One-80

I need your help today. Please go to http://www.myfirst180.com/ and purchase my ebook for $12.00. This money is going to help with 10 Kids Insured, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and all the other charitable work that seems to find me. Please help me announce this exciting news to everyone you know. I feel comfortable saying "you never know when you might need a helping hand too."

Home Alone...

Kaylee was admitted into the hospital tonight. Kay has been sick the last two days and the doctors want to observe her for the next few days because her immune and blood levels have dropped significantly.

It has been almost a year since we've had to spend the night at CMH. I had almost forgot Kaylee had cancer. She does chemo and the visits are once a month now. I feel bad she has to endure admissions and needles. It would be so traumatic for anyone but it makes you feel terrible when it's your kid. I think she's in a great place considering she does have cancer.

I took Kaylee to the emergency room tonight because her fever reached 103 degrees. It was amazing how quickly the staff checked Kaylee into the ER. They expedited Kaylee so smoothly and fast I felt very good about the quick response. The ER is not where you want your kid if they're missing an immune system. We get a clean room or a sanitized environment but being there is risky. We didn't have to wait at all.

I stayed up last night until 6:00 am this morning because Kaylee was sick. She only woke up once at 5:30 am and said she was wasn't feeling any better. I got Tammie up and her fever was at 102 but it dropped at 6:30 and the doctors on call said lets wait and see where she goes with the fevers before we take her into CMH. So it wasn't until tonight at 7:30 when I went in and Kaylee felt hot. Her temp was at 103 and that's when we got the go ahead to take her in.

It sounds like I'm all over the sickness but it's Tammie. We do shifts. I'll stay up at night so Tammie can get some sleep. It is her who ends up playing Florence Nightingale when the work needs to be done. It was me that took Kaylee to the ER because if she got checked in, like she did, that's when Tammie's work begins. She stays with Kaylee in the hospital and I relieve her in the morning. It is uncomfortable staying in the hospital. I will get Christian off to school and then I'll make my way to CMH. Tammie will be here when Christian gets off the bus and will get him ready for his big dance tomorrow. This sickness can throw a monkey wrench in anything you have planned. Christian has been excited about this dance and got new clothes for the occasion and a haircut. Christian and Tammie have been getting him ready for his night. Unfortunately Kaylee's sickness will take part of his excitement away. We will be focused on her even though we are going to get him off to his big night. Kaylee's cancer takes precedent over everything.


So tonight I lay here with my girls gone. Hopefully this little bug will pass and we can disappear into the crowd like we have this past year. This cancer sucks and makes you realize that having cancer comes with certain realities. You have to be careful, more so then other people. I'm certain Kaylee knows this is only a speed bump. Sickness is crazy at this time of the year and her being at school means she is exposed to the potential threats of sickness crawling in the halls and that cougher we all hear and see who doesn't cover their mouth. Well that's all I have for tonight.

Grandma: Part 3 The Conclusion

Kerry's grandma finally received a green light from the U.S. to enter the country. We have been told that all the paper work is done and waiting for her at the U.S. Consulate in Honduras. We are grateful. It took some time but it appears that it worked out, we just need to get her here quickly. Kerry isn't doing so well.

Kerry has been on a ventilator and her situation hasn't improved. The doctors told Claudia that she needs to get better soon or problems could occur. So I ask everyone to say a prayer for this young girl. I went to see her today and she is sick. He poor little body is so swollen. I hardly recognized her. A drastic change from last week. I wish I would have taken a picture with here months ago when she was feeling healthy. I'll just wait until she gets healthy again I guess. My connection with the family is solid and I feel they appreciate me and the effort I've put into helping them get their grandmother/mother here.

It must have been in March or April when Claudia told me she needed help. That was when I decided I would try to help Claudia bring her mother here from Honduras. It sounded easy but the reality is there's so many laws, rules, and regulations that getting anything done is a toss up. Although I tapped resources and worked hard for the family, it was Christina Jasso who did the paper work and followed up. It would have never happened if it wasn't for Jasso.

