The End of (this) Road

So here we are at the end of the rainbow- ok, not really a rainbow, more like a really long road trip. We had our last event yesterday at a local mall and made use of the slow times to get a lot of end-of-tour tasks checked off, like cleaning and inventory. We took this group photo yesterday, which was actually the first one we'd taken with everyone in it.

Tomorrow morning my flight leaves for Michigan where i'll spend a couple days before heading back to Chicago Wednesday morning.

It seems like I should have some eloquent and illuminating closing thoughts. I don't know about eloquent or illuminating, but here's a few possibly interesting end-of-tour musings:

My family is more intact than I thought. Here's why I say that- despite the conservatism of my teammates, and the bible reading and the jesus music listening and the no swearing (though in the past couple weeks there have been a handful of swear words that were not uttered by me, hallelujah), it turns out they all come from sadly fractured homes. Rasheedah never knew her father and has been estranged from her schizophrenic mother for five years. Nick hardly speaks to his Dad, hates his stepfather and has a whole host of stepsiblings he dislikes. Kim's brother committed suicide two years ago.

It doesn't make me feel superior, more like surprised. You'd think after a couple of divorces, detestable and slimy ex- step-family members and a law-breaking older brother I'd be right up there in the "crazy family" club but I talk to my parents and brothers all the time, and see them, and email and text message them. We are together for all major holidays and often birthdays, and we often hang out with each other just because we like to. I like both my step-parents (the slimy ones are gone). And there are two super cute nieces the whole family adores and dotes on.

Obviously, I am lucky.

I have a lot of stuff. The second photo above is all things I've collected while out on the road. Yes, seriously! A lot of it was free, like Komen t-shirts hats and mouse pads, and gifts from the Fond-du-Lac Indian reservation, but I bought a lot too. So much so that I had to buy an extra duffel to get it all home! (Duffel not pictured)

I have discovered the divinity of Luna. No, this is not a new religion, it is a fabulous nutrition bar for women that actually tastes good and has lots of nutrients. It didn't take too long to learn that subsisting on snack food and Applebee's wasn't giving me a lot of energy, so I started buying Luna bars about 6 weeks ago and they have been lifesavers. I highly recommend them, especially the peanut butter cookie and lemon zest varieties. I will continue to buy and consume these when I get home from the tour; it's such a better on-the-go snack than pretzels or crackers.

I love Chicago. Before being called out for this tour, and especially after my camp documentary evaporated into thin air, I was feeling very restless and very seriously looking into moving out West. While I won't be surprised if I make that move happen eventually, for now I am missing my windy city and my friends and Lake Michigan in a bad way. Being away for two solid months has made me appreciate much more everything Chicago has to offer and I plan on soaking it up blissfully when I return.

I miss camp. Komen on the Go has functioned partly as the world's best distraction from the fact that my camp documentary no longer exists, but in quiet times, like riding in the van or at night in my hotel room, I think about camp and wonder whats going on in Mukwonago and if I'll ever have the chance to go back. And I think probably not. And I am still mourning that fact.

Breast cancer is everywhere; no one is safe. I mean this. It didn't matter where we went, or how many people there were, or how old the people were. Breast cancer survivors found us everywhere. So did the family members of the women who weren't so lucky. We met women who were diagnosed at 19, and children whose mothers had died of it, and ladies who were in their eighties and had fought it (and won) multiple times. There were definitely times when it was hard to hear the same type of stories over and over, but not a single day passed where I questioned the validity of devoting my time and energy to this work. It is amazing to wonder how many lives we may have helped save just by showing up with a big pink truck and showing women how to do a self-exam.

I like my teammates. Even if I don't have much in common with some of them, I respect them all and for the most part enjoy their company and am glad to call them friends. I remember a similar feeling when AmeriCorps ended; my team had been together ten months and I spent much of that time strongly disliking a few. But at the end, on that first night home, I was so sad to not be in their company. Even if we don't get along all the time, these long-term live together/eat together/work together/hang out together experiences sure create some strong bonds. And I like that. In a way it feels like we all fought a battle together, and won.

I am so glad and grateful I was given the surprise opportunity to hit the road with Komen on the Go back at the beginning of May. It has been hard, and grueling, and amazing and fabulous all at the same time. I will miss it. There's a chance I may get to come back when the tour heads out again in the fall, have I told you that?

