OH MY GOSH!
28 Breaths a Minute | Your Life…
The Reader's Digest version
Click here to VOTE NOW!
http://jamiebug.com/
So I am horrible friend! I totally, and completely, forgot to tell you guys how cool Jamie is lately. (well like always) I will try and keep it short BUT, she sent a story into the Reader's Digest contest "Share Your Story" and it literally almost instantly became an editors pick. Not only that, its been hangin' on the SECOND PAGE OF THE MOST POPULAR STORIES! That's out of A TON of them! The prize for the contest is having your story published in the Reader's Digest, how cool is that!? There are even cash prizes for the top entries, but who cares, it's the readers digest! Besides that, she also got published in a newspaper article about this contest and her submission. YAY! GO JAMIE! So go vote now! And everyday after that until November 15th, its EASY! 
Below are the links so you too can check out more of her, and this contests awesome-ness!
- News article!! - The article written about her Reader's Digest contest submission!
- Readers Digest Facebook App - Where you can Vote for her story everyday. Find the story below If you would like to read it! Don't forget to vote!
- http://youtu.be/J8dbN8_TkAk - Jamie's YouTube Video Associated with her amazing lung transplant and story.
"28 Breaths a Minute"
I was born in 1979 with the lung disease Cystic Fibrosis(CF). I was not expected to live past the age of eight. In 2007 CF had destroyed my lungs and I was dying. I was on 6+ liters of Oxygen and my lungs were functioning at 11%. I was denied by almost every transplant center for a double lung transplant because I cultured Cepacia. I didn't give up. We flew 2000 miles to Pittsburgh PA. where I was evaluated by the only center willing. After 5 days of testing my lungs could not continue breathing. My husband chose to put me on a ventilator while the doctors/surgeons decided whether to put me on the transplant list. I was put on the transplant list on 12/07/07. Just three days later on I received the gift of life from my donor. I will celebrate my 4 year transplant anniversary December 2011. I believe the hardest things in life are worth fighting for.
http://youtu.be/J8dbN8_TkAk - Jamie's YouTube Video Associated with her amazing lung transplant and story.
MY MOMMA IS AN IRONMAN!!!
Ironman Canada Penticton, BC - August 28th 2011
Well she DID IT!!My Momma ran through that finish line. Ironman Canada, now on her CONQUERED list So therefore my Momma is an IRONMAN!!! (Which we knew already but now its a little different)
3:45 a.m. wake up and to the transition and start line it was. Swimming ready in their suits and caps stood the Ironmen and women at the start of mosts greatest race that could possibly take them up to 17 hours to complete. Helicopters buzzed from above while the swimmers took off from the start line which was made of a bunch of miniature ironman canada flags hanging above the lake.
All this happening and getting ready to swim AND EVEN MY MOM WAS EXCITED TO SWIM, OVER 2 MILES! Which is usually never case since she HATES swimming. But IRONMAN WAS HERE!
I was privileged to be at almost 10 different places to see my mom swim, bike and run. Every time she looked awesome and almost as she had just done her sunday morning bike ride, or sunday morning run with her friends. Later in the day it wasn't morning anymore and the sun began to go down and amazingly SHE STILL LOOKED THE SAME, AMAZING! (freak) lol. Although we all know that I am just jealous that she is an Ironman and I'm not 
But I'm super glad I got to be able to be there to support her!
It happened again just like in the half Ironman, she was super happy the entire time, more happy than ever. I had made some rolled up papers writing things to encourage her along the way with a few photos and things, I also had my brother and grandma sign them, most things to make her laugh but others made her cry (unintentionally) so it was pretty funny to see her ride past once on the bike with that rolled up poster in her water bottle holder because she didn't want it to be thrown away. (I knew they were to be throw away so I tried purposely not to make them too awesome)
My Mom pedaled up one of the largest of the passes, a bunch of hills in a line some said over 5 miles in length. They pedaled on up with ease making it look easy and getting those hills out of the way before they switched gears onto the run.