Today I went by First Watch and grabbed Claudia a cheese omelet, sausage, and a biscuit. When I arrived at CMH the waiting room was packed. Kerry's family and friends were gathered there. Christina Jasso was taking one person at a time back to Kerry's room. She was giving Claudia a break. Her kindness is so inspiring. I think she has to be tired too. This fight has consumed her and she's become attached to Kerry and the family.

The best advice I could give anyone who might face a tough battle with sickness is find the good in the situation. This journey with Kerry has opened my eyes to the random kindness of strangers. The outpouring of support from people who have never met her is unbelievable. The experience has renewed my faith in my fellow man/woman. I was blessed with the opportunity to see good things happen in the midst of an ugly thing called cancer.

I'm done writing about Kerry and her family. It's time for them to move forward privately. My objective was to get a Visa for the grandmother and it looks like we may have succeeded. Since I'm done with my part I am going to concentrate on my family now. For those of you who wonder why I've been writing so much about the family, it was because they needed their story told so others would intervene and help at this desperate time. It worked. I hope that Kerry wins her battle and I encourage everyone to say a prayer for this beautiful child.

Red tape ties up Honduran grandmother’s attempt to visit teen with cancer

By MARY SANCHEZ
The Kansas City Star

If Jenesis Magana could cure cancer, she most surely would.
She’d take her background as a Kauffman scholar, her fascination with biology, her dedication to the robotics squad and figure out a thing or two. For now, though, she’s marching her tiny frame through the curvy corridors of Children’s Mercy Hospital.
Her older sister, 15-year-old Kerry Magana, is lying sedated on a ventilator in the intensive care unit. Kerry has acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Her body is rejecting the bone marrow doctors injected in September.
And Jenesis is angry. At anyone or anything having to do with her sister’s illness. She even questions medical procedures done or not done.
“I watch those TV shows,” Jenesis says. “There is always one doctor who ” disagrees with all the others and says, ‘No, I think it is this.’
Jenesis makes the remark as a statement. But it is a plea. Where is that magic doctor who will save her sister’s life?
I have no words to explain that her sister’s cancer may not be stopped, no matter how brilliant the doctor. She knows anyway.
Jenesis understands a lot for a 13-year-old. She knows why I’m there, the newspaper lady her mother, social workers and a family friend were told to call because their best bet for getting her grandmother here from Honduras is to embarrass the government into doing the right thing.
This part makes no sense to Jenesis. Or me.

Staffers with Rep. Emanuel Cleaver and Sen. Kit Bond, a public policy official with the National Council of La Raza, even connections inside the highest levels of the Department of Homeland Security — all said they would try to help. Ultimately, everyone offered the same advice: Get a splashy newspaper story done.

Kerry and Jenesis’ mother was born in Honduras and is now a legal permanent resident of the U.S. She has repeatedly applied for a visitor’s visa so her mother can come help the family, the last time with the help of a local immigration attorney. The doctors at the hospital and social workers have written letters of support to the U.S. Embassy in Honduras.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has told her that the grandmother didn’t have enough money in her bank account, then that she had too much, another time she was told she had reapplied too soon after a denial. The last time she was turned away without an explanation.
“I want my mother to see her grandchild while she is still alive,” Claudia Cabrera says, in a rare moment of raising her voice. “What do they want, her to die first?”

A single mother, twice widowed, Cabrera is exhausted and anemic. She has passed out twice at the hospital where her daughter has been since Aug. 25.

Nightly she covers herself in a long yellow sterile gown, plastic gloves and a mask to tend to her daughter, changing bedclothes and diapers regularly because of the extreme diarrhea, keeping Kerry’s open sores covered with ointment, begging her to stop fighting the ventilator.

Needless to say, I believe in the power of the printed word. And government bureaucracy is nothing new. Nor are backlogs and the complicated workings of the nation’s immigration procedures. If something is wrong with the visa application, the family needs to be told.

Ridicule by media should not be necessary to restart government cogs. That’s offensive when the issue is bureaucratic. It’s cruel when a young girl’s life may be ending.

When she rises to anger about her situation, Cabrera believes if she were wealthy, she would be able to secure the visa.

Well-placed connections have not helped. Michael Quijas befriended the family after meeting them through his daughter, who was diagnosed with the same type of cancer but is in remission now.

