesday, and it was a lot of fun. For one thing, I knew most of the coaches and mentors who showed up, including some that I hadn't seen in a while. I always enjoy thanking participants as a cancer survivor for what they are doing to help cure cancer.

Tomorrow is long training - 16 miles if I can do it. I will need to see what the coaches think. I still have some soreness and have taken it pretty easy since Saturday, and I don't want to overdo it. But I don't want to get too far behind either.

Getting Off on the Wrong Foot

When the next sound you hear after the alarm clock is a "squish", your day just got off on the wrong foot!

I was dead to the world when the alarm went off at 5AM this morning. In confusion, I stumbled from bed and staggered towards the bathroom, where I set the clock so that hitting “snooze” is impossible, unless my arms grow about 15 feet long. As I stepped into the bathroom and flipped the light switch in one motion, I realized, too late, that something was not right. A split second later, I stepped – barefoot – into a little gift left by one of our cats on the floor. Yech! I was still barely conscious as I cleaned my foot and dressed as quickly as I could, and then stepped out into a very cold morning. It was time to try my new running shoes!

My last pair is nearly 14 months old, has one marathon on them and who knows how many miles. They are tolerable for 4-5 mile runs but anything longer, I feel my legs and feet are taking a pounding. So I bit the bullet Sunday and bought an identical pair of New Balance running shoes, plus orthotic inserts - $175!

I had not trained all week, other than some cross training in the pool Monday. First, it was a very hectic week, including some TNT events, such as speaking at Summer Team Kick-Off as a patient honoree. It looks like another great team! But a bigger factor than a hectic week was the pain in my quads, especially my left quad, since our hilly and long training in Charlottesville last Saturday. For several days, one area hurt enough that I thought I had an injury, but the pain has subsided and I think it is just from overuse.

The four miler at 5AM was fine. I had some soreness start to creep in, and took it easy with the running portion, only running for about 15 minutes of it. It was so cold though. My face was freezing. At one point I took my glove off and held my nose as I walked, as I felt like I was getting frostbite!

I hated to miss so much training this week – 5 miles Tuesday and 8 miles Wednesday. The male part of me wanted to do it. The sensible part of me said to take it easy. Sensible won out (this time). Now I must talk to my coaches Saturday and see how many of the 16 scheduled miles they recommend given that I missed so much training this week.

As to the shoes, they feel so much more supportive but I need to break them in. After 4 miles, I had a little sore area on the top of the second toe of each foot, so my long training Saturday will have to be in my old shoes.

Mentoring E-Mail # 13

Happy Day After Groundhog Day, my Fantastic Mentees!

‘Tis I, your Artful Mentor, with my weekly message to you! I was speaking at the Summer Team Kick-off tonight, and almost had decided to defer writing you until tomorrow. I came home, ate a bowl of soup and some yogurt, and thought it would be nice to relax a bit. “I’ll just write my mentees tomorrow,” thought I. But then these visions went through my head… My mentees, eagerly awaiting my weekly message with the enthusiasm and glee of young children awaiting Santa Claus at Christmas. Some moments of anxiety when my note had not yet come. “Surely my Artful Mentor will not forget me!” The anxiety turning into outright dismay, as you stare at your blank computer screen. The tears coming, slowly at first, then in a torrent, when you realize that my note will not be arriving tonight. No, it is too much, and my conscience will not bear it. So I am writing you tonight instead of resuming the thriller I am reading.

I have photos from our Charlottesville training on my blog:

http://racn4acure.blogspot.com/2009/01/fourteen-hilly-miles-in-cville.html

I don’t know about you, but after those hilly miles Saturday, I feel like I am dealing with a nagging quad injury. So what better time for Dr. (and Coach, and TNT Triple Crown Holder) Tim’s injury prevention clinic! I’ve attached a document about parking. But here is some additional information, the type of thing I often ignore and then later wish I hadn’t. So don’t be like your Artful Mentor – read this stuff and commit it to memory!

Injury Prevention Clinic - Thursday 2/5 at 7 pm - VCU Sports Medicine building

Important Information regarding clinic:
Some tips on the attached map. Please note that you can not turn left off of Broad into the parking lot. You may turn left onto Bowe St and then turn right into the alley behind the building or continue to Marshall St. and turn right and then right into the parking lot.

Please park only in spots marked for "VCU Sports Medicine PATIENT" or "Student Health" right behind the building. Please do not to park in the physician spots as they get mad! The spots closer to the Seigel Center are "UU Lot" and you may be ticketed for parking there.

