3 Days of My Life

Day 1 2001

NO RAIN!

Thank God. Even tho the forecast was for rain continuing from the night before into this morning, cooling things off, then stopping mid-morning, it was just so nice to start the day with NO RAIN. 3 cheers for the Belmont Inn in Gurnee (and, I’m sure, every other participating hotel). They were so prepared for us. They had breakfast ready at 4:00 AM, slipped our receipts under the door by 3 AM, and made sure we knew what time the shuttle bus would be there in the morning. I went down right at 4 to get Mom a cup of tea. Two women got on the elevator as I got off, and I heard one of them whisper to the other, “See? she’s up early. I bet there are others up too!” Mom asked me if it was cooler. Um...couldn’t really tell from lobby, Mom. Had half a banana and Mom’s leftover from yesterday gatorade.

Not much to do to get ready. It was really nice to have Mom there. Excited and nervous! Mom said the shuttle bus driver from yesterday had said we’d be picked up at 5:30, but all our Avon literature and the hotel clerk said the buses would be there by 4:50. Obviously no one trusted the bus driver, since everyone was down in the lobby having breakfast by at least 4:30. I had a bagel and apple juice. All right! Spilled apple juice all over my shirt. Now I’m ready. The buses were right on time. Ours was the only stop; we had 2 buses full. Seemed like a nice day; did feel cooler tho hard to tell at that hour. Saw the sun come up along the way.

To Anderson Park by about 5:45. YAY! Everyone was milling around. We dragged (literally—we could not get either duffel bag to roll along nicely on its wheels) our luggage to our gear trucks. Got in line for breakfast, which was set up inside the high school. Found Priya and saw my chiropractor, Dr. Taylor! Got a bagel and some fruit and sat down outside. Saw Jane (from aerobics), her Mom, and Pam! Finished by about 6:20 and headed toward the gear truck to meet Elma. Saw the motorcycle crew make their grand entrance to much fanfare. I didn’t want to leave the gear truck for fear of missing Elma, but it was getting close to Opening Ceremonies, and I was going to have to get in the port-o-john line very soon. Oh! There she is! She, Mom, and Priya waited for me as I stood anxiously in line. I hate this part! Everyone was in a hurry!! Made our way toward the holding area for walkers in front of stage just in time. We raised “only” $6.6 million this year; we were hoping to beat or at least match last year’s total of $10 million.

We thought by hanging back that we would be at the front of the line, but it turned out we were actually at the very end. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see the Survivor Circle walk down the aisle this year, but the accompanying announcement was just as moving as last year. Elma and I cried and held hands. Then the music started! We saw Kristina! People were walking! As we turned around to walk, crew members were blocking us, so there was no alternative but to go the other way. Luckily we were able to sneak in thru a break in the barrier so we were closer to the front of the line. Saw Esther, Mom, and Priya as we made our way out.

Oh, so much like last year, except we missed Annette and Candus. One difference we noticed right away was that people weren’t saying, “Passing on your left” (or right) as they passed. Last year, that was just one of the many ways people demonstrated kindness. So right off, we kind of felt like it wasn’t the same. People weren’t displaying the same spirit. Then, when Elma and I made a point of saying, “Passing on your left,” most walkers either ignored us or gave us a funny look. Hmmmm. Not the same sense of group unity or something.

But I was determined not to let that bring me down. It was a nice day, and the bugs were biting, despite slathering on Skin So Soft lotion.

I looked for Tim at Grab & Go A but he wasn’t there. I did see Echo’s friend, Jackie, tho, at the same Grab & Go. Later, at another Grab & Go, I saw a crew member with a “Tim” name tag, and introduced myself. He said, “Hi, Julia!” and we hugged. Unfortunately, it was the wrong Tim. Oh, well! The Grab & Gos and Pit Stops this year were as fun and crazy as last year. Some themes included The Wizard of Oz (Pit Stop 1, complete with a Scarecrow, Tin Man, and a very hirsute Dorothy) who passed out cards with pink ribbons that said, “Thanks for your Courage, Brains, and Heart!”), Western radio station WPEE, Dr. Seuss, and Hawaii. Oh, and the Wizard of Oz stop had witch’s feet sticking out from underneath the port-o-johns! (We later saw those same feet sticking out from under tents at camp.)

Once again, our first cheering station was at Zion. It was so GREAT! Lots of cheerers, lots of Girl Scouts handing out candy, lifesavers, and little packets of foot cream wrapped in hand-written notes. THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE!!! Also saw a young woman holding up a sign for Echo, and I introduced myself. Turns out she was also one of Mark’s “fans,” and had seen my Web site. She said she’d tell Echo she’d met me when she walked by.

