&mdash; Running Without Music

11-14-2008

View the Flickr gallery here

Last night, I was honored to be a judge of my friends’ TNT Fundraiser at Joe’s Tavern in Los Angeles, CA. It was called “The Battle of the Unsigned Bands“, which was also promoted by a local radio station Indie 103.1. Four well respected LA bands performed in hopes to win the grand prize of a two-page spread in Obscene Entertainment Magazine.

The bands were (in order of appearance, with links to their MySpace Music Profiles):

Each band had such unique styles and sounds, from elements of punk, hip-hop, rock, and ska. It was difficult to judge, but it was overall very fun. I was able to meet some of the bands afterwards, and it was awesome to put on such an entertaining show for free, to help out the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. There was also a silent auction going on at the same time, which included Autographed UCLA Football by Coach Rick Neuheisel, DVDs, iPod Shuffle, Fox Lot Tours, Reebok.

The Amazing Touristas Race of LA

11-09-2008

Check out the photos from The Amazing Touristas Race of LA

Earlier today, my friends Erin and Greg put together an Amazing Race type scavenger hunt all around Los Angeles. What a great fundraising idea!

Each team will have 5 hours to race throughout all of LA trying to pick up the most points by going to each of the designated Tourista spots and snapping photos of their team. We had to show our special bright object (we had a bright green mitten with Santa Claus) to signify that the photos were true and not taken at some other date. The ENTIRE team that gets back to the original start location in time AND has accumulated the most amount of points wins the CRAZY HUGE jackpot of gifts/tickets/certificates etc.

Size of team: 4-5 people per team.
Cost: $40.00 p/team pre-registered.

There were only 6 teams for this event, starting from the Pan Pacific Park in Los Angeles. Our team was called Gretchen’s B!tches, and consisted of my friends Gretchen, Sheila, and Carlos. We went to famous L.A. spots such as Pink’s, Mann’s Chinese Theater, Highland for the Hollywood Sign, the swanky Beverly Hills Hotel, and much more. We only focused around the Hollywood / L.A. adjacent cities, but some teams even went as far as Dodger Stadium and the Queen Mary in Long Beach! Besides the tasks around L.A., there were bonus points for taking photos of current state license plates, and also taking photos of luxury cars (people didn’t think this was fair because people went to luxury car dealerships).

Overall though, it was crazy fun. I went to places that I’ve never been to in L.A. before, and that’s pretty sad because I was born here. It was also weird walking around Hollywood in the daytime, because I’ve always wandered those streets for the nightlife. Can’t wait for the next one (oh, there will be a next one for sure… so if you’re interested, let me know!)

Vanae

09-24-2008

http://pages.teamintraining.org/sj/honolulu08/vtran

It’s really great to hear that one of my good friends, Vanae, has recently joined Team In Training up north to train for the Hawaii Full Marathon in December. She told me that my friends and I were her inspiration to give TNT a shot. Are we really that inspiring? Maybe because they know we didn’t like to run or work out, let alone run a marathon? Whatever the reason is, TNT has that viral marketing effect because so many great experiences come out of it.

She writes:

Hey guys, it’s Vanae.

You know me. I don’t run. Heck, I don’t even remember the last time I excercised! But I was really inspired by close friends who recently completed the Team in Training.

Vanae is also the founder for Rock Your Awareness, and I met her a couple years ago at her “Date a Rockstar” fundraiser, so she’s no stranger to philanthropy. Since then we’ve gone to NY with friends, and we try to make the LA / SF connection time to time. I’m really excited for her since this is her first ever marathon, so check out her fundraising page here:

Sponsor A Mile

09-21-2008

Here’s a good idea from a friend from New York, Michelle DeForest. Her season is coming to a close for the October 19th Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco. Another push to get some donations is to donate $50 to sponsor a mile. Genuis! Your name is listed on any mile you choose, along with a URL. That’s $50 well spent on donations, plus additional marketing of whatever site. She has a pretty good list of people she promotes to via e-mail, Facebook, multiple blogs, so It would be a good idea to promote your own TNT donation page, your blog, etc.

From her donation page, she writes:

The Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco is ****28 days away!!!****

More importantly, my fundraising deadline is in (OMG) ****10 days**** away.

So, here’s my last fundraiser: I’m raising money for each mile. It’s going to work like a sponsorship. Each mile is worth $50 (because if I “sell” all 26 miles, then I will reach my fundraising goal of $5,000.00!!

Rules: Donate $50 here: http://tinyurl.com/runwithme AND tell me WHAT MILE and LINK to whatever you want (your blog, startup, your cause). I’ll publish it anywhere and everywhere I can (my blogs, fundraising pages, thank you emails, twitter).

This is such a great idea, that I wanted to document this (for future use), and to spread the word. It’s a great cause, so check it out – http://tinyurl.com/runwithme

What’s a Dollar To You?

08-13-2008

Gas prices are up, rent is up, food is expensive, and clothes don’t come cheap. You sit there and think, where is my dollar going? We consume all types of products day to day, and even buying small little things here and there add up to big bills and a dent in your wallet. We even lose loose change in our cars, our couches so easily. We tip our waiters, our bartenders, our restroom attendants, our hosts just like that. Do you know where your money is going?