Quijas graduated from Shawnee Mission North High School at the same time as Julie Myers, now head of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He has tried to call her office, seeking advice or intervention.

“It’s so frustrating because we’ve tried everything,” he said.

Quijas is among those told that multiple stories done by Kansas City Hispanic News were nice, but not enough. Not even the segments by KMBC-TV reporter Maria Antonia would do the trick. Quijas helped package the stories, along with photos from Kerry’s 15th birthday quinceanera by the Dream Factory, to send along with medical documentation and hundreds of dollars in fees for the latest application — an expedited visa.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services says such a visa “usually takes 90 to 120 days from the date of this receipt for us to process this type of case.”

So, at a time when most children her age are being tucked into bed, Jenesis is pacing the halls with me, unloading her frustration. Upstairs, her mother is curled into a ball, sobbing. She has just been told that the ventilator isn’t helping the way doctors had hoped.

Earlier, her mother had taken a pink cell phone from her bag. She tried to show that day’s photo of Kerry to Jenesis, a visual update on her sister’s condition.

Jenesis sharply turned her head away, buried her face under the crook of her arm and began to cry. She hasn’t entered Kerry’s room for a week.

And she doesn’t need a photo to understand what is happening.

Mallory Holtman is awesome...

On May 8th I shared a story with everyone about a Softball Team from Central Washington University. The article made me feel good so I wrote the University. I loved the kindness and the compassion that took place and I thought that I would drop a line to let them know. I never expected to hear back from them - but I did. Shortly after the University received my letter they responded and asked if Kaylee would be interested in becoming an honorary Wildcat. They would be sending the apparel. Soon someone else responded and told me they had shared my letter with the team and everyone was praying and cheering on Kaylee. Then last night I received a phone call from Mallory Holtman, the first baseman, who wanted to personally tell me how much my note meant to her. Out of all the talk shows and exposure she called me and Kaylee! Thank you Mallory, the call touched me and Kay! The story can be read on my blog or by clicking the link I've included. http://msn.foxsports.com/olympics/story/8091708?MSNHPHCP&GT1=39002 Here's what I wrote to the school and team.

My name is Michael Quijas and I have a child who is battling cancer, leukemia, since June 21, 2007. I read the story about your girls softball team just now and it made my eyes fill with tears. So many times we get caught up in winning and playing and forget about the real important issues in life. Those issues or important things are how or what you did during your day to make a difference. I am so proud of the players, the organization, and your school for producing such great individuals. So many times we say that there is no "I" in team and I agree, but certain times there are moments when that one "I" can fuel an entire team to greatness. That person may have been the coach, it might have been the first baseman, or may have been the team in general but someone in your organization became that "I" I hope my daughter gets the opportunity to be. Please let your girls know that there is 15 yr-old cheerleader, Kaylee Quijas, in Lee's Summit, MO (Kansas City) who is cheering for your team/school. Although Kaylee hasn't had the chance to attend a day of school this year, due to major sickness, we are glad to say that you and your students gave us something to cheer about here at home! This may seem goofy that I'm writing, but sometimes in life you get thrown a curve ball and it's what you do with it that makes a difference. I was mad for a moment when my child got sick but it opened my eyes, and it has made me appreciate life. This particular story compelled me to write and tell you how great it was for me to read about something so special and inspiring.

Michael Quijas

Lees Summit, MO

Cheers...

On June 6th & 7th there will be an event that I invite everyone to attend. It is Alex's Lemonade Stand which will be at all Hy-Vee stores in Kansas City. The money raised will help with cancer research and will help fund a cure. The organization is led in Kansas City by Mark and Cheryl Mozier. Their son was diagnosed with a tumor years ago and has since recovered. The time and effort they have spent putting Alex's stands in KC has been great. They are the sort of people I strive to be like. They make a difference in life and I think there is a part of all of us who want to do the same. They are doctors and professionals but make time to give back in a huge way.

My hat is off to the Moziers and I raise a glass to their hard work. I encourage everyone to do the same. Please stop by one of the stands and make a donation to a great cause. The funds raised will help find a cure to a disease that can hit families of any race, religion, or social status. Lets help put an end to this suffering, and help the Moziers with their fight against cancer! Cheers.

