Fin!

A Few Words from Mr. Vitte

IN HIS MIND:

"Hmmm, what am I doing? That’s what I ask myself, every time I am running around the Rose Bowl, or on the treadmill. All I remember is getting a call from Semhar saying, “Hey, I seen a brochure, we are going to run a marathon, Lauren's down. Are you?” A few months later and two weeks to the marathon I think, what have I gotten myself into. Laughter, excitement, concern are a few of the reactions I get when I tell people that I am going to complete a marathon.

"Raising the money was the easy part, people are always willing to support a good cause, and giving money to support a serious problem isn’t something that you have to work hard to sell. Preparing mentally and physically is the tough task. It is a true challenge, and I always find a way to put myself in these situations where a task might seem impossible, but these are the things that keep my heart beating, I cannot live just going to work and then back home.

"In college I had to be active on campus, had to have a leadership roll, had to serve, and I still feel the same drive. Running my own business is a challenge in itself, and though I have made it thru the year, it is a hard thing to do, and then adding training to run this long distance has made things a lot harder. And let's face it, I have put on a lot of weight since my high school baseball days, and I am getting old, so this running nearly ever day is no joke.

"This is also a team effort, meaning having to deal with 3 different schedules, lifestyles, and expectations, at times it may have felt that this wasn’t going to happen, but I am excited that we will soon but at the starting line. I am very thankful for all the supportive people who have made donations and have given encouraging words.

"The next time I post a blog, it will be about me FINISHING the marathon and the experience of the whole trip. Until then...

G. Vitte

I'll be honest with you...

I do not want to run this marathon. I'd much rather just donate the money to the APLA (Aids Project Los Angeles) and be done with it. But I can't do that. Why?

Well, I made a commitment to Sem. That's it. I signed up for it - and I know part of me is dragging my feet in the mud, which isn't helping, but I'm not a quitter, especially when I've given my word.

It's just that for the past couple of weeks I've been an emotional wreck. There is so much other stuff going on in my personal life that I just want to sit and not be bothered with obligations. But life isn't about isolation - its about relationships, failed, flourishing, or otherwise - its about managing them. And because Sem is always there for me and I gave her my word - to back out would just add to the frustration and disappointment that is my personal life - I need to do something right.

Hey, it could be worse, right? I won't say how...considering the obvious (we are running for a cure).

Don't forget to go out and get tested this Saturday - it is World AIDS Day!

From out first (and only) team run....

I bring you short video!





The date is getting closer - it's almost December already.

and we keep on...

(mood: hopeful)

yesterdays run was a lot of things.
one way to describe it was bittersweet.

sweet: because it was our first "team" run.

bitter: because it was our FIRST "team" run.

for one reason or another, it took us until now for all three of us to start doing our long runs togther as we had agreed to do every weekend. but it was also a lesson:

what i learned?
do not attempt to talk to G. before 9 am:

BOY was he cranky like i've never seen before. from the moment he got in the car...well, let's go back a bit. it took all of 2 minutes for Elle to wake up, but once she did, we were pumped to get the run started (or anxious to get it over with). important thing is, we stayed positive. after popping in the new Diddy album (our curiousity got the best of us) we attempted to keep our pre-dawn high going as we rode to Pasadena.

but G. wasn't havin all that joy before breakfast. it took him the ride to the Rose Bowl and at least a good half a mile before he even said a full sentence to us. before that it was a look that said, "i resent you for this."

then Elle thought it would be the most opportune time to ask G. how he decided to get into the marketing business.

what???? fortunately, that got him talking...and i became hopeful that we would be able to complete our 7 miles as a team.

but as we rounded out the last part of the perimeter of the Rose Bowl, the look on their faces said otherwise. once again, i felt let down and grew tired of playing the role of marathon nazi. so instead, i took off running finishing the route alone.

i stretched with evil thoughts, but upon looking up, i saw my teammates running towards me, intent on completing 3 miles hard if not 7 miles semi-conscious. my heart grew soft as Elle assumed the stretching position next to me and G. tumbled onto the grassy patch nearby.

i realized that although we were in different places now, physically and mentally, on jan. 28 we would be at the finish line together. so, with some negotiation (next week: back to 6 miles), i remain hopeful.

We are getting up there....

Well we are currently at 10% of our re-committment goal. That's still better than the $90 we had raised in my previous post.

So while 10% isnt much, its still a landmark of sorts...or a check-point might be a better word. It at least signifies that its a quantafiable number in terms of our goal. It's tangible.

Personally, I've been struggling with getting to my runs on a regular basis. I missed this past Saturday's run - the 6 mi long run - because I had an event to attend and didn't consider the fact that I would be late if I went on the run at 8am.

The event was the AKA Sisterhood Tea at CSU Long Beach. It was a pleasent event and I was able to raise a few more dollar (and maybe more...) for the the cause, putting my total at $100, so far.

Sem is bring in money - she's currently at $200 - which is awesome!

At my next show, I am gonna do a major push for donations. I have to come up with a game plan on how to encourage people to give during my show. I know if I make any money from ticket sales, I will donate the proceeds to the cause.

Today, I am hitting the gym before I go my voice lessons. I am gonna do a 30 minute run on the treadmill. I know its not concrete and the point of training is to get the body used to running under those conditions, but hey, it's cold outside and I'm just trying to get my cardio/heart-rate up so I don't die on our 7 mile run this week.

*i'm outtro*

Still Only at $90...

and not counting...

We need to come up with a serious game plan. If we raise $3k by Nov 1st, we'll have until Dec 1st to raise the rest. I hope we can meet that goal. This weekend I am gonna hit up everyone I know. It's hard for me personally because I am also encouraging them to support my next show which is $20 a ticket.

I do have an event coming up where I am performing for the AKAs Sisterhood Tea at UC Irvine. I'm gonna ask them to donate my fee to the cause and if I can sell my AIDS marathon CD. Hopefully, I can make about $250. And when Farah and I go out to promote for the show, I'll bring some along as well as some fliers.

We can do this. But we need to do it as a team. Debessai is down, but I am worried about Vitte - he's gonna have a rude awakening this weekend on our six mile run. But we'll pull through together. We must.

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