Tag: be positive

Walking for Cancer Cures

Read about my journey with the Lustgarten annual pancreatic cancer research walk. With photos and videos.

October is a big month for cancer research walks, especially since it is breast cancer awareness month. It’s also a big month for me, as my family and friends participated with me in the Lustgarten Pancreatic Research Foundation Walk on this past Sunday (October 6).

WE CAN EACH MAKE A DIFFERENCE. It is up to us to support more cancer research.

The October walk is Lustgarten’s largest fundraiser of the year. With thousands of walkers and nearly $1 million raised. 100% of funds raised go to research because all of Lustgarten’s administrative costs are paid by a private donor.

Before sharing a few photos and video clips, let me describe my feelings about the walk.

    • Although my Whipple surgery was in February 2015, this was my first walk. So I was both excited and nervous.
    • My fundraising efforts were through Team Joel. Our team was supported by more than 70 donors. And we raised $5,400.
    • Team Joel  had 14 walkers.
    • Somehow or other, the cameras found me. I appeared in a News 12 Long Island TV  clip. And because I was asked to do the ribbon cutting, I got featured online by Newsday.
    • I was disappointed that I was only able to walk the 1 mile course rather than the 3 mile course.  Once again I am reminded of a Clint Eastwood quote: “A man has to know his limitations.” And I have to always accept my “new normal.” I gave myself a 15 minute pity party; and then I returned to my usual “live life every day” and “live as long as you as well as you can.”
    • Last, but not least, I want to thank all of the donors to Team Joel and those who walked with me.

The original Evans Four

Walking for Cancer Cures

THE EXTENDED FAMILY

Walking for Cancer Cures

TEAM JOEL

WHY I WALK

RIBBON CUTTING

 

Laughter Is Great Medicine

Three interesting infographics.

As the Health Guide notes:

“It’s true: laughter is strong medicine. It draws people together in ways that trigger healthy physical and emotional changes in the body. Laughter strengthens your immune system, boosts mood, diminishes pain, and protects you from the damaging effects of stress. Nothing works faster or more dependably to bring your mind and body back into balance than a good laugh. Humor lightens your burdens, inspires hope, connects you to others, and keeps you grounded, focused, and alert. It also helps you release anger and forgive sooner.”

With this in mind, we present a few infographics on the benefits of laughter. Enjoy! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

Happify Daily

Laughter Is Great Medicine
 Graphics Pedia

Laughter Is Great Medicine

Daily Infographic 

Laughter Is Great Medicine
 

Rejuvenating Ourselves on Labor Day

Have a healthy and happy Labor Day. Look at the fun infographic.

For our blog, we always look for uplifting and health-related topics to discuss. It may seem that Labor Day is off topic.  But, it really isn’t. It gives those who are working one last long weekend to enjoy as the summer break ends. And because of the greater recognition of  workers’ well-being, there are better safety conditions, fewer work hours per week, and healthy activities sponsored by more firms than when Labor Day first started as a holiday. More than 135 years ago!!! Today, rejuvenating ourselves on Labor Day is a good goal. 🙂

An Infographic on Labor Day 2019

As Wallet Hub notes:

“Labor Day in the 21st century is all about beaches, BBQs, ballgames, and buying things. This year, for example, 25% of Americans plan to get out of town for Labor Day weekend. More than 102 million will enjoy a cookout. Thousands will pack college football stadiums. And the average Labor Day weekend shopper will spend $58 in the process, according to WalletHub’s survey.”

“But it hasn’t always been that way. Labor Day’s roots can be traced back to the streets of 1880s New York City, where rival union leaders joined forces to protest the unfair labor practices that plagued industry at the time. This is not meant to take the wind from your sails as you enjoy one last dip in the summer sun. Rather, these Labor Day facts may help you cherish the holiday even more. Its place on the calendar is uniquely American – most other countries celebrate labor in May. And there’s ample reason for celebration, considering the industrial fatality rate has fallen by roughly 78% since the early 1900s.”

“So, WalletHub gathered the most entertaining, educational Labor Day facts we could find to create this infographic.”

BE SAFE and SMART!!

Rejuvenating Ourselves on Labor Day

 

Influences on Happiness

What really makes us happy?

As we have noted before, happiness is a key goal for all of us. Regardless of our stage in life or physical condition. In fact, happiness can affect our  physical feelings by reducing our angst (anxiety). For example, see Living Better and Being Happier and Life Is Too Short to Hold Grudges. Today, we consider influences on happiness.

What Are the Key Influences on Happiness?

Thomas Oppong, founder of AllTopStartups,expresses some interesting insights on this topic for Medium:

“Humans spend billions of dollars every year looking for happiness. Many of us seek happiness in all sorts of places, hoping it might be bought or found. Others expect people close to them to make them happy.”

“Yet, there is  lots of research that proves this is a waste of time (not to mention money). True contentment is closer than you think. We often think it’s our life circumstances — problems, issues, setbacks, tragedies, and misfortunes that make us unhappy. And that if we could change those obstacles, our circumstances would be different, and we will finally be happy. We easily assign the cause of our unhappiness to these external factors.”

“It turns out, it’s not our circumstances that make us happy or unhappy. According to research, we’re happiest when thought and action are aligned, even if they’re only aligned to do the simplest of tasks.”

“Your happiness is not dependent on where you live, what you can afford, a better career or relationship but from your cultivating a healthy and balanced state of mind.”

Click the image to read more.

Influences on Happiness
Photo by Milan Popovic on Unsplash

 

Making Apple Juice from Sour Apples

Make alternate plans and still live well!

As I have noted before, I am a very fortunate pancreatic cancer survivor. With such self-mottoes as: Live Life Every Day. And Live as Long Well as You Can as Long as You can. To me, that means striving to have a positive and upbeat attitude. We can only control our own actions.

Sometimes, life can be more challenging than others. But we still need to fight our way through those challenges. And assume the best about tomorrow and the days thereafter. Read about my difficult adventures last summer. Sometimes the Road Is More Bumpy.

Now that I recognize more fully what my travel limitations are, my wife Linda and I plan for quieter time. But we have managed to do THREE great trips this year: Costa Rica, Bermuda, and Antigua. We had a blast on each of these trips. Here is a fun picture from Antigua.

 

And a couple of weeks ago, we got to see the Rolling Stones in concert. This was a makeup date due to 76-year-old lead singer Mick Jagger having a heart procedure just a few months ago. He and the rest of the band were GREAT. And Mick was energetic and fully engaged in the show.

Life is fantastic!

 

Let’s Win! Pancreatic Cancer

Re: An article I wrote on my pancreatic cancer journey.

As noted several times on this blog, it has been quite a personal journey for me since learning in January 2015 that I had pancreatic cancer. And undergoing Whipple surgery in February 2015. I count my blessings every single day!! 🙂

Yesterday, it was my honor to be featured on the Let’s Win! Pancreatic Cancer page, an affiliate of the Lustgarten Foundation. Click on the photo of my terrific family to read the article.

And, if you are able, please donate to Team Joel. We are raising money for the October 2019 Lustgarten Foundation Walk. You can donate as little as a few dollars by filling in the amount on the team page. Thanks.

From the left: son-in-law Adam, daughter Stacey, wife Linda, me, daughter Jennifer, and son-in-law Phil.