Author: devonpass

If so, the “Swiss Bonus," in honor of Lucas, is still effect for another 30 minutes — until midnight Pacific time!

That means if you donate any amount to my American Cancer Society fundraising efforts by midnight, you’ll not only be entered to win a prize from The Best Running Raffle EVER!, but you’ll get 5 extra entries to boot! That means:

– A $5 donation equals 1 entry + 5 = 6 entries
– A $10 donation equals 2 entries + 5 = 7 entries
– A $15 donation equals 3 entries + 5 = 8 entries
– A $25 donation equals 7 entries + 5 = 12 entries
– A $50 donation equals 15 entries + 5 = 20 entries

Click here for all the details on how to donate.

Some sent me message today saying they were able to donate "only $5.” I messaged back to say that “only $5” is HUGE.

When faced with any decision, the first thing you have to choose is whether to act or do nothing. When you donate “only $5,” that means you’ve chosen to act, and that’s worth a whole lot more than $5 in my book.

Big thanks to all of you who have chosen to act, whether you’ve donated $5 or $50. My heart leaps every time I get an email notification about a donation. Your support really means the world to me.

Two quick (for me) miles. Last run before the 15K. I definitely won’t be running this fast in the race, but it was nice to knock these miles out in the beautiful sunshine!

Speaking of sunshine, this was part of an email about the race today…

Sha-bam!

This was also part of that email. Please note that my job title is literally “Proofreader”:

I just… I just don’t even know.

Anyone want to Remeem some Souls? Sounds scary!

Yesterday, I received this message from a guy named Lucas:

I wanted to do a donation, but it doesn’t seem to work because I’m outside the US (I’m from Switzerland)

I do realize that it is the AMERICAN cancer society, but I find pretty cool and selfless what you are doing, and I wanted to participate…

Also, I obviously don’t want to participate in the prize competition, because let’s face it, my 20$ donation-to-be wouldn’t even cover the shipping rates…

Tell me how I can proceed.

Well… wow! I emailed the regional director of DetermiNation about this, and his idea was to use PayPal to transfer Lucas’s donation to me, and then I could pass it along to the American Cancer Society.

I asked Lucas if he’d like to use that method, and he responded:

I had today a very random life experience, and through a pretty cool series of events which I will spare you the details of, I received 20 swiss francs. Your currency is not that healthy nowadays, so it is now worth 20 dollars.

I don’t really believe in fate, but I do believe in awesome coincidences, and since these events happened exactly during our e-mail exchange, I think it’s only fair that I pass the money to you and your fundraising. So could you update my donation to 40 dollars?

Since I’m a student, I would probably have spent the money in beer anyway, so…

Not 10 minutes later, PayPal notified me of a $40 payment from Lucas.

So let’s recap: This guy from across the world went the extra mile to donate to the ACS when there was nothing in it for him. He didn’t let the restrictive donation form deter him. And he doubled his initial donation when he happened to come upon some extra money… instead of spending it on beer.

I was beyond honored to make that $40 donation in his name. Just beyond.

Since Lucas is unable to participate in The Best Running Raffle EVER!, I’m passing along his entries to YOU. Starting now, anyone who makes a donation today, May 18, will get an extra 5 entries to the raffle, on top of however many entries they’d normally receive.

That’s any donation, in any amount, for the rest of the day. Five extra entries! Click here for all the details.

Thank you, Lucas from Switzerland, for your extraordinary gesture.

I received a message this morning from an old friend, who I guess would be called a “frenemy” nowadays. In 5th and 6th grade, we were either BFFs or we were in a huge fight, depending on the day. At some point we ended our friendship entirely, and I moved away a few years later. I’m sure the last thing I ever said to her was something cruel and hurtful (ohh, 12-year-old me).

Fast-forward to now, more than a decade later. This was her message:

“Hey Devon. It has been a REALLY long time since the last time we spoke! I hope you are doing well. 🙂 I stumbled upon your blog via one of your Facebook status updates, and I wanted to tell you that you have TOTALLY motivated me to start running again!

I think the last time we spoke we didnt leave off on the best of terms..say back in like…6th grade? lol But…I have a pretty good feeling we have both changed a lot since then, lol.

Anyway–just wanted to tell you to keep up the great work! And thanks for the inspiration. I used to run 5Ks all the time in middle and high school, but I got hurt my Sophomore year and havent run since then. It’s nice to be getting back into it!

I also made a little donation to your ACS fundraising efforts. Good luck with your half marathon. :)”

She donated $25. I’m blown away.

This is just one of many reasons why I’m so glad I decided to go on this adventure.

My new pink Under Armour shirt and Nathan fuel belt match perfectly! Both were birthday gifts from Aaron. Style-savvy boyfriend for the win!

Tonight I did hills with the DetermiNation team — 8 repeats — and some laps around the track for a total of 4 miles. I’m pretty happy that, even with the hills, my average pace was 10:11. That’s OK, right?

I wore the fuel belt to test it out and see if I want to wear it for the 15K on Saturday. At first, the water bottles felt super heavy and awkward, and the belt kept sliding up on my slippery shirt. But I finally found a good place for it around my hips and was able to make it stay put.

I don’t think I’ll need it for the race since there will be several aid stations with liquids and Gu, but I’m glad I have it for my half in June and (eek!) full in December!

A note on the sunglasses: A total badass girl on the team, whom I’ve never talked to, introduced herself to me today and said, “I always think your shades are rad.” They’re just $10 plastic glasses from Target that I bought because I wouldn’t care if they got lost or broken, but I’ve gotten more compliments on them than most other stuff I own!

#1 stunna!

This is my kind of drinking buddy! (What she’s referring to is my estimate that I refill my 27-oz water bottle at LEAST six times a day, which is 162 oz. That’s a conservative guess, and it doesn’t even count the tea I drink…)

Thanks, fabfit, for such a nice “Ask.” And yes, totally try to get down to Seattle for my half! I’ll really need a good drinking buddy after running 13.1… although maybe the other kind of drinking to celebrate. : )