Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Donation

So I was planning on running the Frostbite Half Marathon next month, but I won't be able to, it turns out. Thats fine though. I think helping another person is more important.
While Wes and I lived in Charleston, we signed up for the National Marrow Donor Registry. They are responsible for finding matches for people in need of a bone marrow transplant. This was several years ago. We had forgotten about it. A few months ago, I got a phone call early in the morning (9am is early for me okay!) saying that I had been matched to a person with Leukemia in need of a transplant. Of course I said yes. How can you say no to someone who has cancer. Well, I've had to have blood drawn twice, filled out a bunch of paperwork and had a physical and now I'm set to donate bone marrow cells in mid-January. Kind of excited about it, and nervous as well.
Since I have a bulging disc, I can't have the normal extraction procedure (they insert a big needle into my hip bone and extract marrow directly from the bone.) I'm giving Periphiral blood stem cells which is the same thing, but a different way of extraction. I have to take a shot everyday for 5 days. This shot "pulls" marrow out of my bones and into my bloodstream. On day 5, I have to be hooked up to an apheresis machine that looks like a dialysis machine, except it pulls blood from one arm and extracts the marrow cells, then returns the blood to the other arm. Here's a link to more info.

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Marathon pictures from Brightroom (Official photographer)

These aren't in exact order. These first two are from the runner's village before my group lined up to start (The bridge in the background is where we started.) I took my sweatshirt off for the picture, but it was freezing and I still had over an hour to wait. I waited to the last minute to take it off again. (Threw it and my pants in the donation piles)

Not sure where this is... I'm on the left
40K mark inside Central Park (A Marathon is just over 42K's)

Mile 13. I'm walking here because my knee was really hurting... (just in front of the clock behind yellow shirt guy)
Got my knee taped up at mile 9. Here's the evidence.

I wasn't vomitted on, but looks like I may have come close! Hope you feel better Andy. :)
Finish. I came right through the middle. Figured that'd be the best place.

I was right! Perfect picture! (My favorite one!)
Random aerial shots. I ran on the bottom of the Varazano. (This is at the start)



Varazanno-Narrows Bridge (Connecting Staten Island and Brooklyn)

Fire Department had their boats out and at the start of the first wave (I was in wave 3 so I didn't get to see it), they sprayed red, white and blue water.