Hi, there all, it is time for me to start bugging people about the AIDS Walk Austin. So, the economy sucks, those of us with jobs are really grateful just to have them, candidates are asking for money, there's an important election in November..... And here's me, with my hand out, too. Well, not my hand. Well, yes, my hand, but I'm seeking donations to benefit men & women in Austin & Travis County who are living with HIV/AIDS. AIDS Walk Austin has been going on for 23 years, and bebefits people living with HIV & AIDS in Austin & Travis County. The agencies also do prevention & education, so that the population of persons affected does not continue to grow. I'm going to talk about the Walk, and about some other stuff I'm doing & there's a song involved. If you want to skip that part, here's my AIDS Walk Austin page. Please donate if you can.
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So right now, I'm training for a triathlon on Aug. 22, another one Oct. 3 and maybe a bike ride benefitting breast cancer on Sept. 25 and I have my "getting ready for the race" CD playing in my car whenever I'm in it. It's a short playlist of familiar, upbeat songs that I like having in my head when I'm trying to do something impossible. If you catch a ride with me somewhere, you'd better like U2, a lot. And the song, the one that make me feel like I can do anything, is City of Blinding Lights. Listen to this song, and tell me you don't feel the same:
My goal this year is $3,000, which is asking a whole lot. Like I said before, those of us who even have jobs at all are either feeling lucky or looking around the corner at layoffs & furloughs But people with AIDS still need our help. Imagine how scary layoffs are for people with a dreaded preexisting condition, one requiring medications that cost $1500 a month or more. Surely we can at least buy one person's meds for 2 months. Here's my AIDS Walk Austin page.
So City of Blinding Light makes me feel like anything is possible. Like it is possible for AIDS agencies to have all the funding they need. I imagine people who need help actually getting all the help they need. I imagine people getting educated about disease prevention. And I imagine people being able to get tested for free, any time they feel the need for it. Sadly, this is not currently the case. Agencies that help people are all being asked to do more with less. Even in liberal cities like Austin, resources are being stretched thinner and thinner. But you can help, here's my AIDS Walk Austin page
I'm playing this song in my head, trying to get psyched up to do multiple impossible things. I'd like to finish the triathlons in less than 3 hours (actually since I haven't trained nearly enough, I'd like to just finish), and I really want to raise more than $3,000 and the biggest goal - be the top fundraiser for the Walk. I was the top fundraiser for the Ride a couple of years ago, and for the Walk last year. I don't think I savored either experience enough, so I want to try again. Can you help me meet (or beat) that $3,000 goal? One person has already raised $800, and it is only August, so it'll take some doing to catch up and I have a feeling he'll remain competitive. What do I get if I am the top fundraiser? The knowledge that I helped a lot of people. Probably a special t-shirt. And if there are airline tickets (there usually are), I donate them back to the agency, so they can either raise more money with them or use them for something else. I mostly just want to help people, and, ok - to win. I'm not going to win any of the races I enter, but this is something I can do. I really appreciate your donations, and so do people in Austin who are living with HIV & AIDS.
