About Me

“Writing comes more easily if you have something to say.” ~Sholem Asch

Relaxing the night before the VA Beach Half Marathon, 2007

Relaxing the night before the VA Beach Half Marathon, 2007

And boy do I have lots to say! Originally, I started this blog as “Julie’s Team in Training Blog” to keep people updated on how my speedwalking was going with The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training. I raised over $5,000 last year for the Society, and I completed the Virginia Beach Half Marathon in just under three hours. This year I signed up for the VA Beach Half as well as the Nike Full (in San Francisco), however shortly after the season began (on June 3rd, to be exact), I was diagnosed for the second time with acute myelogenous leukemia. I was originally diagnosed in January, 2005, and I went into remission immediately. I figured the fact that three and a half years had passed meant my chance of relapse was pretty low, but life had a different plan.

Me as a jellyfish.

Me as a jellyfish, May 2008

I decided to continue my blog because I want to let everyone know how I’m doing, and it’s also a wonderful therapy for me. I am getting ready to go to Seattle for a bone marrow transplant, and I will miss my home, my friends, my family and the DC area, but I know keeping up with this blog will help me feel more connected with everyone.

At the beach with my cousins, Thanksgiving, 2007

At the beach with my cousins, Thanksgiving, 2007

I hope you enjoy it! I definitely put it all out there, so don’t be surprised to find feelings of hope and happiness mixed in with those of discouragement, but I feel like it’s an honest reflection of what it’s like to deal with leukemia. Mostly, I’m looking forward to getting some of Laura’s (my sister) lucky bone marrow so that I can plan a dream trip to Ireland and get on with my life!!