Hike for Discovery Fashion Show

I want to thank everyone for helping us during the last several months. I was eating at Beauchamp's on the Rail in Lee's Summit, MO on Monday and Jeff McKinnel the GM called me into the office and showed me a flyer for a benefit in honor of Kaylee. The event is tomorrow at Jerry's Bait Shop, and it is a fashion show that will include a raffle. The proceeds will go to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Hike for Discovery program. It will help donate and generate money for the team that is sponsoring Kay. The person that was hustling for the program was Kate Mahurin. I called her unexpectedly tonight. If it was against the rules I apologize but I felt compelled to tell her thank you. Please make a donation to her in Kaylee's name. It is easy and quick http://www.active.com/donate/hfdmida/KMahuri I ask you to donate whatever you can. Please go to Kate's link and take a look. Forward the link to family and friends and remember that this is for anyone fighting blood cancer but it's my daughters team and it means the world to me. I really have never asked for any donations but I am today. I can't tell you how great everyone is at L.L.S. , they help families such as ours in a time of need. If you would kindly donate to this link I would appreciate it, so would Kaylee. If you can make the Fashion Show tomorrow it would be nice. I'm not sure if you'll catch me there at any certain time because we happen to have our cheerleader banquet at the same time. I am going to float between the two but I can't guarantee what time I'll be there. Please get involved in a great cause!

Break the Darkness...

Kay is feeling much better these days. She is starting to get back to that comfortable state. I think we do the long chemo treatment on Wednesday. She gets chemo then the flush. I hope we have little side effects. At this point its so hard to judge how Kays body will react. We need to take our medicine on a routine basis but it would be nice to get a break for more than a week. Treatment is our priority.

Today was an OK day. I stayed up too late last night and getting up this morning was a challenge of sorts. If I see Kaylee's light on then I stay up later. I never want Kaylee to fight the night alone. Kaylee has been sleeping longer and getting up later. Such a change from a week or so ago. I feel better knowing that Kaylee has one of us up to keep her company if she needs it. Night time can be a lonely time. Night time is a little more fun when your Dad is Michael Quijas and he resides in a room just a few steps from your door. I will go for the late night food run. Coffee if you can handle it. Hell, I've been known to take a late night cruise just to break the darkness!

Bigger things to worry about...

I was thinking about how certain things or circumstances don't really get me upset as they once did. I sit here ready to give examples and I can't think of any. Lets just say that there's almost nothing that can upset me. As long as it doesn't threaten me, I'm fine. Something about this sickness.

Since we started this recovery process I'm convinced that there are so many other things in life to get worked up over. Bad news, tragedy, and disppointment might be a few but petty issues aren't going to cloud my days. I choose to focus on good things. If something doesn't pose a danger or a need for immediate action then I pass these days on any kind of conflict. This makes me feel like I've grown as a person. Who would think that something like sickness could make you grow as human. It has opened my eyes to for the better.

I went to a Bone Marrow Drive this morning. The drive was for Kerry Magana. She is fourteen and battling leukemia like Kaylee. Just like Kaylee, she has A.L.L.. Kerry relapsed and needs a marrow transplant. I battled the weather and made it down for the drive. I was connected to the event by circumstances of health. If that doesn't make sense or the wording was wrong, I was also connected by my mild participation in promoting this important event. I received the info for the drive and had Kerry on the Hispanic radio on Friday, in the Hispanic News Daily Newspaper this last week and posted in charitable organizations across town. I felt compelled to help in one way or another. I feel her family's pain.

So what did you today? Well I hope you stay happy and conflict keeps away. If you need to find clarity in your life then look for good things even if it means sifting through things you think are bad. I would recommend that you stay from the events that guided me to see things different. But if heartbreak and saddness does appear I suggest you take whatever good you can find and try to do something great with it. Treat your family well and try to contribute to your community. You might make a difference.

Too little too late...

I dropped a $100.00 bill last night. I was at the Hy-Vee located at 77th & Stateline when I pulled money out of my pocket and unknowingly dropped a $100.00 bill on the floor. Some guy tapped me on the shoulder and handed me my money. I was shocked, told him thank you and he left. I was stunned for a moment. This young guy gave me money. No one saw me dropp this money and he could of easily kept it. He didn't.

