drew olanoff dot com

I’ve been traveling a lot lately.  Or at least what seems like a lot.  And by a lot I mean too much.  I recognize that.  And I’ve paid for it with exhaustion.

The way things have gone since chemo started has been, chemo week, then travel week.  Chemo week, travel week.  And so on and so on for 10 treatments now.

I’m beat.

I get asked to speak a lot lately, and I think it’s cool.  It’s not because I’m anyone special, though.  I’m one more person fighting to kick cancer into a hole somewhere and cover it with dirt.   The 13,000 people who have blamed my cancer for things, donated to LIVESTRONG, helped me out along the way…are the ones who should be going to all of these conferences and speaking engagements.  But that would be an expensive trip

I’ve had to turn a bunch of things down too unfortunately.

Blogworld Expo asked me to be on a panel called “Kicking Cancer’s Ass”.  A title very near and dear to my heart, obviously…since it’s been my battle cry since being diagnosed with stage 3 Hodgkins Lymphoma.

I’m going.

My Dr and nurses cringe when they hear my schedule.   But I have faith that I would know if there was something I couldn’t do.  I have a great support system here in Philly, and they get concerned too, but know sometimes I just have to do it.

I’m tired of travel. I wish Mike Hudack of Blip.tv would invent that teleportation system we’ve talked about for the past few years.

I sound whiney.  Sorry.  I’m just really tired.  I feel every bump on planes now, I am overtired to the point where I can’t sleep during a flight.  I know that as soon as I get back it’s time for chemo 11.  It’s just a crappy cycle that I can’t wait to be over.

So if I see you in Vegas and I look out of it, you’ll know why.

But for our panel on Thursday at 10am?  I’ll have every bit of energy I have stored in the tank ready to go.   Because people have to get our message.   We aren’t doing enough.  There’s much more we can do, to raise Cancer awareness.   And we will.

I want to pack the room.  I hear it holds 100+ people.  There’s no excuse not to come. I’ll donate $1 to LIVESTRONG for every person that physically shows up.

If I know you and you don’t show, I’m going to give you shit.   Because what’s your excuse?

Don’t like it?  Tough.  Neither do I.

But I’ll be there.