Smile and others will smile with you...

Have you ever noticed that when someone yawns you immediately feel a yawn coming on?   How about those moments of contagious laughter?  I remember moments of laughter with my family and friends that went on so long that my cheeks hurt, I was crying, my stomach was cramping, and I thought we would never stop laughing.

Do you notice that when you are spending time with someone filled with doom and gloom you feel a bit blue?  I suggest you pick a new color, after all there’s an entire rainbow.  Have you ever cried simply because someone else was crying?  Even if you had no idea why they were crying?  Do you ever find yourself smiling when someone smiles at you?  There is a correlation between your emotions and your facial expressions and a real smile is an emotional contagion.

So what is real?  How do you differentiate between a real smile and a fake one?  It’s all in the eyes, yes really it’s all in the eyes.  The Duchenne Smile was first identified by French physician Guillaume Duchenne who discovered a clear anatomical difference between a real smile and a fake one.  His research showed that a real smile activated not only the muscles that lift the corner of the mouth but the muscles around the eyes.  You know the ones, those muscles that we lovingly call crows feet..so be proud if your crow’s feet are quite visible..it is a sign that you have had a long life filled with smiles.  

Most often we associate a smile with first being happy, but did you know that if you are feeling down and you think of something that makes you smile, you now bring happiness to your day by first having the smile.  Try this experiment, think of something that makes you smile, keep smiling and now change your thought to something sad and try to maintain your smile.  If you are truly smiling and then think of something sad you can’t maintain that smile.  Now, think of something that brings joy to you and try not to smile..not so easy is it?

Each of us have so many reason’s throughout our day to smile and if you can’t think of a reason just stop and think of all the things you have to be grateful for in your life.  If you are still having a problem just look at the list of reasons to smile on this website and I bet you will come up with a few of your own.

Smiling improves your health and well-being.  When you smile and feel the joy associated with a smile you can lower your blood pressure, reduce anxiety, increase positive energy, and enhance the life of those you meet throughout your day.  A smile crosses language and cultural boundaries and is the best communication weapon you have and you carry it with you everywhere.  Whoever may have said that the mouth is a very powerful weapon may have been speaking about what comes out of the mouth but I believe that the silent voice of our mouths is equally as important.

No matter the emotion or the facial expression, it is undeniable that what is written on your face and is in your heart effects those around you.  The more genuine the expression, the more effective it is, so if you think faking a smile is going to make someone’s day..forget it...if you really want to make someone’s day, keep it real.  Make today the day that you unleash your inner smile guru!

FREE is a good thing!

Hello everyone, I am so excited to actually have a real internet connection. I know it sounds cliche but you really don't know how much you miss something until it is gone.

Okay, I hope that some of you respond to this offer.  FREE, how can you turn that down?  A copy of Blake Mycoskie's new book, absolutely FREE.  You don't even have to pay shipping.  All you need to do is post your most memorable moment of human kindness, either here in the comments section or on the Facebook page.  It can be a moment when someone was kind to you or a moment when you felt the joy of doing something for someone else. How easy is that? In return you get a FREE copy of "Start Something That Matters", the new and inspiring book by the founder and Chief Shoe Giver of TOMS shoes.

Along with the FREE book you just may inspire someone to create their own most memorable moment of kindness. 

Here are my most memorable FREE gifts since leaving on this journey.  First a ride through some rough territory with my bike and gear stashed in the back of a pickup truck.  Great company and a few scary moments but nonetheless FREE and safe.  Next, a most beautiful apartment with a view to die for, all to myself, and FREE.  I will post some pics for you and you will see what I mean.  Soon after that, a new friend with a great dog and a warm shower, you guessed it, FREE.  That same new friend, gave me the most awesome sight seeing tour, yep, FREE.  Life is great and now I want to hear about yours!

A World without Cancer?