One of my good friends, Erin, is a mentor in this season’s Westside TNT Chapter, and she’s taking the “power by numbers” approach. She calls it The $1 Project. She only asks each person to donate $1, but at the same time to tell your friends, family, and the rest of your network. This will only work if everyone participates. I’ve sent her link around yesterday, and I know a few people already donated, and some interested in helping her out. You never know who wants to help unless you try.

Dear family, friends and friends of friends….Hi!

I am doing a little experiment here on the concept of social activism mixed with “The Tipping Point” and I need to run it by you. Here is the gist:

Last year I joined Team In Training/TNT (a marathon group who raises money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society/LLS) to run in memory of my grandmother and in honor of Donna and Ricky. I crossed the San Diego Rock ‘N Roll Marathon finish line and decided to do it again in Honolulu and Arizona.

Normally in these programs people will send out letters or emails to EVERYONE they know asking for as generous a donation as they can spare in order to help them reach a specific goal. That was me last season, and it worked, but it’s not quite my style.

See, I joined TNT to make a point. I want to spread the word. Educate. Kick major ass. I’ve realized though, that you are only as big as the sum of all your parts. If my parts include myself and 20 other donors then kudos to us for raising it all, but it’s not big enough. Not enough people will be touched. We need major coverage here people, so I’ve come up with another idea.

Check it out – The $1 Project

Promoting My Friends

08-12-2008

Since I’m not a current Team In Training participant this season, I’ll try my best to support the cause as much as I can, whether it be the Westside Team or a NY Team. I’ll attend most of the fundraisers you tell me about, and promote my friends’ blogs, experiences, and more… so stay tuned!

Oh, and if you’re in the LA area, the Westside TNT chapter is now recruiting. They practice along the beach through Santa Monica and Venice, and sometimes up Brentwood, Palos Verdes.

Check it out – TNT Westside LA Chapter

Top 10 Pub Crawl Mistakes

06-14-2008

It’s finally here. Pub Crawl is in a few hours.
Remember, if this is your first Pub Crawl, whether you’re an alcoholic or a lightweight, you should focus on completing the event and not on your speed. For many of you, this will be an incredible personal milestone. Repeat with me now:

1. Not resting the day before.
I’ve already broken this rule, staying up late to do this, but we hope you got some rest. Get your mind off the pub crawl. We know you’re nervous about the big event because there’s so much alcohol. You’ve been training all year. You got this!

2. Eating too much the night before.
Don’t overload on pasta! You don’t want to be in the restroom during the pub crawl. The party may move to another bar while you’re in there!

3. Trying new equipment/food/drink on race day.
Nothing worse than finding that the new beer you’re trying gives you gas, that new shot gives you a migrane, those new jeans chafe, or that new drink makes you sick to your stomach.

4. Going out too fast.
The #1 biggest mistake. Don’t let the adrenaline take over. If you take too much alcohol early on, it can take a long time to recover. No sense getting to bar 2 really fast then struggling for another 2.

5. Not taking your walk breaks early.
If you trained with walk breaks, take them from the start and regularly. You’re going to be excited, so use your mental discipline. Walk around the bar, and meet people!

6. Drinking too much/too little.
Drink as much as you can in an hour. JUST KIDDING. You know your limits. We want to see you at the end. Fill up at the bar and keep tabs on how much you’re drinking.

7. Not maintaining proper form.
Don’t slump over when you’re drunk. Don’t pass out, or else we’ll pose behind you and take pictures.

8. Getting down on yourself if you start to hurt.
You will hurt at some point. Expect it, and know you’ve put the time in to get through it. It’s ok to admit that you’re weak sauce.

9. NOT Drinking with a stranger.
We encourage that you meet new people! There will be a lot of people at the event you don’t know. Feel free to introduce yourself. There is at MOST 3 degrees of separation of the people there. We’ve invited nothing but wonderful people.

10. Forgetting to enjoy the day!
Have fun! Remember why you’re here! To have fun!

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Pub Crawl Details

1:00 – 2:00 pm Hooters (Half off on all appetizers. $3.99 domestic beer)

2:00 – 3:30 pm Ye Olde King’s Head (Happy Hour rates including $2.50 beers, price varying by beer, $5 margaritas and discounted pub snacks.)

3:00 – 4:30 pm Yankee Doodle’s ($1 off on beer, plus they’re hosting us downstairs in their special party room with dance floor and pooltables. People who want to play pool must pay for their own game,though.)

4:30 – 5:30 Barney’s Beanery ($1 tacos – beef, chicken or veggie – $9 Blue Moon and Coors Light pitchers or $3.50 per glass, $17 for 15 wings and a pitcher of beer. They will reserve the whole downstairs area for us.)

Never Gonna Give You Up

05-19-2008

Pictures and Videos from the event

Tonight was Karina’s Mentor Group’s fundraiser event at the Santa Monica Bar & Grille, in yes you guessed it, Santa Monica. They are usually closed on Mondays but with some TNT pulling some strings, they opened it up for us. It was Karaoke Night, and it was so fun! From songs by The Killers, to 80s Rock, to Pop, all the performances were amazing, and the crowd getting into all the performances made it that much better! Whenever our team gets together for social events, there’s never a dull moment!

Getting to Fourth Base

03-08-2008