put away your weed wackers and hug your loved ones, darn it!

Why oh why do our neighbors despise us so much? Seriously, if I sit here and think really hard, the *only* thing I can come up with is the fact that my lawn is only manicured to about 75%. Honestly, I have a lot of other things to spend my time and money on than garden gnomes and marigolds. I enjoy mowing the lawn, but that's pretty much where the enjoyment stops. Does that make us bad people?

The complaints have been many. Once, when my sister left her car in MY driveway for a few days while she was out of town, we got a letter (there are no neighborhood rules concerning anything of this nature). Another time, when the neighbors dog tried to bite Rich's leg off so he shooed it away with a rake, we were confronted my the neighbor, who physically threatened Rich. Now, our cat is apparently pooping and destroying another neighbors yard. When asked which cat it was (we have 3) the neighbor replies "well I don't know, I don't catch him in the act". It couldn't possibly be any of the other neighborhood cats that run amok in our neighborhood. It must have been ours, because after all, we are the hoodlums. I swear they are trying to drive us out of the neighborhood.

Why oh why do people get so uptight about this stuff? Don't they know there are things that are so, so much more important in life?

A little dude in our local area, 3 year old Yano, is currently battling stage 4 neuroblastoma. 3 flippin years old, and given a 30% chance at survival. . It pisses me off and breaks my heart. No one should have to suffer from cancer, especially not a 3 year old. My heart breaks for him , and for his family. Especially his mom and dad. I would just die if I had to watch either one of my boys fight for their lives. No, of course I would stay strong for them, but a huge part of me would just die on the inside, no doubt about it.

You know, I feel so good every time someone makes a donation to the UCF as a part of my running, or any of the other fundraising I've done in the past. I feel like I'm doing my part to help make a difference. And then you hear about ANOTHER baby fighting for his life. Excuse my language, but it fucking SUCKS. It makes you feel defeated.

I don't know why I've gotten so emotional over this little boy and his family whom I've never met. Maybe it's the momma in me, having a little boy of my own almost the exact same age. Maybe because it has once again hit so close to home; many of my friends little ones go to pre-school with Yano. It could have been any one of our babies. And of course, my neighbors striking a nerve over something so silly and insignificant in the big picture obviously pissed me off a bit. I don't know. But I do know this: I will never give up doing what I can to fight cancer, even if what I do is just a blip on the radar. It's still better than sitting idle and watching cancer break more hearts and spirits.


Local people: Mark your calendars: A lunch for Yano will be from 11-2 on June 26th at the Villa Romana. Each ticket is $8 and you will go to Villa Romana to pick up your spaghetti lunch. you have the option of meat or tomato sauce, salad, bread stick, and drink. Proceeds are going to HELP YANO FIGHT NEUROBLASTOMA.You must call by the 24th of June to buy a ticket. Check out their facebook page for further information: Help Yano Fight Neuroblastoma

Thanks guys and gals. And sorry for the emotional rant today . Don't give up the fight.