I was so upset that I didn't give him my card, my number, or I didn't purchase his items. I was shocked for a moment, a moment too long because this person walked out the door. When it dawned on me that I didn't say the appropriate thank you it was too late. I was so mad at my self.

I could not believe that someone could do something so nice. I hope he is blessed with incredible Karma from yesterday on. This act of kindness was meaningful to me for several reasons. I felt blessed for moment that someone would do such a nice thing for me. It showed me that there is good out there. It was an example of good vs. bad decisions. It was an example of doing the right thing without being obligated to do the right thing. It was deeper for me than it might have been before our sickness.

If someone drops their money give it to them. If you need to tell someone thank you, do it before its too late. If you do good today then it will come back to you tomorrow. Good night!

The Weight of Love...

I went to the gym today after I found myself thinking how important it is that I be able to lift Kaylee or any other family member if the duty is called. Unfortunately for Kaylee that time has come for her. If she leaves her bed for any reason it is me who has the honor of taking her. I found my self feeling weak as I lifted this fourth straight day.

It makes me feel so good that Kaylee has her dad to do the lifting. It is scary to think what Tammie and Kaylee would do if I was gone or absent. They would make adjustments but being here makes me appreciate those roles again. Tammie has been sleeping with Kaylee and I have been lifting her. ROLES OF A PARENT!

It has been hard mentally the last few days. Kaylee is hurting from the pain and she is bored from the pain. Her only option is laying in bed and it is getting old. We get to the dining room table for breaks but that just isn't enough. She is getting messages from friends that are shopping, buying cars, and leaving for work. Pain on top of pain. But what do you do?

I caught myself looking at children in the grocery store today. I was scanning the little kids thinking how I never thought I would be carrying my fifteen year old girl when she was their age. The fact is that I was oblivious to the fact that anything could go whacky with my child's health. It just couldn't happen to me or mine. But it did!

We will get pass this moment, we will be fine. Bailee Woods came by the house today and it was so nice to see her and watch her move around. She looks so good! The last time we saw her she was in the hospital and barely conscious. Today she came by to see her good friend, Kaylee. When Bailee left she jump in the drivers seat of the car and drove her family down the street. I was so happy the Woods' came by today because I feel so attached to them seeing us go through the same kind of things.

Hot Gravel...

I feel like documenting our last few days today because I never want to forget these days. As much as I want to get this time period behind us I feel compelled to remember this moment for as long as I live.

Kaylee has been battling pain for the last few days. We have never encounter pain as bad as this round. It has been happening for 5 days. Her feet feel like she is walking on hot gravel. She can no longer walk and I have to carry her to her destination. We think it is the steroids but we are not sure. She can't sleep because the pain keeps her a wake. She is past crying and moans continously throughout the night. I watch the discomfort every morning.

Tammie has slept with Kaylee for 3 nights. She is helpless and can only watch. Tammie has tried wash rags on the head, heating pads, and rubbing. There is absolutely nothing we can do. Kaylee is so beautiful. She says it hurts her to see us not be able to lend that magic hand. She said she couldn't imagine watching her child suffer like we do. How powerful is that? She said as bad as it is for her, she feels for us. Beautiful, beautiful child.

It is amazing how you become immune to a situation. You have to to survive. I watch this stuff everyday and have learned to walk out the door and start my day. I have to admit that it is hard to concentrate when these tough times hit. I have to face the day and feed this family. So if you see me on the street and I seem distant please forgive me. I might be walking and talking but my mind is with a child who is battling sickness.

Delayed Mugshot...

My business profile in the KC Star was pushed back to next Tuesday. This week it looks like a landscaper edged me out. I'll let you know when it is in the paper. I thought it was going to be in this week's business section of emerging business but it looks like they didn't run emerging business. I guess my mugshot will have to wait another week.

Kaylee is plugging away. This chemo is the painful stuff so she is fighting aching in her bones and jaw. I forgot that this was the painful treatments. Our last few months were the treatments that produced sickness, unfortunately we had to revisit the painful stuff again. I hope she feels better soon. Kaylee is almost to the maintenance phase of treatments. I think that is right around March 1st. The maintenance phase is where it slows down with treatments and we see if the cancer stays away for good. Say a prayer for us that my child doesn't have to endure anymore mental and physical pain. We want this to be in our rear view mirror.