I am proud of how each of you is tackling your fund-raising. I’ve heard a number of imaginative and creative ideas that you are using. Keep plugging away. I know that the Shamrockers are in good shape. You Country Music folk have about 3 more weeks before recommitment, so you will want to make a big push to maximize fund-raising by that point. Obviously, you want a minimum of 25% by then, but it is better to think in terms of trying to hit 50%. It will make the remaining fund raising push that much less stressful. Please, call or email me if you need help. I have not heard from any of you about doing a brainstorming session with Nicki, but if you would benefit from that, let me know.

Finally, if you still have auction items, Nicki is working on a second auction, probably in conjunction with the newly formed summer team. More details will be forthcoming.

For my mission moment, I am going to share news about multiple myeloma that I found so encouraging. It affirmed that we are making a difference with all of our hard work! Read about it here:

http://racn4acure.blogspot.com/2009/02/taming-multiple-myeloma.html

I hope I see you all at the injury prevention clinic! And I will be at training this coming Saturday!

GO TEAM!
Art

The Winner!

Note: the basic idea for this note to potential donors came from my friend, Betty. Thanks, Betty!

My Fellow Americans, and Citizens of the World,

Hello once more from my 2009 Cancer Kickin’ Campaign! I’ve been busy with many fundraising and training activities in the three weeks since I last sent an update. On the fundraising side of things, thanks again to the over 80 of you who have donated to my campaign. I have now raised over $5,000 to support the vital mission of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and am more than a third towards my ultimate goal.

You can make a donation, see my progress, view my list of honorees, and see campaign updates on my TNT web page, which I have updated recently with links to specific progress reports and news:

http://pages.teamintraining.org/va/cmc09/aritter

Is your donation making a difference? Yes, it is! Multiple myeloma is a painful and incurable cancer of the bone marrow and is one of the diseases that LLS is committed to help cure. I was so excited to learn last week that within the past five years – literally the blink of an eye – six new and effective treatments for multiple myeloma have been unveiled! This type of advancement only happens with research, clinical trials, and money, so thanks again for helping. These advances help patients win their battle with these dreadful diseases.

Everyone loves to win….

“I won $500 from the lottery!”

“I won tickets to the game!”

“I won the election!”

“I won dinner for two!”

“I won a cruise!”

But in 2002, I won the best prize of all – I WON MY LIFE! When I received chemotherapy that effectively cured my lymphoma, my life, which easily could have ended, was won back.

Now, in gratitude, I am trying to help others to win, and with one person in America developing a blood cancer every five minutes, there are plenty of folks that need this help. If you have joined my campaign already with a donation, thanks again for helping. If you would like to make a donation to help others become winners, go to my web page. Or contact me if you would like to donate by check. Either way, online or by check, 100% of the money goes to LLS.

Join my 2009 Cancer Kickin’ Campaign! Let’s help create some more winners!

Best wishes,
Art

Art Ritter in 2009 – He Will Go the Distance for You!

Taming Multiple Myeloma

Those of us doing TNT work hard to be a small part of a cure for tough and deadly blood cancers. We ask for money over and over, we train in all kinds of weather, we put hundreds of miles on our feet and running shoes. There are times when it seems like too much. Are we really making a difference?

That is why I felt so exuberant about some news I heard last week on the radio: that we are making tremendous progress with multiple myeloma. This is a painful cancer of the bone marrow that has been incurable, and is on the increase. It is one of the four major blood cancers that fall within the mission of LLS, the others being leukemia, Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and Hodgkin lymphoma.

When I heard this story, my first thought is “We are making a difference! Our efforts, and the generosity of our donors, are helping to come up with cures and treatments.”

There is still no cure for multiple myeloma, but there are now many options for managing this terrible disease. Even if you don’t read the article, this one statement to me gave me such hope for the many thousands of people dealing with myeloma:

"The excitement here is that we have six new treatment options that we didn't have only five years ago," Anderson says. "And we have three additional treatment strategies that are in the last stages, so-called phase three clinical trials, that likely will create additional options."

Think about this – in only five years, researchers have come up with six new treatment options! And there are three more almost ready to roll out! Five years! Five years ago, I was just a year and a few months removed from my own cancer. These things did not exist when I finished cancer treatments.

This is incredible news! Just think what the next five, ten, or fifteen years will bring!

Help me make a difference by making a donation to my campaign!

Fundraising Progress Report

I am pleased to report that, at the end of last week, I passed two more fundraising milestones on the same day, thanks to all of my Silent Auction sales posting. As it turned out, my auction items sold for $599, thanks to the many companies and individuals that donated items, and to the folks that came out to our auction.