Being near the front of the line is the only way to go. Not only did we seem to have more cheerers but there were no lines at the port-o-johns (unlike last year). We got to lunch around 11:30, and that long stretch through the woods beforehand didn’t seem nearly as long as last year. It had been sprinkling a bit, but it felt good. Not too warm at all. Lunch: veggie wrap, pasta salad, chips, fruit, cookies. Same place as last year. Ahhhh. Takin’ off the shoes. It started raining seriously just as we were finishing up. We quickly applied vaseline and foot powder, put our shoes back on, and got out our rain ponchos. I had decided that I couldn’t go all day without brushing my teeth, so this year I carried a tiny toothbrush and toothpaste with me. You’d be surprised how resourceful one can be in the absence of sinks.

Off we went. Only 7 more miles! It rained harder and got really windy. Mom later told me that, back at camp, the crew members were considering coming out to pick us up and drive us into camp; the weather looked that bad for a while. Luckily, it blew over after an hour or so. The rain only made Elma and me more silly and giddy, as we regaled our walking companions with really horrible renditions of “The Rain in Spain,” “The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow,” and other rain-related tunes. Didn’t mind the rain at all. All things considered, it was not a bad time for it to rain, because...

...by the time we got into camp it was SUNNY and dry!! Again, being near the front makes a big difference: we got in at around 3 as opposed to 4:30 last year. We checked in and found our tent already set up...by MOM!!! Along with a little note pinned to the tent that said, “Welcome Home!” Awwwww. Meanwhile, other tents that had been set up were blowing away in the wind. Without any luggage or bodies to anchor them down, they were a-flyin’. I chased one down, but then didn’t quite know what to do with it once I’d wrangled it.

We got luggage, which was close by and unpacked. Felt much less tired at the end of the day than last year. No blisters, tho my feet hurt plenty. Showered—no lines!!! Once again Avon provided soap, shampoo, and conditioner. We were going to wait a bit to eat, but Elma had a headache and I was anxious to see Mom in action, so we headed toward the dining area at around 4:45. Saw Mom right away handing out plates at the veggie line. I commented on how it looked like she had it pretty easy, but she was later assigned to ladling out 3 different types of hot food. Dinner was the same as last year: spaghetti, garlic bread, green beans, salad, cheesecake. It tasted good. We talked with the women at our table, and Mom got a break and joined us. She and the other crew members had left Anderson Park after the walkers left, bussed to the campsite, put up our tent and theirs, had a crew meeting, lunch at 10, dinner at 4 and not much else to do till the walkers started showing up for dinner.

After dinner, we walked around camp (so nice to have time to do that!), looked around the store, ordered our videos, considered a massage, and I left a note for Echo at the concierge tent telling her my tent number. Lots of other messages there; doubt if she’ll see it. I sat with others (including Sara and her mom from dinner) to cheer in the last walkers: the last 2 came in at 6:40 to much cheering and screaming. They looked tired but proud. Headed back to the dinner tent with Elma to watch news and announcements. Jeff, the v.p. of production (not sure if that’s his title) made medical announcements (during which the theme from “M*A*S*H” was played), weather announcements (“Blue Skies”), and introduced Mikey to the crowd. Who’s Mikey? You obviously weren’t walking on the 3-Day, this year or last. Both times, mostly along the route of Day 1, we all saw numerous signs for this mysterious Mikey. “Mikey, We Love You!”, “Mikey, You Can Do It!” and so on. Turns out that Mikey’s just a regular guy whose family goes out and puts up those signs all along the route. Maybe you hadda be there, but it sure was funny to actually see THE Mikey.

Jeff also told us about a couple who had done the walk the previous year, and missed their dogs. So this year, even tho they didn’t walk, they came out to a cheering station with their four dogs, so walkers who missed their dogs could have some “puppy love.”

Then, the evening’s speakers: Debbie and Patty, two breast cancer survivors. One had just completed radiation the week before. 38 years old with 4 kids. I won’t even try to transcribe their messages here, but it was something to hear.

Then, more fun stuff. Jeff announced the “Top 10 Things You Forgot to Bring”

a spare set of knees
your personal assistant
a Mikey sign (see above)
a dehumidifier
Yahoo! Maps
your car
your inflatable raft
your 3-Day Metra pass
your treadmill
Martha Stewart’s Guide to Port-o-John Decorating

Very fun and moving. Announcements were over by 8, and we saw Mom again.

Called Dave (more complicated plans for meeting us tomorrow), and got settled into our tent. It had been fairly warm during the evening, but cooled off significantly as soon as the sun went down. Still, not as cool as either night last year; I was able to sleep comfortably in shorts and a T-shirt. Tried to get to sleep by 9-ish but people weren’t cooperating! I know, it’s hard to settle down and quit talking. But then, just as it seemed everyone was finally ready to be quiet, several security crew members (and bless them for doing this job, but!) who were patrolling the campsite started yelling into their cell phones? walkie-talkies? right outside our tent: “Are we just supposed to keep walking around?” “Yeah! Just keep walking around!” And whoever kept walking by our tent in flip-flops, next year? Please? Get some non-flopping shoes, cuz those suckers are REALLY noisy. Didn’t sleep too well, and woke up soaking wet from being right up against the side of the tent, which was wet with dew. Ugh! Wet hair and sleeping bag. However, ready to GO!!!

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Day 2 2001