Have a good day and lets hope no one will ever have to write about cancer, children, or chemotherapy ever again.

A Great Organization...

We had a doctor appointment today. Kaylee is doing great and they said she should be able to attend school at the end of March. It was nice to hear that. I looked at her today and felt sorry for her. How does a child comprehend, justify, or accept that they are having to handle things that most of us never will. I've never heard her complain or say why me. That doesn't mean she doesn't think it. Hell I've never been through anything like it, but I have had experiences in my life that made me say "why me." I can't imagine what goes through her head.

I made a video promoting the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Hike for Discovery program. It is an event that has Kaylee as a Honoree Patient. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJPx_LKWe14 If anyone is interested in finding out more info please call Daniel at 913.262.1515.

My next video is going to be for Team in Training. This event is awesome, I look forward to participating soon. Sandy Duncan is the person to talk to at the LLS if you need info on this awesome program. Both events helps fund research and offers families such as mine a helping hand in their time of crisis.

I encourage everyone to call the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and ask if you can help them in any way. Their number is 913.262.1515. Tell them Michael Quijas referred you.

KC Star...

Hello. I wanted to check in and say hello. I have been busy getting back into the swing of things since the conclusion of our admissions. We started a new cycle of treatments with Kaylee. This round is steroids and shots. Although it is less time in the hospital, it is torture for Kaylee.

The steroids affect your mood, your eating, and your appearance. There has been a change in mood and eating but no physical difference. I hate that she fears the shots. I hate not being able to take the fear away. We are with her on every step of the journey, but she is on her own with the taking the pain part.

I was thinking how important this blog was in helping me during our dark days. At first I was concerned how I might have came across with all the whining and whimpering, but it was my release for six months. It was so helpful to me and my sanity that I will never apologize. It didn't take me long to find my therapeutic release and I am grateful. I look at the alternatives and I admit that someone could easily indulge into something a lot less healthier then a blog. The pain and scare are unbelievable when it deals with your child.

I registered my non-profit, 10 Kids Insured, with the state and now I am filling out my 501(c) 3 paper work with the IRS. The wait for approval can be long, so I am running my foundation through the Truman Heartland foundation. This wonderful operation will expedite my cause without a long wait. It is very exciting. I am setting up meetings with insurance companies that see the potential and want to get on board with this wonderful cause. Different health care foundations are contacting me as well expressing interest. It seems like this idea to help kids with health care might just work.

InAd TV is doing great as well. I am installing McFadden's and Stroud's this week. We received the green light from the Power & Light district last Thursday. I am supposed to be Downtown in four hours. Ouch! The Stroud's install is one that gets me out of the Bar and Nightclub circuit and lands me into a family style atmosphere. Hooray! I like my bars and nightclubs but it will be nice to unveil my product & service in such a renowned place as Stroud's.

There will a story on me next Tuesday in the Business section of the KC Star. It is a section called Emerging Business, and they do a Q & A with entrepreneurs and my number was called. I am privileged and honored. It took long enough. But timing is everything, right? I hope I sound OK in the article. Take a look at the article and keep me in mind if you ever do an ad campaign. I hope to talk soon, thank you for every thing.

Life Works Best When You Do Things Unlike The Rest...

I can hardly sleep. It's not the stress like it was before but excitement. My new non-profit project "10 Kids Insured" is starting to get legs of its own. I meet with Operation Breakthrough on Monday. They are an organization here in town that does wonderful things for low income families. They said they could provide me families who need insurance. These families are often dealing with tough times and this helping hand from "10Kids Insured" would be priceless.

This cause feels right. I have made the decision to go forward even though I could research two more years, contemplate one more additional year, then maybe proceed. This would seem like the normal route I might have taken in the past, but today I have a different mind set. I will launch, make some mistakes, and learn as I go. Why wait for all the planets to line up. If I string this out then I might not ever do it.