In the meantime, I think I will keep this blog and update about regular life things now that the tour is done. I kind of like being a blogger. Maybe one day soon I'll get a little more ambitious with the writing and subject matter in this space. Thanks for reading along through the KOTG tour, and I hope you stick around :)

A Tree Grows in Savannah

I have been promising updates all over the place and then it gets late and i'm tired and it's a new hotel and maybe they put me in a handicap room without a tub so I have to switch, and so on. But here, now, this is an update! Just for you. And you and you and you.

Savannah was lovely. It has the best trees of anywhere, including the scary one whose partial picture I took (see above) in a very old cemetery. There were gravestones you could barely read from the early 1700s through the late 1800s. If Scarlettt O'Hara were a real person, she would have relatives in this cemetery.

The whole city of Savannah is beautifully preserved, and all the pre-Civil War architecture is gorgeous and a little haunted looking. My Dad told me that when the Yankee troops got to Savannah the city surrendered, versus Atlanta where they fought. So Atlanta was burned, and Savannah was spared.

Elsewhere in Georgia (the last state of the tour), we exhibited at Wal-Marts in New Brunswick and Macon. Wal-Mart stops are always tough because people think Big Pink is pretty and all, but they are there to shop and don't necessarily want to take time to haul their groceries inside and sit down at a computer while the popsicles melt. Speaking of popsicles melting, the heat has been intense. And so humid! I don't know how Southerners handle this. Give me snow over heatstroke any day.

Another interesting thing about Georgia has been the real live Southern hospitality. All of the local Komen affiliates who have shown up to volunteer with us (and there have been many more here than in any other state) have brought food. Pizza, fried chicken, even ice cream cake! All incredibly unhealthy of course. Speaking of which, at Wal-Mart yesterday a young mother was feeding her 7 month old ice cream while visiting our trailer. And not like a spoonful or two- the entire ice cream portion of her piece of ice cream cake went into her infant's mouth. Hello, childhood obesity.

And here's an alarming story from New Brunswick. A thirty-ish woman with a baby watched our self-exam video, and afterward while I handed her literature and promise rings and asked what she thought, she said it was "eye-opening." Then she explained that she's had a lump in her breast for two years but has no insurance and so hasn't done anything about it. No doctors, nothing. Whoa. So I tell her to call Komen right away, there are free services, etc etc. She thanks me and leaves. Then she comes back to ask,

"If it was cancer, would it hurt?"

I told her no, usually not. Then she noticed the two breast models with cancer-like lumps on the counter, so I had her feel them up to get the idea. So then she tells me to feel HER lump- which was at the top of her breast tissue, sort of where you would put your hand over your heart to say the national anthem. So I think what the heck, and I feel it, and whoa. It was huge, like a golf ball, and just as hard. How scary is that? She can't have been more than 32 years old, she had a tiny baby with her and has been carrying this lump around for two years. How incredibly eye opening indeed.

In other photo news, pictured is one of the postcards we hand out frequently to under 40 women and sometimes men. I love it and have the 8.5x11 version on my refrigerator. I think it's an incredibly relevant statement and find it empowering and edgy. What do you think?

Tonight we're in Atlanta/Hotlanta, in our last hotel in our last city in our last state. Tomorrow Renee somebody from the Today show is coming to see us. There will be more updates before I fly to Michigan on Monday, at least one of which will be a recap of the books I've been reading while on tour. Yay books!

In case I don't talk to you tomorrow, happy Summer Solstice, and happy pre-anniversary to my brother Adam and sister-in-law-to-be Kelly.

Right now I have to go to sleep because I must rise by 5:30 a.m. Goodnight, Moon.

Trappings

I am watching The Parent Trap starring Linsday Lohan, and I love it. Does this mean I have horrible taste? Don't answer that. I especially love how the original evil stepmother-to-be, Vicki, now plays the mother of the evil stepmother-to-be. Genius!

Today we are in Charlotte, North Carolina. It has a nice (small) skyline with a lot of modern-without-being-annoyingly-trendy architecture. I have a nice view from my hotel room on the 14th floor but the picture I took with photo booth only sort of turned out.

In other photo news, I am immeasurably sad that next season with be the last for Battlestar Galactica. Oh how I love thee Starbuck and Apollo! Adama and Roslin! Even Gaius and Six! It might be my favorite show ever. (This also means that I have no other interesting photos to share from the past few days)

After arriving last night Nick, Kim and I decided to venture out in search of food. We ended up at a local bar/pub called The Graduate, but not before venturing through "The Depot," where all the buses arrive in town. I didn't know depots existed anymore but there it was, and surprisingly busy at 9 o'clock at night. I guess Charlotte is a happenin' bus stop.

