Was My Last Post 6 Weeks Ago?

Man -- 6 weeks ago? That's bad! Really bad. That said, I'm going off United Way script for a minute and give you a little update about what's going on with me. Am I making excuses? Maybe. . .but even I can't come up with an excuse good enough to explain no post in 6 weeks. . .

I started a new job with Novartis in April. I'm now managing raw materials for Novartis Consumer Health on a global level. So before my focus was primarily materials used at our Lincoln plant (by the I-80 Waverly exit). My new job still includes supporting Lincoln, and basically everywhere else on the globe we make product. . .which is a lot of places. I'm traveling a bit more, and I'm still on a learning curve. So work has kept me hopping.

Towards the end of February I thought maybe I should go to graduate school. Now, I've been out of college for 20 years, and it hasn't been all that long ago that I quit having recurrent nightmares of having a test that I forgot to study for. So, in March I decided I'd take one class. Statistics. Just ended last week. I am sooooo glad. No class this summer. So school has kept me hopping.

Spring. The season of new life. The season of annuals, perennials, trees, shrubs, flowers and dirt. I have a compulsion (well, I have several). . .but one is non-stop planting. This also includes regular "nursery trolling". . . you can find me at every nursery, big box store, grocery store or pharmacy parking lot in the greater Lincoln area every Saturday and Sunday. When not at the nursery, I'm usually digging a hole. This season has been very busy. I even put an in-ground fountain in. I've dug so much that I broke my shovel. So, the yard has kept me hopping.

Cancer. My Mom has it. Breast. She noticed the lump in March. Three surgeries later, she started chemo a week ago. I'm going to spend a little time talking about her treatment in the months ahead. Call it inexpensive therapy. I need to find words to explain what it feels like when you're sitting with someone you care about at a chemotherapy infusion center, watching poison go into that person. Life saving poison. I need to find words about what it feels like to pick your Mom up after having her head shaved and fitted for a wig. (It actually looks good.) I need to find a lot of words. My Mom is in my Top 2 Favorite People in the World, and her cancer has kept me hopping.

Man. . .that was SOOOO coming up with excuses. But no more excuses. I have a good job, and the class is over, and there's no place left in the yard to put another plant, and my Mom is alive. Now it's time for you and I to raise some awareness, raise some dollars and, hopefully, have a little fun doing it.

Be thinking about your campaigns. If they start in July (like some Pacesetter campaigns) -- do more than think. Thanks for your support in the 2009 United Way - Community Health Charities Annual campaign. Your efforts make our community a much better place to live.

Talk at you soon. Thanks, Dave