When not talking furniture.....

[drcollie]

I love to ride motorcycles and help on cancer hotlines.

My pal Bobby (who helps ADMIN here because he knows what he's doing with the computers and forums) and I just got back from the AMA Vintage Races in Ohio two weeks ago. We had (8) of us total ride there, and though we are from all over the East Coast we meet up for these rides about once a year. This trip, our plan was to avoid interstates and take the swoopiest, curviest roads we could find for 400 miles. That's the only way to go and its amazing what you find and see when linking up a hundred small county roads together and avoiding the big highways. Not sure if I enjoy the ride or the camadrie the most...probably both! Bobby and I like to strike out on the gravel and dirt road when we can as well, but for this trip everyone else was mounted on pure street bikes and they're not too happy when we try to take them off the blacktop.

I'm a Stage IV Carcinoid Cancer Survivor. Had a rough go of it in 2005/6, and its a life-changing experience. Not one day goes by in my life that I don't marvel that I'm cancer-free thanks to the amazing talents of Dr. Michael Choti at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, who saved my life when the doctors and surgeons in Virginia told me to begin to plan for my death. I "Pay It Foward" by volunteering these days for various cancer hotlines (R.H. BLOCH Foundation and Caring for Carcinoid Foundation) to help others keep the faith in fighting a deadly disease. While helping with furniture questions is fun, my passion is showing cancer patients who have lost hope that there can be a way out of the tunnel if they are willing to fight and move out of their comfort zones. One of life's all time best feel-good moments is to have someone call you who is in total despair and darkness to seek you out for help. You nurture them, advise them, and coach them, and then a few months later call you back with joy in their voice and say 'You were right, I'm cancer-free now!"

-Duane

P.S. Heres a photo of my pals in the parking lot ready to set off on Day 2 of our trip