If Operation Breakthrough can help provide the kids then a lot of worry is off my plate. I had so many people tell me that I couldn't proceed without the kids. I always believed that if I started on the path to make my dream a reality then all unknowns would find a way to work themselves out. But can you believe that someone would could find reasons not to do this? I mean I could find a million reasons not to get out of bed. But that's not me. I want to be the guy at the end of the day, who can get into bed and sleep soundly knowing that he is helping Kansas City kids stay healthy! In addition to that, I will be providing peace of mind to families who worried about health care for their loved ones. Who knows, I might make atleast one person sleep soundly as well. Life works best when you do things unlike the rest.

A Hand...

Me and Kaylee went to a late movie last night. We saw a movie called Walk Hard: The Dewy Cox Story. It was funny and entertaining. It could have been any movie really, just getting Kay out is an enjoyment. We have it figured out, Tuesday night is going to be slow as far as a attendance and that is the perfect setting for us. Our immune system is building up but it is low and slow. Our new treatments start this morning. Kay and Tammie are at the hospital as I write. I guess we had to go early so they could perform an EKG. Columbia & CMH both forgot to give her an EKG at the start of this. They are supposed to be monitoring her little heart. The liver concerns may have made them overlook this procedure. A heart scan. Who would of ever predicted?

I'd much rather be buying shoes for the bowling league or pom pom's for cheerleading. But this is our life for now and we'll go to the doctors office four hours before our scheduled appointment if we have to. I have to think that good has come from this. I mean, what would I be doing right now if I wasn't dealing with cancer in my child? Probably cruising through life without much thought of where I want to be and who is important. Not appreciating as much as one should.

I am going to embrace the fact that bad things can happen to great kids. Good things can happen to bad people. There's no rhyme or reason to life. It's recognizing the signs and course you're supposed to take. I'm going to make our experience a helpful one. It will help make me a better person and it will be the drive for me to help those who need a hand. Everyone needs a hand from time to time. May my experience be the extended hand to others.

A Normal Night...

I'm watching the Kansas Jayhawks play in the Orange bowl tonight. It is 8:39 PM and me and Kaylee are going to the movies at 9:20 tonight. Our movie is going to be Juno. I love going to the movies and this one will be exceptionally special since Kay hasn't been able to attend a showing due to her low immune system. We are gambling that no one will be in the theatre because it is a week night, late, and KU Football is taking place.

We have to be cautious about our surroundings daily. This outing is a start to the good times that lay ahead of us. It is especially special to me because I've been Kaylee's movie partner since her first movie experience. That first movie was Lion King in 1993 or '94. I remember it was at the theatre's located at Midland & 435. We made it only half way through due to the loudness. Although it was incomplete, it was the beginning of a date that has lasted over a dozen years.

We did it! The movie was good and the theatre was empty. We had us some popcorn, nachos, and a couple drinks. I was touched by the experience. I was honored to be there next to my baby girl who deserves to have as much movie time as any other fifteen year old. Boy is it easy to take life's simple pleasures for granted. We sat in the front of the theatre and enjoyed our movie. Kaylee picked her seat out and we had a wonderful Daddy Daughter night. There wasn't a place I'd rather be but next to this child who has waited six long months to attend a screening.

Parenting is a honor. Kaylee didn't ask if I wanted to go, she advised me that we would be attending the 9:20 screening of Juno. I never blinked or batted an eye. She knew that I wouldn't and that made me feel great. The night was good for me mentally as it was for her too. I let everything go- finances, work, and worrying. It was all about Kaylee and that's what I really needed. A normal night with a normal fifteen year old.

Lois W. Kreighbaum 1917 - 2007

Today Tammie attended her Grandmothers funeral. I knew her fairly well since I've been with Tammie forever. Her Grandfather C.W. passed away in 2005. I remember her grandparents as a sharp dressed couple. I remember them holding Kaylee as a baby. This memory was deep set because I didn't have grandparents while Kaylee was a baby. I always thought that it was such a nice thing to see Kay with generations of family. I was extremely close to my grandpa but he passed in the early eighties. Roy Sellers was his name.