Tomorrow we are exhibiting at the Wachovia Bank headquarters, which is a big deal because Komen is wooing them to become one of their national sponsors (a million dollar plus commitment). So we will be showing off the Komen stripes, so to speak.

I think I am going to have to buy another piece of luggage to get all my stuff home. Here is a partial list of what I've acquired since being on the road with KOTG:

12 t-shirts
2 hoodies
1 pair shoes
1 digital camera plus case
3 tank tops
1 pair pajama pants
1 board game
1 iPod accessory
4 books
1 Pillow

Ridiculous! I am an awful walking talking example of American consumerism, right? Oh dear. My apartment building put in brand-new windows while I've been away and I can't wait to see them.

I read blogs that talk about weight loss surgery and losing 200 pounds and God and genocide, and I talk about The Parent Trap and my urgent need to buy extra luggage. Is that a problem?

In other news, The Phantom of the Opera is coming to Chicago this fall/winter! I cannot explain how happy this makes me. I love Love LOVE Phantom and I haven't seen it since my Dad took me to Toronto for my birthday when I was about 13. Good lord that was TWELVE YEARS AGO, boy am I old.

this started out short, really

Everything you have heard about West Virginia is true.

I am a chronic chronicler- that is, my blogs are good at chronicling my various adventures but I don't devote much time or space to thoughtful writing. This has been the case with every single blog, journal and diary I have ever kept. I am thinking of changing this. I'll re-visit once I return to normal living and have some more time to think and be thoughtful and write well.

Did you know I was making a movie? Past tense. A documentary. About camp. If that were still happening, today is the day I'd begin filming staff training. This is sad and there is nothing you or I can do about it. Unless the Beber Camp board of directors happens to be reading; in which case I say, you kind of suck.

I made Chex muddy buddies today, or puppy chow, whatever you want to call it. It is yummy and so so addicting. It's like the crack of desserts. It's also fun and kind of easy to make- I think it'd be fun to make with my niece Anna. She would flip out (in a good way). I need to do that with her. Today's picture is of me and Anna when she was about 6 months old. Now she's almost 4. Wowzers those little tykes grow fast.

Two weeks from tomorrow and I fly to Michigan. Which reminds me, I need to call my Mom to see if she can pick me up at the airport (hi Mom!). Right after I find out when my flight gets in.

A couple things to add to my To Do When I Get to Chicago list:

See Wicked via the daily raffle (I will try a bunch of days if I have to)
See Ratatouille, the newest Pixar movie for which I am immeasurably excited

Also, I have done some more considering about what nice thing I can do for myself and come up with two interesting options- taking up painting and buying a Wii. A Wii is a purchase, yet also an experience. Thoughts, votes?

I cannot spend enough time singing the praises of the Residence Inn. I think my hotel room is larger and about 27 times nicer than the studio apartment I had for a hot second at 540 Briar- you remember, the cockroach-infested one? Shivers.

I might be kind of burned out on breast cancer, which sounds awful, but we hear these heavy stories every day and they are starting to sound the same- over and over there is a surprise diagnosis, treatment, no hair, remission, sometimes death or more cancer, and sometimes a gut-check and metamorphosis into activism and Racing for the Cure. It's like a two month loop of war stories. That said, all the stories have immense value and are recounted by unique and strong women who have fought something beastly and awful that I can't begin to contemplate.

A huge shoutout to Brett, who represents my international audience via Australia, for the cool comments. More of you should comment. Brett, I totally owe you an email but I have to ask- have you gotten into Battlestar Galactica yet? Because you would totally LOVE it. I took up Firefly because of you, therefore you must at least try BSG for me ;). When are we going to Montana?!

I miss my apartment. I miss you. Will you still be there when I get back?

(location: Columbia, South Carolina)

It's too early for creative titles

I have been getting requests for more blog updates. This can only mean one thing- I have fans! Hello, fans, how are you?

Today I bid you good morning from Huntington, West Virginia. There is not much to be said for Huntington, other than it has a good Tex-Mex restaurant called Chili Willi's, which is cute because my dog's name is Chile and we call him Chilly Willy a lot. Also at this restaurant, they have a lot of tequila. I know because I drank it. Which is why it's only 6:30 a.m. and I've been awake since 4 a.m. Yikes! Alcohol robs me of sleep.

So. We last left of in Washington, D.C., just before the National Race for the Cure. It was amazing. The city, the Race, everything. Big Pink was placed right in the middle of the National Mall, with an amazing view of the Capitol building on our right and the Washington monument on our left. In the middle were 40,000 people running, walking or volunteering for the Race for the Cure. Forty thousand! It was a sea of pink. Katie Couric was there. So was Ronald McDonald, who is obviously the bigger celebrity.

