Help out a friend...
Hey gang...
About a year and a half ago, thanks to a link on The Pirate Wench's website, I started reading Beth Sterling's weblog, titled "Queen of Ass". (OK, so how could I resist reading something called "Queen of Ass"?)
Anyway, I was immediately taken by this woman. She made me laugh. Completely irreverent and honest. Came to learn a bit about this woman, through her blog:
* She is a single mom, raising a son with no help from the father
* She was working full time
* She was going to school as well, to finish out her bachelor's degree (which she did, graduating Magna Cum Laude)
* She was an amazing photographer. Great eye for beauty.
This alone boggled my mind. Hell, I can barely handle a full time job and raising kids with the help of a wife. But going to school, and working and raising a kid solo? This woman is a dynamo.
Then I learned something about her that elevated my admiration to even further. She has done all of this, while dealing with the effects of a chronic, debilitating disease called Lupus.
So this woman was dealing with all of this, and could keep a very funny weblog going at the same time. Made me laugh almost every single day. So, for that, Beth, thanks.
Today, she posted an entry talking about the effect that Lupus has had on her life. And she is starting a fundraiser, selling items with her photography, with all proceeds to go to the Lupus Foundation of America. I suggest you check out some of her photography, it's very nice, plus the entry is interesting if you don't know anything about Lupus.
But I'm going to do something as well.
Beth loved to run. As she said in her entry today, "I felt like my body was an alien thing. I was the same person who ran 3-5 miles a day before it started, and suddenly, I had difficulty even pulling myself out of my bed every day. Pain surged through my body constantly. I could hardly speak to anyone without the pain's intensity filling me up so much, that it leaked out my eyes in tears. "
So I've entered myself in the Life Without Lupus 5K on October 1st. I'm looking for sponsors for the event, so if you have a few spare bucks you could donate, it's going to a great cause. My donation page is located here. Give till it doesn't hurt anymore.
If you can't run, Beth, I'll run for you.