May 24- I walked 4.18 miles.  My orange striped cat friend let me hold him, and on my second and third passes of his house as I went by he was chasing me down the road.
May 25-We went to Cumming.  I got pink envelopes at Office Max.  I got some blue shorts to walk in at Target.
May 26-I walked 4.13 miles.
I got over 100 miles in training.  I went to Longhorn to celebrate.  I had a coupon for a free appetizer-I got fresh potato chips with BBQ dip (which is great), grilled citrus chicken and fries.  It was all great.  My waitress was great. I watched Spongebob and How I Met Your Mother on my iPod.  I brought part of the chips and most of the dip home.
May 27-I did 30 minutes yoga.
I got my letter written!
May 28-I walked 5.3 miles.
We went to the elementary school for a pizza party, and I gave my grandnephew Aaron's teach my 3Day business card.
May 29-I walked 3.19 miles.  At the bottom of a big hill, where the road is over a small creek leading to Lake Lanier, I saw a goose, a gander, and 5 goslings.
My mother was reminded about how much I have to raise, and so she gave me all her saved change.  It filled a large pickle jar more than halfway.

3Day training update

May 17-I walked 3.78 miles .
May 19-I walked 3.69 miles .
May 20-I did 30 minutes yoga.
May 21-I walked 5.75 miles.  At mile 1.3 I stopped because my shoe felt too tight.  I pressed pause, and it somehow reset the iPod, so it erased my workout.  I started it again, and I got 4.45 more miles.
I called the 3Day coaches with a question--can I break up longer distances on the schedule?  I spoke to a lady named Nancy, and she was very helpful.  She said it's OK to break up the distances some.
I did almost 6 miles.  I cannot believe I did it.  I thought I was unable to do 5 miles, so it surprised me greatly I got nearly 6.
May 22-I walked 3.05 miles .When I got to where the orange striped cat I've been petting lives, he was standing at the end of his driveway.  It's like he knew I was coming and was waiting for me.
The dog stepped on my shoe and made a hole in it and my sock.
I got a tweet of encouragement from Heidi this morning.
May 23-I walked .21 miles with Levi.

The Map: The Way of All Great Men

The Map: The Way of All Great Men

The Map, by David Murrow, is a great book for men everywhere.  It reveals a long-ignored life pattern found in the Gospel of Matthew.  The first half of the book is a fictional journey in which the author spins a tale of intrigue concerning how he first discovered the map, that is the pattern of life.  

    The map consists of three journeys, which occur in life, and also as seen in the life of Christ in the Gospel of Matthew.  The first journey is the journey of submission, as displayed in Christ's life in Matthew 1-7.  The second journey is that of strength, as demonstrated in Matthew 8-25.  The final journey is that of sacrifice, as displayed in Matthew 26-28.  The author uses a diagram of a mountain to illustrate this:  on the left side of the mountain is femininity, and on the right is masculinity.  

     In the first journey of submission, which usually occurs in a man's life as he goes through childhood and young adulthood, he is moving toward the feminine side of the mountain.  As he moves into the second journey, he moves back toward the masculine side of the mountain.  Finally, in the journey of sacrifice, he moves up the mountain and more towards a balance between the masculine and feminine.  While the journeys are never truly completed, i.e, one can begin before another ends, unlike a physical journey.

     Morrow also points out that this pattern of the three journeys can be seen in other Biblical characters, such as Moses, King David, and the Apostle Paul.  They can also be seen in secular culture, such as in movies, television and literature.  

    In this book Morrow also points out a weakness in many churches: they are more geared toward women and more feminine that masculine, so many men get bored in attending church.  The Map was a response to this partly, and partly an attempt to help men on their spiritual journey, no matter what stage of their journey they are on.  There is much to be found in this book, for both men and women.