On our way out of town the big boss Kari took us to a BBQ restaurant in Georgetown called Old Glory. It was the best meal I've had since being on the road. It sort of reminded me of Memphis Smoke back in Royal Oak, but more authentic and just better overall. They had a rack of six BBQ sauces on the table and a basket of jalapeno corn muffins with honey peach butter as appetizers. Yum. Next time you are in DC, you should go there.

After one last stop in Virginia at a free clinic in Richmond, we headed to Charleston, West Virginia for an incredibly luxurious THREE days off in a row. At the Residence Inn. Residence Inns are our favorite hotel, because they have full kitchens and living rooms too. So we grocery shopped and cooked and grilled and played Apples to Apples, my new favorite game. Have you played it? It's so fun! Board game night when I get back in Chicago- who's in?!

Speaking of getting back to Chicago, I received the fantastic news this week that after flying into Detroit (where my car is stashed) on June 25th, I don't have to report back to work until JULY 5TH. How incredible is that? Here is a partial list of things I want to do in the city during my time off:

Museum of Science and Industry
Art Institute
Movie day in Oak Park
Visit the trumpeter swans at the Lincoln Park Zoo
Lots and lots of red tea caramel lattes
Sushi Toro
Board game night (Meryl, Bryan, Courtney, who's in?!)

Also, I am trying to think of something nice to do for myself when I get back as a sort of reward for being on the road for two months and not going insane. I thought about taking a trip, but I am sick of living out of a suitcase so that's out. I also thought about some sort of spa thing but I've never been really into that, though maybe I should consider it. And then I've thought about buying myself something nice, which is fun and all, but I kind of want to DO something rather than just pick something out. You know? Any suggestions?

Ok, it's time to take advantage of the continental breakfast before checking out and heading over to the hospital where we're exhibiting Big Pink today. I promise more updates- maybe even another one tonight. Ciao for now.

A Capital Time

I am in Washington, D.C. I love Washington, D.C.! Therefore I am happy. Two really wonderful things are happening today (a day off)- first, I am having lunch with one of my Virtual Team co-workers which is fantastic for so many reasons, not the least of which it means I will get a healthy dose of sarcasm and cynicism since, as she put it, I've been in the sarcasm Sahara for the last month.

Then tonight, I am having dinner with one of my most favorite AmeriCorps friends whom I haven't seen in FIVE YEARS. She was my saving grace throughout much of that year and is just one of those few female peers whom I have always admired and respected on every level. So I am beyond excited to catch up with her at last.

(Today's photo was taken a few weeks ago in Chicago, on the day of the Y-Me Breast Cancer Walk. Yet another reason why Chicago is such a fantastic city- they do fun things with the lights in their high-rise buildings!)

The last two days were low-key ones for KOTG. Yesterday we exhibited at a free clinic in Richmond, VA which is a great thing, but very low-traffic; I think we only had about 30 people come through all day. The day before we were at a grocery store called Ukrops, where it was also quite slow, maybe about 50 people.

It really is striking how universal breast cancer is. I always knew this; in my "regular" job on the virtual team I sometimes conduct what we call Focus meetings, where I cite statistics: one in 8 women will get breast cancer in their lifetime. A new diagnoses is made every 3 minutes. Someone will die from breast cancer every 20 minutes.

But somehow, being out here on the road has made those stats live and breathe in a way they never did when I recited them on those phone meetings. Every single day we talk to so many people who are survivors of breast cancer, or they lost a loved one, or they had a scare...the connections go on and on. In the last few days I've spoken to many women with close friends who just got diagnosed or just underwent a mastectomy. Sometimes they are very young and just got married or have small children. Sometimes they are old and have a high-risk lifestyle or family history. Either way, the stories wear on me after awhile. Even after a month of doing this on the road and a year and a half of doing it over the phone, it is hard to know how to respond.

There really isn't a good answer.

Tomorrow we are exhibiting on the National Mall for the National Race for the Cure- a huge HUGE deal. Our CEO is flying in and all the highest people from the Komen foundation will be there as well. We have to be up and running by 7 a.m. so that means we'll probably need to leave the hotel around 5 a.m. to go set up, which means 4:30 wake up. Crazy! But it'll be a great day.

Right now I am sitting on my bed in my hotel room, which has a humongous window overlooking a runway at Reagan International Airport. So I get to see all these planes take off, which is actually really cool and semi-hypnotic.