In light of the most recent tragic loss of Steve Jobs, one of the greatest minds this world will ever know, I really have to ask what would our world be like without cancer?  Can you imagine a world where cancer is something you read about in a history book and never experience first hand?  I can and that is what makes this trip so much more important. 
If we can create a vaccine that eliminates a virus that is linked to cancer thereby effectively eliminating that cancer, there is no reason, in my mind, that we can't do it for other cancers.  Which vaccine does that, the HPV vaccine.  We can't stop there.  We need to keep pushing toward a cure for all cancers.  I don't want to hear about "rare" cancer's, all cancer sucks!  Whether you experience cancer first hand or you are a family member or friend, the impact is great.  We can't just sit back and do nothing.  Look around you 1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women will at some point in their lives be faced with cancer, those numbers need to change.
Okay so maybe those of you reading this aren't crazy enough to ride a bicycle around the world, but we can all do something.  It may be just holding the hand of someone suffering or offering up a prayer, it may be speaking out and keeping this disease in the forefront of everyone's mind, we all have some way of giving back.  I challenge you to find yours!

The Final Countdown!

Wow, I can't believe I am on the final countdown.  In a couple of weeks I have my visit with the doctor and I am anticipating all will be fine and she will give me a green light.  Then it is out the door and down the road.  The fear and realty is setting in, I am about to spend an extended period of time purposefully homeless.  I hope to inspire all of you that I meet along the way.  I also hope you will follow my journey and post comments on here as I update the blog page. 
My apartment is looking like a tornado went through it, sale again this week.  The large furniture is gone.  I am sleeping on an air mattress until I head out, it is actually kinda comfy.  Still not sure what I will do about the puppies, really want to keep them together.  They would be like siblings who went to separate foster homes, sad.
Fixing some last minute issues with the bike, and I will simply say that if you are considering long distance cycling, be sure to use a customer friendly bike shop. :(
I can't wait to post pictures and video from the road!

I have to make my opinion known!

I needed to take the time to make my opinion known about a controversy that has arisen through the political scene. I would not normally do this but this hits very close to home for me.  As someone who was diagnosed with HPV and has had ongoing cervical issues, first 18 years ago, and then again for 3 out of the last 4 years, I am disheartened by anyone who speaks out against a preventive vaccine.  I firmly believe that it is our duty as parents to protect our children in anyway we can.  To the best of my knowledge, this is the first vaccine available that has been shown to protect against a virus that causes certain types of cancer.  It is time for people to get some courage and speak out, this is not a taboo subject.  Yes, HPV is sexually transmitted, and I ask, how many of you are celibate?  Studies show that a very large percentage of all women will at some time in their lives contract this virus, which also means that a large percentage of men will also.  The greatest thing is the vaccine is now available for both boys and girls.  If this had been available when I was young it would have saved me numerous surgeries, the emotional stress, and ongoing fear of living with this virus.

As you all know cancer is a cause I take to heart, I do what I do because I can, so many people cannot.  Please watch the video, I ride for many reasons, cancer being one of them.  I have lost a Grandfather, 2 Aunts, an Uncle, and a Sister to this disease.  I have a sister who holds my hand in survivorship.  I want to know that there will be a day when my grandchildren are reading about cancer in a history book, not experiencing it first hand. 

How many lives can you touch?

I am just one person, how can I make a difference? What can I do, I have no money, I can't ride bike, I have no talents? I have heard them all and I have an answer for all of them. I challenge you to give me one I can't answer.
Each day I discover a new way that I have inspired someone, many without even trying. It may be a smile I gave to someone who really was feeling sad. It may be sharing an inspiring word on social media. Sometimes it is simply going out on a limb and doing something I may not have ever considered as I grew up painfully shy. I have learned to think outside the box. Things that you may think are impossible or not even worth trying are the things you should be doing. What is the worst that can happen? One of my new friends says, "falling on your face is still moving forward" and I agree.
If you have been dreaming it, thought you never could, feel like people may laugh or judge ask your self these questions. Will it make you happy? Does it serve you? Will it make someone else happy? Does it serve the greater good? If you have said yes to these questions, what are you waiting for? If you have said no to any of these, look at what needs to be changed for you to answer yes to all and get moving. Stop worrying about what others may think, don't fret the how, if you have answered the why the how will take care of itself.

Panniers, racks, and roll!

