I hate this walk....

This was posted on the 3 Day message boards by a guy named Larry. I believe he's fairly well known in the 3 Day community. He made the Underground Guide to the Breast Cancer Walks

http://60milemen.typepad.com/main/Underground_Guide_2010.pdf

I found this funny and sad at the same time:

"I hate this Walk. I’ve participated dozens of times, over ten years, in seven different cities, but I still hate this Walk.

I hate training. I hate waking up early to walk, and walk, and walk some more. I’d rather sleep late, and spend my free time reading, napping, or just being with family or friends. I hate training.

I hate fundraising. I hate asking people to donate their hard-earned dollars to fight this damn disease that affects us all, while folks on Wall Street make $50 million a year to destroy our economy as they pad their already overflowing bank accounts. It’d be nice if those $50 million paychecks went to find a cure, and the Wall Street folks had to run a freakin’ bake sale to support themselves. I hate fundraising.

I hate pink. Pink is for “My Little Pony”, Barbie cars and 4 year old girls. I don’t care what women say, no man looks good in pink. Just once, I want to be part of a Walk whose official color is “flannel.” I hate pink.

I hate rain. Camping in the rain sucks. Walking in the rain sucks more. And don’t get me started on mud. I hate mud, and I hate rain.

I hate tents. I hate sleeping all curled up, so my feet aren’t hanging out the door. Getting dressed in a tent? Really? Can’t they make a tent that an average sized guy can fit into, without having to crawl in and out? And for God’s sake, can they please make soundproof tents, so I don’t have to listen to snoring all night? Ladies, I don’t care what you tell your husbands, but you snore too! I hate tents.

I hate sports drink. I hate Gatorade. I hate Powerade. I hate every damn “ade.” There is a special place in hell for whoever decided to put salt in fruit punch. If I wanted a salty drink, I’d order a margarita. Just once, could “beer” be the official sports drink of a Walk? I’d even settle for those tropical drinks with the goofy paper umbrellas in them. I hate sports drink.

But there is one thing I hate most of all. I hate Breast Cancer. I hate hearing that my mother-in-law’s latest pathology report shows that her cancer is back again. I hate the look in my wife’s eyes when she has a mammogram, and then has to wait for a follow-up because “we saw something we didn’t like.” I hate that my daughters had to learn about breast self-exams when they were still in their teens. I hate going to funerals, and listening to sermons about how “she is in a better place.” Screw that. You think that’s any comfort?

I hate that a young woman was diagnosed at the age of 21, and told by her doctor, “I want to be wrong, but I would be surprised if you lived to see 30.” I hate that a friend has been diagnosed with breast cancer just a few years after her father fought his own battle with breast cancer. I hate that Mother’s Day is a day when some people go to the cemetery to visit their mothers, or even worse, to visit their daughters. No one, no one, should ever have to go to a cemetery to visit their child.

I hate this Walk. But I hate breast cancer even more. Fuck breast cancer. Sorry if the profanity offends you, but I can’t think of any other word that fully expresses how I feel. So fuck breast cancer. Can we please just find a cure already?

But until we find that cure, maybe we can compromise on pink flannel and light beer?"

-larry
2011 DC & Philly Lunch Crew
2011 San Diego Walker