June 27, 2010

I finished my first full week of Project Walk and I'm exhausted. I love it!!! I'm already seeing favorable results and the bottom line is that I'm going to get a lot stronger, which will help me gain some highly desired independence. The people at Project Walk are great and push me hard in an encouraging way. One of the other patients here had a social gathering last night where I got to meet several other people in similar conditions as mine with similar attitudes. It seems like we're all here because giving up is not an option and we don't believe in words like "never" or "can't". It's been very encouraging and I have actually had some tangible hope. So thanks to ALL of you for making this possible. You have no idea what a blessing you are!

I'll be posting pictures of my adventures at Project Walk here and if you're reading the blog you can view them here or type in the following:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=186424&id=793208549&l=b6f91699d3

Here's a quick recap for the last month. Had an an awesome send off bbq party in Southern Oregon prior to heading to Project Walk. There were probably 60+ people there. Great food, great beer, and even better friends made it an incredible night. My good friend Aaron Lewis did a documentary about me for his capstone project to graduate from SOU and showed it at the BBQ. Aaron did an incredible job and it turned out way above my expectations. It was very moving! So after all that we packed up the van and headed south to only break down in Redding, CA. We were stranded in Redding for 4 days! No offense against those of you that live there, but ugh…seriously?? Although, the sun dial bridge is pretty cool especially at night. We finally escaped Redding, and now we're in Encinitas, CA. The place we're staying is peaceful, wheelchair accessible, and just out of the coastal fog. It's very nice. So if you need some sun and time at the beach come on down.

We're going to be doing the Klamath River benefit music/dinner/rafting weekend again on the weekend of August 21-22. It's going to be a blast. Mark it on your calendar and get your butt out there for it. There will be an official announcement going out soon. We plan to do a silent auction as well. So we'll be looking for volunteers to help donate time and/or resources.

Now here are some philosophical thoughts so if you're not into that then you can stop reading here. I recently had a discussion about dealing with adversity and it brought up some ideas on the subject. The way I've approached adversity is to have a realistic assessment of the current situation, but don't accept it as the end all/be all. Instead always look for the opportunities for growth and embrace that growth with optimism, persistence, and a positive attitude. One more thing is to also not be too proud to ask for a little help. We all need it once in a while.

If you feel like making a visit to sunny SoCal let me know I'd love to see you. I'll just be here giving everything I got at Project Walk. Also don't forget about the Klamath River Bash. It's going to be fun. Thanks again for all your support. To my homies in Jefferson State and Seattle…miss you guys crazy!!