So it begins...

I ran today. Maybe "ran" is a better way to put it. I am on vacation at Fort Walton Beach, FL, with my family. I had intended for this week to be my last week of intense laziness before the running insanity, but the schedule we got had "20 minutes light" down for Monday-Thursday of this week. Since I didn't want to go into our first practice on Saturday completely out of shape, I decided I should start doing the recommended runs.

I came back up to the room from a lazy day of sitting on the beach, and I really didn't want to change and go out running, so I ran around the condo for 10 minutes (I thought the schedule said "10 minutes light", so I messed up there, but at least I ran). I seriously ran around the condo - laps from the front door, through the master bedroom, around the table in the living room, and back to the front door. I looked like an idiot, and it was more like jogging, but I moved non-stop for 10 minutes and didn't die. This is a good start.

Tomorrow morning I will wake up and do 20 minutes in the neighborhood here. I guess how that goes will be a better tell of where I stand. I don't have good shoes for running yet, but I will take care of that soon - we have a shoe clinic Saturday after practice.

The important thing is that I have started. Starting is good.

On another note - I can't begin to express how much it inspires me that so many awesome people have already donated. You guys rock!

Fundraising Email

Dear friends and family,

I have written and rewritten this email, and I can’t seem to get it just right. The fight for cancer is huge and important, and I can’t seem to do it justice. Most of us have had someone close to us suffer from some form of cancer, and we all would like to see an end to a disease that can be so devastating. Well, it’s time to do something about it.

The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is the largest funder of blood cancer research in the world. Their mission is to cure blood cancers and to help improve the lives of people battling blood cancer. In addition to funding the path toward a cure, they provide financial assistance, counseling, and other means of support for those who need it most.

This year I have decided to take on a task that seems fairly monumental to me in order to encourage all of you to get involved in the fight. I will be running a half-marathon here in Houston in January. That’s 13 miles for a girl who currently wouldn’t even make it ½ a mile. Seriously, you guys know I don’t run. I will be training with a bunch of similarly crazy people for the next six months through Team in Training.

Team in Training is dedicated to training people to complete endurance events while raising money for LLS. And that’s where you come in. I am writing to ask you to help support me in raising money to help find a cure. I have set a goal of $3,000, but I am sure that we should have no trouble raising far more. I have set up a fundraising website: http://pages.teamintraining.org/txg/houston09/khughesw0s. It is the easiest and fastest way to donate to the cause. Your donations are 100% tax deductible, and you will be emailed a receipt. If you would prefer not to donate through the internet, I will be accepting check donations as well. Please make your check out to: The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and get them to me. Remember, any donation, no matter how big or small, puts us that much closer to finding a cure for Hodgkin's Lymphoma, non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, Leukemia, and multiple Myeloma.

The research that is funded through this program can truly save lives. Please help me make a difference.

Please forward this email to anyone else who you think might be interested in making a donation. And feel free to ask me any questions that you might have about the society or the program or my running adventures.

Finally, we would all appreciate your support as we actually attempt to complete this run in downtown Houston on January 18, 2009. We need all the encouragement we can get as we run in honor of all blood cancer patients, survivors, and those we lost along the way.

Sincerely,
Kelsey

What's wrong with me?

I signed up tonight to train for and run the Houston half-marathon with Team in Training. It's a great cause, and I am very excited. But, seriously, I can't run. I will post much more information on the program later, but, for now, I just wanted to get the blog where I will chronicle my adventure started. Today is the day that I determined what the rest of the my year will be like.