I just asked Tammie about Lois. I wanted to know if she was doing alright in the nursing home. We planned on visiting soon. I wanted Tammie to visit her Grandmother because she truly loved her and she was getting up there in age, 90. But timing is everything. We are limited to our road trips these days, especially with the cancer treatments. Unfortunately we weren't able to make that trip in time. I feel bad for Tammie because she always mentions her Grandparents when she talks of her childhood. I hate to see someone hurt, I really hate to see my love one's hurt.

My memories will be that of Kaylee sitting on the lap of C.W. and Lois, and I'll always have the memory of me bringing Rosedale BBQ to the get togethers. C.W. would always say "this is tasty stuff." Grandma always had that perfect red lipstick and those fancy clothes. I'm part of the family and I send my condolences to the kids, grandchildren, and the extended family. I guarantee Lois is enjoying her self with C.W. and God tonight. Sometimes life doesn't seem fair but taking a look at the memories, life, and legacy is relief and the thing that can make you say "that woman was my grandma, she lived a good life, and I wouldn't trade that in for anything." Rest in Peace.

Straight Ahead...

I went to Paddy O'Quigley's in Leawood last night to check out the new TV systems we put in the restrooms. My guy's re-installed and upgraded the TV's above the urinals. I originally only put one monitor above the two urinals. The TV looked good but it was dead smack between the urinals. The guy's using the restroom wouldn't look at the LCD if there's someone next to them. They stare straight ahead. I don't want to say that we did a field test, but it was noticeable. The TV was high and in the middle, the guys we noticed wouldn't look at the TV. Guys are funny, when we use the restroom and if there's someone standing to the left or right, we look straight ahead. We never look low or to the side. Straight ahead.



I've created a living based off of Kansas City restrooms. So if you wonder why I'm telling you about patterns and techniques of men using the restroom, it's my business the way you do your business. I need everyone to look at my TV's for at least :30 seconds. Just :30 of your time please. I sell advertising and views, impressions, and captive eye balls are important. The new sound systems and positioned TV's are perfect. Perfect enough that customers were talking about it as I walked in last night.



Have you ever been so submerged into a project, work, or your life and you didn't realize the scope, magnitude, or consequences of your actions? I am going through this right now. I keep installing my TV network around town (I landed The Power and Light District this last Friday) and I've forgotten why I'm doing this. I am so caught up in implementing that I forgot why I started InAd TV. The day to day has taken away from the day dream. The hard work is being done now. I'm not out digging ditches but running a network and installing that network is tiring at times. Last night I got to hear, see, and feel my accomplishments.

I'm living a dream. I have a product that is easily recognized. I can ask almost any one under 40 yrs. of age if they've seen the TV's above the urinals or TV's in mirrors in restaurants and the answer is yes, 90% of the time. Those are mine and I'm proud of my creation. I have a TV channel and I can broadcast anything I want. I am fulfilling a dream. I am dictating and steering my future in the direction that I've chosen. I dream and I believe. But sometimes the path isn't always clear,the work, and the dream seems distant.

I want to thank everyone who believed in me and assisted me on my journey. I am starting to understand the importance of team work. If I was on my own I wouldn't be here, I'd be just another guy with a good idea. Although I spent much time in the beginning by myself, it wasn't until the team started coming together to that results started appearing. The word fortitude keeps popping up. Marching forward through the struggles, the fight, and the adversity has made me truly understand that without tough times and learning curves you never really grow. If everything was always smooth sailing then you would never know the sweetness of accomplishment. Everything would be predictable. I think unpredictability is a good element at times.



I guess I brought this issue up for a reason. Sometimes we do things in life that satisfy ourselves. Sometimes we do things for others, but in the end we have to find the things that can define who we are. It might be your family, your work, or your hobby's that brings definition to your life. I ask all of you to dig deep and ask yourself if you are doing that thing or those things that make you happy. If so, more power to you. If not try to make a change. Do something out of the ordinary and make a change. Write a book, join a club, volunteer. Do something that might open new doors. I have to say the feeling is very liberating and enriching.





Well I hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Remember that we aren't guaranteed tomorrow, and those things that you put off may become regrets if not explored and put to rest. I am a dreamer and I am a doer. I take chances and gamble at times. I might get away with it but you might not, I might be able to afford to take a chance where you can't. There's no wrong or right answer, no right move or wrong move, it's all about forward motion. Live life and push forward.