It wasn't until later I found out she was running with the second poster one, in her hand just like a baton! Hahahaha. WHO DOES THAT?! (I guess my momma just loves me) but seriously, its an IRONMAN, you don't stop to carry posters for who knows how long. But she's just cool like that I guess! When she ran into Gina's family spectating she handed it off so she could continue on her last 3rd of her journey to be an Ironman.
I was able to see her one last time running past where there was less than 5 miles left, running strong, her and her good friend Gina were kicking some butt and getting that race done! It was just about dark by then but they made it before they were given glowsticks, and I was also able to watch them RUN THROUGH THE FINISH RIBBON from right against the fence
THATS MY MOMMMMMMAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!! Uh huh!
For those of you who would like to know all the split times and things like that. I have posted what I know below.Check THIS OUT! And I just must brag that she passed 629 people on the run…
Lora Olinger
| SWIM | BIKE | RUN | OVERALL | RANK | DIV.POS. |
| 1:36:58 | 7:29:54 | 4:41:03 | 14:06:32 | 1812 | 62 |
| LEG | DISTANCE | PACE | RANK | DIV.POS. |
| TOTAL SWIM | 2.4 mi. (1:36:58) | 2:33/100m | 2527 | 99 |
| BIKE SPLIT 1: 42.5 mi | 42.5 mi (2:31:15) | 16.86 mi/h | ||
| BIKE SPLIT 2: 112 mi | 69.5 mi (4:58:39) | 13.96 mi/h | ||
| TOTAL BIKE | 112 mi (7:29:54) | 14.94 mi/h | 2441 | 88 |
| RUN SPLIT 1: 13.1 mi | 13.1 mi (2:21:00) | 10:45/mi | ||
| RUN SPLIT 2: 26.2 mi | 13.1 mi (2:20:03) | 10:41/mi | ||
| TOTAL RUN | 26.2 mi (4:41:03) | 10:43/mi | 1812 | 62 |
| TRANSITION | TIME | |||
| T1: SWIM-TO-BIKE | 10:05 | |||
| T2: BIKE-TO-RUN | 8:32 | |||
Now that you see SHE DID IT! You can go look at the rest of the photos I took of her the ironman and her friends as well!! They are at my Smugmug site. http://ninaphoto.smugmug.com/ but you can click here to go directly to the Ironman Canada album.
Ironman Canada
GO LORA GO! CHEER CHEER CHEER!!!
Heres to hoping that everyone will cheer for my Momma today as she participates in her very first Ironman!!! Ironman Canada which is held in Penticton, BC. It will be consisting of a 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bike and a marathon (26.2 miles, 42.195 km) run, raced in that order and without a break. WHICH IS OVER 140 MILES TO TRAVEL BY PERSON(+bike for some)! She has been training for a looooong time and it's finally here so send an encouraging thought her way (or my way and I will pass it on ) so she can finish this potentially 17 hour race as strong as I know she will!! (PS: please hope it will not take her 17 hours, I will need sleep by that time lol) I will post again when I return of the news of my soon to be iron-mother! Thanks for the cheers!
"Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." T.S. Eliot
Here's the encouragement thing that I made her! (Even though I know she can do it) :) I love my Momma!
Twitter.
Since twitter is the new "thing" all popular and what not, or at least I think, lol. I started getting on it more often and meeting some cool people. I also become somewhat addicted. Like I really needed more internet to want to pay attention to, but oh well!! Most of the people I follow are post transplant, cystic fibrosis, people waiting for transplant, as well as some "in real life" friends, so its nice to have that connection with people.
I thought it might be fun to share a few of my favorite "favorited" tweets that were posted by others. Most of them turned out to be quote and sayings, then I posted one that made me laugh at the end!
Worry is a down payment on a problem you may never have.
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Too many people spend money they haven't earned, to buy things they don't want, to impress people they don't like. -Will Smith
Inner wisdom is more precious then wealth. The more you spend it, the more you gain. -Oprah
“A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at.” ~ Bruce Lee
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people. -Eleanor Roosevelt
Fate decides who walks into your life. You decide who u let stay, who u let walk away and who u refuse to let walk out.