The most important part of preparing for an adventure like this is the equipment.  The bike is rolling along beautifully.  Many people ask, do you need to spend a lot on equipment.  That is a complex question, I will take a shot at it.  Certainly I would not want to take this challenge on a bike from the local big box department store however I knew I could do it without spending thousands on a bicycle.  Let's be honest, not many of us have thousands to spend on special equipment.  I am no different, this is a self supported tour and I need to do it on a shoestring so I have money for the more important things like visiting as many survivors as possible.  I chose to modify a bike a currently owned, a Specialized women's specific mountain bike.  We changed out the suspension fork, changed the gearing so I would have those much needed gears for hauling my life on a bike, added safety equipment, and racks and now we are on to the panniers. For those of you who aren't bicycle savvy, panniers are bags that attach to the racks on the bike.  Right now, just for fun, I am designing a coat guard and a friend is trying to see if he can find a metal worker to make it for me.  It is a fun, exciting process.
I encourage anyone involved in a project like this to seek our sponsorships, even the smallest things are helpful.  It may be something as small as a donation of a new bike seat.  There are many good people out there who want to support a good cause and you will be surprised to see what offers you may get, sometimes it is a service, sometimes it is a product.  I have gotten many great donations along the way.  The most recent is a wonderful sponsorship opportunity for the panniers with Arkel, a great company with great bags.  
 If you have always wanted to do something and you are hesitating, there are no excuses.  I challenge you to at the very least, whatever it is, try it for 30 days.  Even if you decide it is not for you, you won't be able to say that you never tried.  Life is for living, enjoy!

Bike is back, yipee!

Hello ya'll! I am so excited, the bike is back from the shop.  Touring tires, higher gearing, new front fork, racks, lights and the computer has been synced.  All I need now are the panniers, for those of you who aren't bike savvy, that would be the bags to carry all my essentials.  I just sent a letter to a company that I hope will offer an in kind donation of the panniers.  Once the bags are on, I will be doing fully loaded training rides to get used to carrying the extra weight.  There will also be some new filming with PBS at that time.  I will update you when to look for that.  See you on the road.

Another great day!

Hello everyone! Another great day of preparing for this trip.  With an estimated leave date of September 30, time is going by quickly.  If you are a cyclist and would like to ride with me here in the area contact me and let me know when you are available. 
Next week I am giving a presentation for a large group of medical professionals, wow, I am actually nervous.  It should be exciting.  I guess if I can handle the politicians in Washington, I can handle a group of doctors.  If you have a group small or large that you would like me to share with please feel free to contact me. 
Please head on over to the dedication link and send us a dedication to honor someone you love, it is free and I will carrying those prayers, messages, and names with me around the world.

Love life, live now and always remember to smile

Hello everyone, I just wanted to check in with the latest info and to let you know to stay tuned for a pleasant surprise on the website.  I spent last night with a crowd full of great spirits.  The energy was high, I made new friends and felt a connectedness to those around me.  I had the chance to share my story with quite a few people at a concert venue while enjoying some of the most uplifting, spirited music gifted by Michael Franti and Spearhead.  I went upstairs to meet with Michael and the band after the show and once again got the chance to share a bit of my story.  Each day is a blessing.  Today it is an afternoon of training for the ride, send off is getting closer and I need to be ready.  This won't be "round the world in 80 days" :)

Updates from the journey

I wanted to check in with all of you who are following this journey.  Amazing things are happening every day while I get prepared to leave PA.  I have met survivor families in response to sale ads as I sell my personal possessions.  I have listened to heart breaking stories.
I am open each day to whatever blessings may come my way.  In that openness, I was walking into an office a couple of days ago and the shirt I was wearing opened a conversation with the gentlemen who were leaving that office.  Once again, I met someone who was touched by cancer, his wife was a breast cancer survivor.  I shared this epic journey with them and learned so much about their experiences.  One more blessing.   One more reason why this epic bicycle challenge is so necessary; to bring an even greater connection between survivors.  See you along the way.

Welcome!

Hi everyone, and welcome to the blog page of the site. I encourage all of you to leave your comments here, I will be checking in often. This is going to be quite an adventure and I hope you follow me along the way. Please send us your dedication we want to get that page filled with love quickly. At this point this trip is in the planning and preparation stage, and that gets crazy. The bike is being built to specs, I am selling my personal possessions, taking care of passport and visas, and preparing my mind and body. My plan is to leave no later than next Spring, however I am shooting for much earlier. Thank you for your support, maybe we will meet somewhere along my journey.