274 Days (Or The Importance of Deadlines)

I’m a procrastinator.  I always have been and, in all likelihood, I always will be.  The thing about procrastinators is that we do get the work done, and we get it done just before the due date.

I am grateful that Texas 4000 has deadlines for this reason.  Not only do they have deadlines, but they’re also hard deadlines.  Soft deadlines shouldn’t exist, because they basically negate the due date.  A hard deadline though?  That’s non-negotiable.  Our first deadline was to have a certain number of volunteer hours, and I loved that because it meant that we had to spend our Saturday mornings working at triathlons getting to know our teammates.  I am grateful, because I have more friends now than I thought I could by this point in the game.

The biggest upcoming deadline so far is on September 3.  On that date we are required to have fundraised $1,000, and without this deadline I likely wouldn’t have sent out the first round of letters already.  What if we haven’t raised $1,000 by this deadline?  We don’t get our bikes.  Well that was incentive enough for me, and I am grateful for the outpouring of support I have received from those who have received something so far.  What’s the next deadline?  That 5K I mentioned last post.  Now if only I could scare myself into running every day . . . 

293 Days (Or How Overwhelming This Next Year Will Be)

In case y'all haven't figured it out already, the name of each post refers to the number of days from now until we leave for a summer of riding.  If my math calculates correctly, one blog entry per week means that I have approximately 41 blog entries to go until June 1, 2013. Knowing me, I'll let other things take priority over updating this blog, but a girl can dream.

Since James proposed back in June, I have been trying to decide what the date of our wedding should be.  When discussing it together we take into account the football season (very Texas), nearby holidays, and our friends' school schedules.  I know it's going to be impossible for everybody to come, heck I might even want to pick a date in the middle of the week just so that nobody will be able to make it, but for now the date that seems most inviting to all of our stipulations is September 1, 2013.  Yes, it's labor day weekend and yes, it's a Sunday, but there's no game on a Sunday and our friends would have that Monday to make it home in time for school.  I have a hard time believing it, but from now until that tentative date there are only 385 days until James and I are getting married.  That's 92 days after we leave for Anchorage, and it's three weeks after we arrive in Anchorage.  I can't help but contemplate pushing the date back another week just so that I can have a full month to prepare, but I think that I'll be ready by then.

There are a number of deadlines with Texas 4000 which are used to keep everybody on track both with regard to physical exercise and fundraising.  Two of these deadlines are quickly approaching, and my anxiety ridden personality are having a hard time coping with this.  The most important of these deadlines is the fundraising one: we are each supposed to raise $1,000 dollars by September 3.  September 3 is in 22 days, and at 35% I can't help but be a little bit worried about it.  The next big deadline is a fitness one.  We're each supposed to be able to run a 5K in a few weeks.  This is something that is well in my control, but it's been hard for me to motivate myself to run.  I have made it 2.5 miles so far at a 12 minute pace, but hopefully with some grit and determination I will improve that time.

The enormity of these months seems to grow with every day, but through teamwork and determination I'm sure it'll all work out.  Here's to the next 293 days!

300 Days (Or My Blogging Goal)

I am a relatively private person and it has been fairly hard to get into the habit of blogging regularly (hence the five month break from the last one), but I really am going to make a genuine effort to make this at least a fortnightly event.

The last 158 days have been life changing so far, and I'm sure that this trend will only continue during the next 300.  The big life changing terrifying amazing wonderful thing that happened to me on June 9, 2012 is that James Everett Newman, the love of my life and the person who inspired me to ride 4,500 miles to raise money for cancer research, proposed marriage to me during an unbelievably romantic picnic dinner in his Houston Heights neighborhood.  We had been dating for 5 years, 5 months, and 24 days and he had just the week before convinced me that he wouldn't be proposing any day soon, so it was a completely wonderful surprise for me.

We'll be getting married as soon after next ride summer as possible.  This means that in the next 300 days I have to train for a 4,500+ mile bike ride AND completely plan a wedding.  The stress has started to get to me, but hopefully a little endorphin releasing exercise will keep that in check.  Here's to the next 300 days!

458 Days (Archived from Texas 4000 Website)

When I first heard about the Texas 4000, I thought to myself that there was no way I could ever do that and those people were nuts. I mean, a sane person would not ride their bike from Austin to Anchorage for selfless reasons, and if the reasoning was selfish than they must be crazy.

James Everett Newman is an amazing and wonderful person, and I ride for his dad, David. James and I have been dating for 1,901 days. I cannot imagine what the last five years would have been like without him egging me on, because my life would be completely different. James convinced me to do well in high school, apply three times to the University of Texas, get a job at the Cactus Cafe, and apply for T4K. David was a wonderful caring and talented man. It's easy to look at James and see the love with which he was raised. David was diagnosed with kidney cancer in the summer of 2010.

James and I were lucky enough to be invited by a 2011 rider, who dedicated some of his ride to David, to attend the Tribute this past fall. I cried the whole time. I thought about the pain suffered by the too-many people struggling with cancer, and their families. I hinted to James that I was considering applying to be on the 2013 team and he encouraged me with everything he had. It was around this time when I realized that sometimes I just needed to cry. I cried every time I rewrote my application, and every time James edited it for me. I cried when I found out that I got an interview, and I cried when I got my acceptance call. I cried in front of 90+ people when I talked about Why I Ride. I cry when I hear other Why I Rides, because I can't help but relate.

I cried when I heard about Ruel, who I was not able to meet. I don't believe that anybody's pain is the same. When I sat in the large group meeting this past Monday and cried for Ruel while listening to stories from his teammates it was because I remember being with James, Gail, David, and countless visitors after David went into hospice.

I've cried a lot in the last 296 days, and I'm sure that I'll cry a whole lot more. Call me crazy, but in 458 days I am hopping on my bike and riding from Austin to Anchorage to spread Hope, Knowledge, and Charity along the way.