"My Avon Breast Cancer Walk Report"

05/14/2002

I know. I'm lame.

I promised you tales of my walking adventure and then procrastinated. What can I say? You should know better by now. Heh.

Anyhow... the pictures are here. Team Wench found each other Thursday afternoon at Registration in the Baltimore Convention Center and for the most part stuck together all the way through it. Alex and I had to go into a different line because we had more checks than most people. Once we got our "credentials" (badges that you wore around your neck to show who you were) we stood for-ev-er in the line at the general store. Finally we got through that and I came out of it one long sleeved shirt and one pair of shorts richer. We all met up for dinner at the Capital Brewing Company in the Inner Harbor and then dispersed mostly to seek an early bed.

Day 1 dawned clear and cool. Believe me, I know. We had to get up ass early in order to check out and walk down to the Convention Center by 6:00 AM. During the Opening Ceremonies we found out that there were approximately 4,500 walkers and we raised $6.75 million for breast cancer research and treatment. Then at 7:20 AM we started to walk. And then we stopped. Then walked. And stopped. It was pretty crowded until we got out of Baltimore. The really neat part was finding little handmade signs of encouragement stapled to trees and poles. Even with that though, I only made it about 15 miles before I was limping so badly that I had to stop.

It had been windy and cool all day but once the sun went down, it got downright COLD. The word was that temperatures dipped down to about 33 degrees. I put on almost all the clothes I brought and buried myself in my sleeping bag until 5:30 AM

Day 2 came and after a nice hot breakfast and breaking down of our tent, Alex and I set off on the trail once again. Today was the day we unveiled our Team Wench shirts created by Thistlewood Design (a Sunnidae production). The shirts and my hat were a big hit. Did you know that you could get your very own BoobieGear?!? I thought you might.

The wind was gone and the sun was out. I know this because I got a wicked burn on my lower legs. Sometime after about the 5 mile mark, I stepped in a rut hidden by some long grass and twisted my ankle. It didn't feel broken and frankly was only one of many pains I had in my lower extremities. I managed to make it to the next Pit Stop where I got ice for it. Okay, technically Kathy got me the ice because she was a little indignant that I was just sitting there (like they told me to do) and waiting for a bus to take me as far as the Lunch stop. Kathy, Lynne and Lori left later than we did so they had just caught up with me. After fussing over me for awhile (my life is so hard, isn't it? *eg*), they kept walking. Once the bus finally came though, I sort of skipped over them and actually beat them to Lunch. I rested there for awhile and finally decided to tough it out and finish the day.

While passing by Laurel Mall, I found the largest concentration of cheerers (is that a word?) of the whole walk. People were clapping, cheering and handing out water, candy and ice cream. After proclaiming the ice cream guy my personal god for the day, I continued along the route. And then I turned a corner and walked down the street past the mall and there were ALL these PEOPLE there cheering! It was pretty humbling but I did my best to respond and look people in the face. I mean, it's just walking. It's not like I went off to war or anything.

Anyway, while shuffling along, I looked up and saw Lori's husband, Shrew, standing on the side of the sidewalk and RumbleKitty jumping up and down (you gotta admit, she does bounce well!). So I went to talk to Shrew for a bit and hugged RumbleKitty. And THEN a very pregnant little girl came up and hugged on me! Wheeeeeeeeee! :-) And I said, "You're PREGNANT!" and she said, "I know!". Hehehehe... That was the bestest EVER! Of course that little girl was none other than Sunni. Her mother, whom I had met once before, was also there. That provided the little boost that I needed and I managed to finish the next 5 miles without incident.

Since we'd already had the artic temperatures the night before, Mother Nature decided we needed a little rain. Well, a lot of rain actually. Unfortunately the tents provided by Pallotta Teamworks were kind of old and not really weatherproof so ours was one of the many tents that got flooded. For me, that was the final straw. I had been limping pretty badly all evening and now my sleeping bag and shoes were wet. Alex called a friend of hers and went to stay at his house with the intention of returning in the morning to finish the last day. I didn't know anyone who lived that close so I thought about it for a couple hours and finally decided to call my mother in VA to come get me. I knew I wouldn't get home until almost 2:00 am and there was no way I could get up and be back in Jessup, MD by 6:30 AM. That was a pretty hard decision to make and it's not one that I'm especially proud of. However judging from the way my ankle hurt for the next week, I'm glad I did it.

Upon leaving I discovered that my sweet young Wench, Celly, had secret plans to come to DC and be there when I crossed the finish line. I know... how did I ever get to be so lucky? Seriously, nobody has ever done anything like that for me before. I think I'm going to keep her. *g*

And that was how the Avon Breast Cancer 3 Day Walk went for me. I kept forgetting about my camera but I did manage to get a few pictures. Unfortunately they're all from Day 0 and Day 1. I didn't take my camera out at all on Day 2. Like I said -- I'm lame.

Hmmmm... It was lovely to hear about the 3-Day walk, but don'tcha think it's about time to update this page again? Hmmm? Maybe tell us about Cub Scouts, or what the summer has in store for you, or your latest "rant"?? ::scooting off quickly:: ~ cellymcfae @ 11:44 a.m. EST on 05/29/2002