Dear whoever is reading this, you're beautiful and someone out there is crazy about you. so smile. life is too short to be unhappy.
And a funny one to end on:
the difference between your house smelling like delicious popcorn or burnt ass is around 24 seconds - Daniel Tosh
Dottie Lessard
So a friend directed me to read about this amazing lady, who has also had a double lung transplant, she also needed a kidney, but she is SUPER AWESOME so you MUST check her site out! Go to her website/blog here.
Here is a little info about her from her site:
At 6 weeks old, Dottie Lessard was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis and doctors told her parents not to expect her to live past 2 years of age. Then, when Dottie reached two, doctors told her parents she would not make it to first grade. Now at 43, Dottie is one ferocious athlete with an insatiable appetite for life and she has every intention of competing in athletics and in life at the highest level possible. She has defied all odds and is proving to the world that transplants do work!
Dottie has won several Gold Medals in the U.S. Transplant Games, carried the Olympic Torch through Boston and has been acclaimed as one of Boston’s Exceptional Women of the Year. Bryant Gumbel of HBO Real Sports featured Dottie on his show after following her for two years while Runner’s World Magazine honored her with its prestigious “Heroes of Running Award”. She has been featured in other sports magazines as a “Top Inspirational Athlete”.
Dottie has also written a book, which I would like to read sometime because it has gotten awesome reviews and sounds like an amazing story, which I have no doubt it is considering her experiences. Here is some more info about Dottie, and her accomplishments.
Dottie considers it a miracle to be alive but of all her accomplishments, Dottie is most proud of her 6-year old son Liam. She is a Life Coach, Entrepreneur, Athlete, inspiration to all she meets, and a published author. Her first book was released with high praise on May 26, 2010 titled “Seven Letters That Saved My Life” (available at www.amazon.com)
At a young 43 years old and living with transplanted lungs for over 16 years, Dottie is called a trailblazer for both the Cystic Fibrosis and Organ Transplant communities and donates much of her time to both.
So go to http://www.dottielessard.com/ to check her out and read more about this amazing lady! She is an inspiration especially to me as a cystic fibrosis patient and double lung transplant recipient since she is outliving the expectations of both and doing incredible things at the same time!
Quotes & Things
Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans.
Life is too short and unpredictable not to live it exactly as your please.
:)
The trick is to enjoy life. Don’t wish away your days waiting for better ones ahead.
Do more of what makes you happy.
Celebrate everyday moments.
Always believe that something wonderful is about to happen.
This day will never happen again.
Find Me!
Hey! I go by Nina. I was born with Cystic Fibrosis & was recently fortunate enough to receive a double lung transplant. If you're looking for more info about me, please check out the links in the top menu. There you can read my complete lung transplant story as well as see some videos & photos of mine. Feel free to use the above icons to contact or get to know me through other sites I use or follow! Or just read my recent posts! Thanks for visiting!
Lately!
- Inspirational Quotes
- Happy Halloween!
- Bellingham Bay Half Marathon
- Lungiversary #2
- I love you little brother. I do.
- April is National Donate Life Month!
- Doctors Day
- #134 Bright Pouf
- #133 Yay I have my Ball!
- Whoa brotha!
Blogroll
- A Matter of Life and Breath
- CF Fatboy
- Cystic Fibrosis Veteran
- Cystic Gal
- Live. Laugh. Love. Breathe.
- My CF Journey with God
- Not so Bright and Shiny
- Past the Point of No Return
- RockScar Love
- Run Sickboy Run
- SuperJamie Lung Transplant
- Take a Breath & Say 99
- Talana
- Welcome to Joshland
Worthy Sites
Nina's Twitter
Things!
- Adventures (25)
- Everything Else (118)
- Exercise (32)
- Health Updates (52)
- People (64)
- Photo 365 (134)
- Ramblings (75)
Pastness!
Whatchusayyy?
Photos
