Challenge Walk MS: Day 3

Ahh, today was a nice, easy (well, relatively) morning of walking.  We slept in a little, ate a good breakfast, and then started out on the route.  There were just a few sprinkles while we were out on the route...and then a little downpour once we were done.  It cleared off enough for the Victory Mile to be quite enjoyable.

Last night we found out that 43 people with MS were involved in the walk...either walking or volunteering.  Impressive!  Also, we met two women with MS who crossed the finish line together in first place (even though it wasn't a race) yesterday.  They were such an inspiration!  Additionally, the WI Chapter of the National MS Society raised over $350,000 this weekend.  Wow!

Thanks again for your donations!  We hope that you will be as generous the next time we do this! :)

Day 3: Start Line

Mom and the sea of orange during the Victory Mile.

We did it!  50 miles in 3 days!!!

Challenge Walk MS: Day 2

Well, what a feat (feet, wet feet)!  It rained ALL day long...the whole 20 miles...but we made it!  Today's walk wasn't quite as fun as yesterday's but the weather probably played a big part in that.  We still met a lot of great people and had a delicious lunch.  There is at least one other mother-daughter pair here as well as a father-daughter duo.  Our reward for sticking with it was a wonderful 30 minute massage...ahh!  Now we're warming up with some coffee/chai at The Chocolate Chicken.  There are only 10 miles left for tomorrow...should be a breeze!

Near the start...already raining.  Sunglasses on in hopes of sunshine.

Mile 40 finish line...completely soaked.

Challenge Walk MS: Day 1

We survived Day 1...20 miles down, 30 to go.  No blisters so far, just sore feet.  We're now relaxing at The Chocolate Chicken, enjoying a warm beverage and some fudge.  The scenery was absolutely beautiful as the trees are just starting to change.  The weather was perfect.  To top it off, the support staff was amazing.

We're looking forward to the dinner and award ceremony tonight and to meeting more of the people supporting this great cause.

Thanks again for your donations.  We will definitely sleep well tonight!

The start line

Rest Stop #1: Irish

We hiked up this viewing tower for a little extra cardio.

The view was totally worth it!

The finish line...20 miles down!

Challenge Walk MS is almost here!

Here's a copy of the email I sent out to our donors.

Hello family and friends,

First of all, we want to thank you all again for your support for the Challenge Walk MS.  This is the week!  We will be arriving in Egg Harbor on Thursday night and walking Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.  We've trained hard for this all summer.  Jul walked 408 miles and Emily walked 242 miles...with 3 more miles scheduled on Tuesday and Wednesday this week.  It's been challenging but invigorating as well.  We can't wait for the experience of the actual event.

Jul even put her craftiness to work and made shirts...with a little design help from Em:

We'll try to update you after each day of the walk.  You can also see the route maps for each day at this website.

Thanks again for all your support!

~Jul and Emily

Depend upon yourself. Make your judgment trustworthy by trusting it. You can develop good judgment as you do the muscles of your body -- by judicious, daily exercise. To be known as a man of sound judgment will be much in your favor.

~Grantland Rice, American sportswriter

North end of Lakefront Trail

I walked 20.48 miles yesterday (well, OK, I ran 6 of them and walked the rest).  I made it all the way to the north end of Lakefront Trail (about 8 miles from my apartment).  It was a beautiful, windy day.  I thought I did pretty well...only my feet hurt when I got done.  This morning, a lot more hurt...but I walked to do my errands and seem to have gotten all the soreness out.  I'm feeling pretty good about handling the Challenge Walk MS (50 miles in 3 days...20, 20, 10) on September 23-25th.  Woo!

P.S. Balance bars and GU sport gel are my friends!

North end of Lakefront Trail

 

My view

At about mile 9...still smiling!

August fun in Chicago

Yoga in Millennium Park...so awesome!  I was able to go August 13th and 27th and September 3rd.  Can't wait for next summer to do it again!

We saw Peter Pan at the threesixty Theatre.  I loved it!

We came across a flash mob on our way to Taste of Greece.

John and I in Greektown for Taste of Greece.

John and Keith

John and I in our neighborhood on the way back from Taste of Greece.  Artsy photo courtesy of Keith.

John with a pretty garden in Millennium/Grant Park.

Night view of the city from the Shedd Aquarium.

John and I after Jazzin' at the Shedd.

The job(s)

Oh boy.  I started orientation at the University of Chicago on August 15th.  My collaborating physician was on vacation that week so I shadowed a nurse practitioner in another department, took an Epic class, and went to general employee orientation.  I had a pretty good attitude going in to the second week.  Then I met my collaborating physician (again) and observed him do his thing.  The procedures I observed were really cool...but I wasn't impressed with how the physician treated people.  Don't get me wrong, he was nice to me...but he didn't respond well when things didn't go perfectly and didn't have much respect for many of the members of the team.  Plus, the patient-care emphasis was very specific (whatever was related to the procedure) and not holistic at all.  I started to think the environment was not for me.

I had applied for a job at Chamberlain College of Nursing the week before and got an email back last Tuesday.  I set up a phone interview for Wednesday while I was at work and it went really well.

Thursday was an extremely bad day at the University of Chicago.  I came home and told John about it and just started bawling.  He felt so bad he told me I could quit if I wanted to...that we'd be OK financially for a couple of months.  That day I also set up an in-person interview at Chamberlain for the next afternoon.

Friday was actually a really good day at the University of Chicago.  I was the only one there (the fellow, research fellow, and medical student that usually observed were all gone) and I actually learned a lot about the procedures from the doctor.  However, I did leave early for my in-person interview at Chamberlain.  The interview went extremely well and I set up another interview for Tuesday.  I couldn't stop smiling afterwards and was in a better mood than I'd been in all week.  I knew then that the University of Chicago position wasn't right for me.  Then I had a decision to make...should I resign at UChicago before the interview on Tuesday or wait until afterwards?  John and I talked about it...and I talked to Jamine about it...and finally decided to resign on Monday morning.  (My parents tried really hard to persuade me to wait...but I didn't.)

I was really nervous about handing in my letter of resignation but it went really well.  The physician talked with me and was really understanding about it (and even told me he thought I was doing a good job).  I was starting to wonder if I should stay when one of the nurses told me that I definitely made the right decision.  That helped a ton!

My interview at Chamberlain on Tuesday went extremely well...and they offered me the position (academic success coach).  It's a little bit of a pay cut from the UChicago job...but I can tell already that the quality of life at work will be much better for me.  I'm really excited about this position and hope that I like it as much as I think I will.  Wish me luck!

Books

I read The Help on our way to Montana.  I absolutely loved the book.  I thought it was very well-written and felt like I was right there in the characters' places.  I loved how different chapters were written from the perspective of different characters.  I had to control myself so that I wouldn't end up bawling in the car...though I definitely shed a few tears (and would have shed more had I been in the privacy of my own home).  I'm interested in seeing the moving but am afraid I'll be disappointed by it...we'll see, I guess.

On the way home, I read Water for Elephants.  I was really psyched to read this book because I had heard so many good things about it.  I thought it was good...but I didn't like it as much as I liked The Help.  It wasn't as easy to get into for me...and while I thought it was a good story, I didn't connect with the characters as much.

I started The Audacity of Hope on the way home from Montana and just finished it on the train this past week.  I was very impressed with Barack Obama's writing style and just by what he had to say.  I realized more than ever that I have many of the same views on political issues.  It was also cool to hear him talk about Chicago now that I live here (and other parts of Illinois too).  It was definitely hard to switch from fiction to non-fiction...but I really enjoyed reading this book too...and definitely want to read Dreams from My Father.

Montana

*I've neglected this blog for almost a month now...sorry!  I will do my best to catch up in the next few days.  :)

In late July/early August we took a road trip to Montana with John's parents.  John's dad's family has a wheat farm out there and his family usually takes a trip out each summer...they check on the farm, sometimes help with the harvest, and usually spend some time in Glacier National Park as well.  This year, John's sisters decided not to go (Annie didn't have enough vacation and Natalie just didn't want to go) but John still wanted to go...and since I didn't have a job yet, I decided to go too.  So, it was just us and John's parents.  We actually had a pretty good time.  Thank goodness I can now read in the car!  (For years, I would get nauseas whenever I read in the car...but now I think that has more to do with curvy roads than actual reading.)  I read 2.5 books (The Help, Water for Elephants, and started The Audacity of Hope...more on those later.) plus two magazines, watched two or three episodes of Grey's Anatomy, and drove a few hours each way.

John and I at Painted Canyon near Medora ND

John and I after breakfast at Cowboy Cafe in Medora ND

Kathy and John in front of Rough Riders Hotel in Medora ND

John, John, and I at Tiber Dam in Montana

We met John's Uncle Ken, Aunt Liz, cousin Dustin, and cousin's daughter Journey in Chester.  Journey was a hoot!  She definitely kept me entertained.  The guys spent the time building a new deck on the farm house and helping out around the farm.  We ladies spent our time in town and a little bit of time on the farm as well.  It was so dusty out there!  Chet and Leesha treated us to a BBQ one night and it was delicious!

Journey, the birthday girl and cheesehead, and I out for pizza

Journey taking pictures with her new camera

What a cutie!

Playing ladder ball.  My team won!

Journey and I with the tractor, an obligatory Montana pic

We took a day trip to Glacier on our last full day in Montana.  We had a picnic lunch and then took a little hike to see a lake with the whole group (minus Grandpa).  John, John, Dustin, and I then took a longer hike to see Hidden Lake.  There was tons of snow left and we saw lots of mountain goats.  It was fun!  After our hike we got ice cream with the whole group and then drove to East Glacier Lodge for dinner.  Yum!
 

The "kids"...me, John, Journey, and Dustin

John and John on the way to Hidden Lake

Beautiful scenery!

Dustin mimicking the mountain goat

The whole group at dinner at East Glacier Lodge

The next day we got in the car for the long, two day drive back to Wisconsin.  The second day of the drive we had meals in three different states...breakfast in Bismark ND, lunch in St. Cloud MN, and supper in Wausau WI.

Good-bye hugs and kisses from Journey