The first milestone was that I reached the Virginia Rock Star status, meaning I have raised at least $1,000 more than the minimum amount I must raise of $3,600. I was only a few dollars away from the $4,600 point for a week or so, so reaching that goal soon was a given.

The second milestone was that I passed the $5,000 mark for the fourth time that I have done Team in Training. Why is this amount significant? Because the first time that I signed up for TNT, $5,000 was the amount I had to raise at a minimum to stay on the team for the Anchorage, Alaska marathon. And at the time, it sounded like an impossible amount of money to raise. In part, it was Jamal at that TNT recruiting meeting four years ago who helped convinced me to go for it, when he said “You can, and you will!” So every time I cross the $5,000 mark, I reflect a bit on believing in yourself that you can attain difficult goals. A goal that seemed in possible is now something I expect to attain with fund raising, each and every time.

If you are considering doing Team in Training, or some similar difficult program to better society, and you are having second thoughts, doubts whether you can do it – believe in yourself. You can do it! You can and you will! I am proof of that.

As of right now, I have raised a total of $5,394, thanks to so many generous people. Of that, $5,107 is posted on my web page, and $287 is in checks that I have received but have not been posted yet. I have donations for 84 people, not counting the people who bought items at the silent auction.

My ultimate goal is still over $9,000 away. Can I raise that much more and reach my goal with less than three months to go? It seems impossible right now, but I am not going to think of it in those terms. I am going to think outside the box, and see what I have to do to reach it. Yeah, it is a tough fundraising environment, the economic news seems to get worse each day. But there are still more people employed than not, and people are generous. So I say it is possible. I say “I can and I will!”

Hills Are Our Friends!

We have a saying on the Team, especially for those of us training for Country Music: “Hills are our friends!” That is because we hear from everyone how hilly the Nashville half and full marathon courses are. So after yesterday’s challenging run, I decided to get more information, and downloaded the elevation profile of the CMM course:
While it is hilly, it is not mountainous. It looks like the steepest and longest climbs are in the first seven miles, when we should be at our freshest. And since what goes up must come down, there is a long, fairly steep three mile downhill right after that. Then, the last 16 miles of the race looks undulating up and down – short climbs and short descents without many flat parts.

One of my teammates, Dave, wrote about hills being our friends and I like what he said: “Hills are incredible. This is why: Without hills, there would be no fantastic cartoons of ever-growing snowballs barreling down on the heels of funny rabbits who always made us laugh on Saturday mornings while we wore our snuggly-footie pajamas. Without hills there would be no mountains. Without mountains, Julie Andrews would not have had a place to sing on her days off from the Abbey. She'd have to, like, go buy cheese or something on her days off. If we didn't have hills, there would be no opportunities to go downhill sledding in the winter. If there were no sledding opportunities, there would be no need for hot cocoa to warm your chilly-bones after sledding all day. Can you imaginea world without hot cocoa? I can't. It would be a dark, dismal place.” Dave, you are so right! Hills rock! And to add to what he wrote, as Julie Andrews sang, “The hills are alive with the sound of music.” And with the labored breathing of marathoners!

Yesterday’s training was an eye-opener, because it was far hillier than even our most hilly routes here in Richmond. It is also apparently hillier than the Nashville course, which is encouraging. But clearly, I will need to go out of my way to find routes with elevation change for training on, and not try to avoid running up hills. After all, who would want to avoid their friends?

Be Inspired by Julie!

I've not met Julie, who lives in California, but she is a fellow blogger, member of the "Purple People", and cancer Survivor - with a capital "S". She developed leukemia in 2006, recovered, ran a marathon for Team in Training in 2008, and is now training and fund-raising for three separate marathons! These are San Diego and Seattle for TNT, and the Boston Marathon as a member of the Livestrong Team to support the Lance Armstrong Foundation.

Yes, THE BOSTON MARATHON!

Oh, and did I mention this one little thing - that her leukemia is now back, and she is undergoing radiation (Project Glow Worm as she calls it), and maybe chemotherapy as well? If you can't be inspired by someone like Julie, check your pulse! Quickly!

Her story, and her desire to seize the day, to work for cures ("Cures Rock!" says Julie), and to Live Strong have inspired me (my pulse is just fine, thank you) and you better believe that I am adding her name to my honoree list that will go on my next marathon shirt.

Here is a video that Julie put together that covers a bit of her journey: