Tuesday, July 19, 2011

St. Thomas Entries -- The World Congress of Puddings & Living with RSD: what comes next?

I laughed, I cried and, I'm totally relieved that I have nothing to do with choosing a winner. The entries for the trip to St. Thomas came in all shapes and sizes today -- a really lovely scrapbook, typed journals, videos and blogs. The one thing they seem to have in common -- the participants already had it in the back of their minds that they wanted to make a change when we announced the contest. The contest turned out to be the right prompt at the right time. (That's one of the things incentives can be good for -- breaking inertia.) 


I counted 11 entries today. We started with 31 participants. Some dropped out and some decided, that although meaningful, their journeys were just too personal to share. Here's a sampling of what I read last night. 
  • The World Congress of Puddings -- It's sometimes a stretch for me to follow this colleagues wit and quirky sense of humor. The transformation has been stunning though. One day we're discussing the quality of the robes at Johns Hopkins University Hospital, the next a 173 mile ride along the C&O Canal. Behold the power of the smoothie! You'll love this journey and it's guaranteed to make you laugh.
  • Living with RSD: what comes next? -- One of my colleagues started a blog about living with RSD. Reading it made me cry out of frustration. I can totally relate to her need to exercise and her desire to wear cute shoes. I think you'll appreciate her idea of creating a "body budget" when your physical energy is an exhaustible resource just like your bank account. 
Both these folks plan to continue blogging and I look forward to following their journeys.


Stay tuned... (I'll be sharing more entries if they're conducive to being shared this way and I have the participants' permission.)


Thanks again to our very generous and supportive insurance broker, Mark Sager, for giving us the trip to use as a prize for our wellness program. 

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