Update

May 5-I walked 3.23 miles. 
May 6-I did 20 minutes yoga, on our porch.
May 7-I walked 3.28 miles .
May 8-I walked 3.43 miles. At the boat ramp I saw 2 geese and their goslings.  I walked a bit slower than usual.
May 9-I got pink M & Ms and 6 more pairs of pink ribbon socks at Kroger.
May 10-I walked 3.66 miles.  I saw an orange striped cat, and he let me pet him twice.
May 12-I walked 4.02 miles.  I saw a turtle in the road.
May 13-I did 30 minutes yoga.
May 14-I walked 3.56 miles.
May 15-I walked 3.79 miles.  I saw a little turtle, and a couple of cats, one of which I think was a Maine Coon cat.  He looked a lot like my cat Harry, who died in December 2008.

This week I have felt tired and have felt leg and foot pain, due to walking and also to pollen.  However I have kept on walking, and I feel better both physically and mentally because I have done so.  I have truly loved every bit of this journey and am looking forward to all that is to come.  Thanks for your support and prayers.

Update

April 23-I walked 2.65 miles.  I found a nickel along my route.

April 26-I walked 2.74 miles.  

I joined more challenges on Nike+ , and set a goal there.

April 28-I walked 2.82 miles.  I felt bad so I thought maybe I wouldn't be able to walk, but I was.  

April 29-I did 15 minutes yoga.

April 30-I walked 3.04 miles.  I found a quarter at the McDonald's in our Walmart.

May 1-  I went to the Training Kick-off at New Balance North Point.  I got there a little early, but there were already a lot of people.  Star 94 had a radio truck there, which actually helped me find it.  Karen, who ran the Get Started meeting I went to, was there.  I got shoelaces and a magnet set free.  They had water, pink lemonade and breakfast, too. First we went in the store and the staff talked to us about choosing and buying shoes.  I used their computer and found my instep and heel are my main pressure points.  I met some nice ladies.  

At about 8 45 we went outside to prepare for our walk.  We did stretching and a little aerobics to music from the radio truck, including All The Single Ladies.  Then we set out.  We walked all the way around the mall.  I had several nice conversations with fellow walkers.  The one I talked to most was a lady named Kristen.  She's a biologist, and we talked about genetics and peoples' predisposition towards diseases, including addictions.  Later I gave her my business card, and she said she knew me from Twitter .  

I also walked with a couple ladies who had the 3day lumbar pack -  they said they liked it and it was large and comfortable.  We walked 3.46 miles -I finished pretty close to the front.  I got to show some others my iPod and the Nike+ system, and they all seem to really like it.

I also met a lady named Heidi, who lives in Cleveland. We talked about fundraising and other things.

I got a pink water bottle that came with a pen in it.  It was a giveaway to those who spent more than $100, but one of the staff had pity on me and let me have it for $10.

I beat my best distance ever, at least as long as I've had Nike+.  Yet it wasn't that difficult and seemed to go really quickly, because I was talking to everyone.  All in all it was a wonderful experience, and I'm very glad I was part of it.  I think it was kind of a preview to the event itself; it was awesome to be a part of that long line of walkers.

I noticed that my hands swelled during the walk.

Later, when I got home, I found the beginnings of blisters on my heels.  I think that between the distance and my new shoes I got blisters.

Heidi found me on Facebook and added me.  Both she and Kristen sent me nice tweets.

May 2-This morning my heels were hurting.  Friday evening my legs really hurt, but all that did last night was my feet.  

Tonight I read Kristen's blog about this year's training.  She's got some great posts, with one that really encouraged me about fundraising.

I showed my mom the lumbar pack, and she said we could get it when she get paid.

May 3-We went to Cumming.  At Office Max I got some stationery for my letters.  It has orchids on it.

Kristen wrote about me today in her blog , and included a picture with me in it.

I walked 3.16 miles .  I thought it was going to rain all day, so I didn't think I'd be able to walk, but it cleared up about 2.

May 4-I walked .52 miles with Levi.

 

May 5-I walked 3.23 miles .