When I registered to participate in a 3-Day, 60-mile walk, my motivation was almost exclusively the physical challenge. I absolutely pulled up recent Susan G. Komen Form 990s and established that this was an organization with great fiscal hygiene and that I could feel good about inviting friends to support before sharing my fundraising link. But I would 100% have participated even if the purpose was to raise funds to provide champagne and caviar to trust fund babies whose fam

A picture is worth a thousand words, While my skill with a pen (keyboard?) far exceeds my skill with a camera, I know these pictures will preserve precious memories for me. Day 1: My black lanyard marked me as a first year walker - notifying all of the more experienced walkers to check in with me frequently and make sure that all was well. The people on the bus! Look at all those Day 1, 5:30 am smiles! Look at MY 5:30 am smile! Locals wrote messages on the sand for walkers at

It is genuinely impossible to do justice to the 3-Day Walk for the Cure in a single Blog Post - or even a series. It is an experience of moments; vignettes that defy any attempt to weave them into a single storyline. I could turn many of those moments into individual posts - or pick innumerable individual story lines to explore. But doing so would create topic fatigue for anyone who hasn’t shared the experience. It is tantamount to telling a friend “you had to be there” as th

Tonight, like every night, I took the itty-bitty, white pill that prevents my cells from using any estrogen that might be floating around. But tonight, I feel the privilege of that action. My experience at the Susan G. Komen 3-Day Walk for the Cure isn’t best but understood in a chronological manner. So, while I will be sharing the details of my experience in all its beautiful chaos over the coming days, bear will me at I share the most impactful moment. As I closed in on the

In the immortal words of one of Dartmouth’s most illustrious cult members and a long time San Diego resident, “Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So . . . Get on your way !” It’s here. It’s now. Apparently, my brain has decided that the soundtrack of the weekend is going to be Dr. Seuss, because the next words running through my brain are “Marvin K. Mooney will you please go now.” At T-1: My nails are freshly pink and sparkly. I started the day with a quick Chino Hi

In the final days leading up to the Susan G. Komen 3-Day, I have reflected on friendship – the 50+ years of friendships that have propelled me to the start line. Fundraising support has frequently come from entirely unexpected quarters. Recent donors include Stina, which has given me the joy of travelling down memory lane from screaming Divinyls lyrics as we danced across campus to Gods & Goddesses as ‘Shmen, to watching every single Anne of Green Gables movie in two days whi

On September 26, 2021, I shared my breast cancer diagnosis with friends I hadn’t told personally in a private Facebook post, writing “information has been uniformly good: pathology is favorable, I have no genetic markers, it is small, and all indications are it remains localized.” At the moment I hit post, I strongly believed I would require surgical intervention and cancer would be behind me in a matter of weeks. I had discovered my cancer on July 4 th  and contemplated not

18 days from this writing, the big event will finally be here. My credential has arrived and is prominently propped on the shelf in front of me as I type. I have been told ad nauseum  that it is a major mistake not to train back-to-back long hikes, so this week I was committed to accomplishing a “double-double,” reaching double digit miles two days in a row. I enjoyed a 15 mile solo walk in Saturday and engaged in movement that added up to 10 miles on Sunday. So. Mission acco

A couple weeks ago, I enjoyed lunch with two remarkable women – who both happen to be breast cancer survivors. We each have different cancers. We each are at different places in our treatment. We have each had a different journey to reach the places at which we find ourselves. Every cancer is unique. Having breast cancer, or, in fact, the same subtype of breast cancer, does not mean people are going to have the same, or even a similar, experience – much like the person who or

Some fight cancer with research and advance knowledge. Some provide for those dealing with the stressors cancer creates in daily life. Others have access to large funding opportunities. Words are my most powerful tool. My particular talent lies in using words to bridge the gap between terrifying science speak and the everyday ramifications of those big, unwieldy words. It is, therefore, unsurprising that when my friend Nicky invited me to participate in a breast cancer awaren

Among those due recognition for contributing to my Susan G. Komen goal in October is fellow “young” breast cancer survivor Nicky and her...

Please note. We did not merely complete a half marathon we CRUSHED it. I say “we” because I did not complete it on my own, I accomplished...

My first heart surgery occurred before I ever came home from the hospital as the grand old age of 11 days. At this point in time, I can...

The first period of training for the Susan G Komen 3-Day was marked by boundless enthusiasm. The skies were blue and the breezes balmy as...

My baby sister would have been 51 today. Best friends and greatest nemeses! But cancer robbed her of the past 20 years. It robbed our...

I sat in yet another paper gown, undressed from the waist up, waiting for yet another doctor in the parade I had seen over the past 10...

Those of you who have spent at least 6 minutes in my company know that I like to plan. It isn’t just that I like to have a plan – I...

Support comes in infinite ways. This week, my friend Debbie joined the Hope Hikers, my Komen team, which now consists of two walkers -...

Thanks to the generosity of the past two weeks, I have surpassed the minimum fundraising threshold for participating in the Komen 3-Day...

Singapore claims the title of best “rest stop” ever. In planning the annual Granny, Mom, Daphne trip (destination Bali), it was clear...