The Pressure (in the tires) Is On!

The other day, I was telling Sheryl that I can't wait to blog about important stuff, rather than blogging about personal updates. Well, guess what?? Important stuff rears its head!

Yesterday, I sent out an e-mail, discussing the bike ride fundraiser I'm doing for Gilda's Club. The meat and potatoes:

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Each September, there is a ride that occurs in Mackinaw City, called the "Big Mac". A person can ride 25, 50, 75 or 100 miles during this one-day bike tour.

I had the idea that we could get a team of people together and train to accomplish the 100 mile route. In addition, we could get each person to raise a minimum of $250. Occasionally, riders might answer questionnaires and perhaps even document their journey in a notebook. They might even be interviewed.

All of this documentation would be put together into a book, which could also be sold to generate additional funds for Gilda's Club.

To motivate us, I thought it would be cool to have a local cycling celebrity come do a presentation at Gilda's Club. Well, not only did 2-time Olympian and 9-time Tour de France rider (not to mention long-time teammate of Lance Armstrong and OLN commentator) Frankie Andreu agree to this, but he also offerred to develop training plans to help us achieve our goal, PLUS, he agreed to do a training ride with us as well!

This event has suddenly become a series of exciting possibilities for Gilda's Club, and although it's still early, I have a goal for this event to raise $7,000 - not including the proceeds from the book.

Here is where I am in great need of help. I am seeking riders, donors and sponsors.

Riders - join my team and challenge yourself to train and ride 100 miles (the cycling equivalent of a marathon) in Mackinaw City in September 2006. Each rider will be required to raise a minimum of $250.

Donors - Gilda's Club is a non-profit organization. Donations are tax-deductible. Personally, I am seeking to raise $1,500, so a donation of any amount would be appreciated and put to great use at the clubhouse.

Sponsors - the team of riders will be dealing with transportation issues, to and from Mackinaw City, as well as bike supplies and Mackinaw City accommodations. We are looking for companies willing to sponsor us to help offset those costs. Each sponsor will have their logo printed on our team jersey, which will be worn during training rides, and at the Big Mac ride itself.

I am also on the lookout for a handful of planning committee members. Lord knows I can use more input!

If you - and/or anyone you know - are interested in knowing more about any of these opportunities, please please PLEASE contact me and let me know. I would be happy to provide further details. Heck, I'll bring you to Gilda's Club and show you what a wonderful place it is, and why it's worth participating in this event!
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I never know who is reading my blog, so I wanted to put the info out here and see what sort of response I get. I am really excited to take this journey and see where it ends up. The money will help keep Gilda's Club providing much needed support for people who are experiencing cancer - either their own or a loved one's.

Well, that's about it for now... blog ya later!

Whirlwind, whirl!

I've got to admit... right now, my life is amazing. Crazy. Crazily amazing.

Prior to being treated for Hodgkin's Disease, I was goal-oriented and successful. I had recognized that my career was starting to go nowhere, and thought I'd head off into a new direction - in occupational therapy. Well, the universe had other plans for me. I got sick and although I survived, my life was turned upside down.

I wanted to do everything, and not miss a single opportunity. I wanted to have fun for the rest of my life... and that's exactly where I headed. Jobless, I met an amazing girl, but wasn't able to give her the things I wanted to give her. Heck, I couldn't even afford flowers.

Then I got that five-week job, and getting laid off from there REALLY sucked the wind out of me. I completely lost any focus I thought I had... and ambition? That could have been a four-letter word for all I knew!

So here I am, a changed man.

I came to understand everything I was doing wrong. I learned that I was goal-less and unfocused. I had forgotten it all.

But not anymore.

So what's so different these days? Well, to start, I've got this job that has forced me to look at what I REALLY wanted from a job. And I started to focus. I started making goals. I started to change the defeatist thoughts I had.

And positive things have already come about. I had an interview last week for a job right up my alley. This week, I'm supposed to have a second interview with the company.

I am getting things underway for the big bike ride fundraiser for Gilda's Club in September. I am gathering together a few folks who can help make this happen - and it's very exciting!

So, despite being incommunicado for a while, things are going really well. I am so excited about how things are going now, and am really looking forward to see how things pan out in the future. I realize why I am on this planet, and I am constantly looking for opportunities to accomplish my purpose.

Wow, that sounded cult-ish!

Anyhow, with so much going on, I may not be blogging very regularly... but keep checking, I'll be blogging as often as I can!

If you've got any thoughts, or a desire to help me make this Gilda's Club fundraiser amazing, or just wanna say hi, drop me a line: mattc2k3@yahoo.com

Ciao for now!

Oodles O' Fun

Hey gang, thanks for checking in! It's been forever since I blogged, and unfortunately, I don't have a lot of time to catch up right now.

Lots of amazing things have been happening! I'll keep you posted as soon as I get some time! :)

Much love, much peace!

Cancerboy as survivor

I've been noodling around with an idea for a sequel to "Cancerboy". It talks about what happens after I survived cancer.

I'm curious to see how many other people were affected by cancer survivorship like I am.

See, when you achieve the title of "survivor", life is amazing. You realize that you can do anything... and you can do everything. And you don't have to do anything you don't want to.

Cancer rewrote the rules of life for me. I lost my career drive and lost the understanding for needing and achieving goals. I found myself waiting to pounce on the next great experience - the next thing that would define my reason for being on this planet - without ever achieving anything.

This month, I honor the 4th anniversary of my Hodgkin's diagnosis. My life is nothing like it was four years ago - and definitely for the better. But there are those nagging thoughts about why I can't seem to develop and shoot for goals - I was always a goal-oriented person.

The world isn't yet fully aware of the needs of cancer survivors - and I don't know what specifically is needed.

All I know is that I love and adore my life so much more now than I did pre-Hodgkin's. There are significant parts of my life that are extremely more fulfilling than ever before - particularly my love life. But there are other parts of my life that are lacking more than ever - particularly my career. And I wonder why. Is it normal?

I don't know. I think perhaps I need to keep noodling.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

My mother is a saint. Not only that, but she taught my brothers and I some of the most important things in life. In my mind, respect is probably the top of that list.

This week, I was doing some reading... trying to understand my role on this planet a little more fully. As a result, by Friday, I felt like I had a pretty good grasp on things... and then it happened...

Despite working towards getting past my ego, I found myself feeling disrespected by a co-worker. I got angry. Pissed. But then I realized that I was the only one who was hurt by this. I was able to let it go.

Temporarily, it seems.

At darts that night, a guy on the other team started the whole disrespect thing, too. This time, it wasn't only against me, but also against some of my teammates.

And I realized that no matter how hard I work at getting past things like these, there are always assholes in the world - people who may care so little about themselves that they feel the need to impose their misery upon the rest of us.

Although this may come off like I'm whining, the purpose of this post goes beyond my stories. I just want to remind people how much better the world is - how much more fun life is - if we all treat each other with a little respect. Remember the golden rule? We're so much better than we give ourselves credit for. Let's start living that way, eh?

Peace and love, kids!