It has come to my attention that when donating to Faustman labs, there is a place to enter an alternate email, and they say that a notification will be sent to that email.  I totally spaced that. mostly because every time I’ve donated, I’ve never felt the need to let somebody else know.

It came to my attention because somebody I know entered my email in that spot instead of forwarding me her receipt. Then when I did not respond, she wondered what her ticket numbers were.  I hadn’t received a notification of her donation.  I am not sure when MGH sends those notifications, but it would appear that they are not automatically generated.  I’m guessing they do it once a month?  I am not sure.

So,  if you have donated, but have not received an email from me with numbers on it, please forward me the copy of your receipt so you can be entered to win the Ipad mini.

Here are the steps:

1. Go donate.  Every $3 gives you one “ticket” number.

2. Receive receipt. (This IS automatically generated.  You will get a lovely notice about how you are keeping medicine alive and whatnot).

3. Forward me the receipt.  (Your credit card number is NOT displayed.  I will not spam you.  I am a nice person.)

4. My email is heidithewiz at gmail dot com.

5. Receive email back from me with magic numbers on it.  (They’re not really magic. No beanstalk will grow if you plant them.)  I am fairly good at emailing back in a good time frame.  It shouldn’t take more than a few hours.

6. Keep receipt for your tax records.  Deduct amount next year.  You know, if you remember.

7. Come back to my blog on Monday to see if your numbers actually were magic and caused an ipad mini to appear in the mail.

This giveaway closes on SUNDAY, FEB. 3 at MIDNIGHT (Arizona time).  At that point, I will put all the numbers into random.org, and display the winning number, along with the winner’s first name and last initial.  As in “Congratulations go to #0 HEIDI K.” (Which I won’t actually say, because that’s me, and I’m not winning my own contest.  That would make me a NON nice person.)

SO BASICALLY, IF YOU HAVE DONATED BUT NOT RECEIVED ANYTHING BACK FROM ME, PLEASE EMAIL ME.

The end.

See original post here.

Around 9:30 p.m. my husband decides it’s a good time to workout.  Hey, you do what you have to do.

“Want to work out with me?”

“No.  I can’t work out this late.  I’ll go hypo all night.”  (Diabetes as excuse.  Nicely played.)

He begins his insanity.  I continue to play games on my phone. (I’m really good at Scramble.  Want to play?  I will destroy you.)

“Can you find the remote for the ceiling fan when that round is done?”

(staring intently at my phone)  ”Sure”.

After my round is done, I totally forget, and like a good wife, leave the room to get some water.  My sugars were a little high, and I was thirsty.  Then I remember like an ACTUAL  good wife, and so I go back in to get the ceiling fan going for him.

The outside door was open.  (We live in Arizona.  It’s acceptable to open doors in January.)

He’s there doing his jumping jacks and all the other whatchadoos and stuff.

“A bird flew in.  It’s either in the corner or Suzy is eating it.” (he continues his squats and pushups)

“What?  There’s a dead bird under here?”

“Not (puff) sure. Check the (puff) corner.”

Suzy is one of our dogs.  I don’t want to get too graphic about what was under the bed, but let’s just say the score was easily Bird: 0.  Dog: 1.

And still, he’s working out.

I feel I have to make a statement.

“I AM NOT DEALING WITH A BIRD CARCASS UNDER THE BED.”

And so he stops, and we remove the mattress, box spring, maneuver the bed, and proceed to clean everything up that was under the bed.

After, of course, luring the dogs outside. (She won’t come out! Get a piece of meat!  She’s EATING a piece of meat! Ew!)

OK.  It begins.  I have a goal this year to raise money for Faustman labs.  I chose the 4th anniversary of my diagnosis to do it.  I have been cheating death for 4 years now, and I would really like it if all Type 1s could just go back to normal living, without the feeling with every shot that we’re basically on “borrowed time.”  I think Faustman has the best chance of doing this, and so, here we are.

My husband’s company has kindly donated an ipad mini to the cause.  It can be yours.

I know, it sounds spammy, but it isn’t.  Here’s a pic of me holding it. Don’t we look cute together? I will mail it to you, possibly. Exciting, isn’t it?  Do you feel the excitement?

(Don’t ask me why I’m not smiling.  More drama, possibly?  I don’t know.  It is what it is.)

So, here’s how it’s going to work.  You go to the website and donate.  For every $3 you donate, I will assign you a number, a virtual “ticket”, if you will.  So, if you donate $9, you get 3 tickets.  However, if you donate $10, you still only get 3.  The extra dollar is just because you’re nice.  So, if you donate $50, you will get
16.  (But if you go up to $51, you get 17). Basically, take what you donate, divide by 3, and voila.  There you have it.

Once you donate the money, Massachusetts General Hospital will email you a receipt.  This is automatically generated.  I have received several of these receipts, and I know what they look like.  Your credit card number is not on it.  As proof of your donation, you need to forward me a copy of this receipt.  Please send it to heidithewiz at gmail dot com.

Once I receive your email, I will email you back telling you your number or numbers.

That’s it.  In one week from today, on February 3rd, I will use random.org to generate a winner.  I will then announce the winner, and mail you the ipad mini.  (Assuming that you’re the winner.)

This is in time for Valentine’s Day, so if you want to give your sweetheart a really cool gift…..I’m just saying, s/he would be impressed.

A few extra things.  Your name and address will be on the receipt. I’m sorry if that makes you uncomfortable, but if you win, I would need that info anyway to send you the ipad.  I promise I am not building a mailing list.  I will not spam you.  Massachusetts General will not spam you.  (I even signed up to receive email updates, and I don’t get very many).  Please do not pay pal me any money. I am not a non-profit, so you need to send it directly to her. I don’t want your money, I want Dr. Faustman to get your money.

Also, please keep your receipt, as your donation is tax deductible.

I am told to be as legal as possible, I have to have a “no purchase necessary” option.  And so, if you would like a number and be entered in this giveaway, but don’t want to donate, please write me an essay of at least 300 words about diabetes.  For each essay, you’ll get a number.  Please do not send me the same essay repeatedly.  I am trying to raise money here, people.  I am trying to make the no purchase option necessary as sucky as possible so people find it easier to give three bucks.

Stats on the ipad mini:  It is the 16 GB, WiFi only option.  It is black.  My son wants it.  He doesn’t get it.

Odds:  I have no idea.  Depends of how many people enter, and how much they give.

So there you have it.  Please enter, and May the odds be ever in your favor…..

I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.

Actually, it was almost 4 years ago. On Sunday, it will officially be 4 years. 4 years ago TODAY I was just feeling like total crap. I was sleeping a lot, and could not get enough liquid in me to save my life. Plus I couldn’t see very well. All classic symptoms, really.

And so, to “celebrate”…on that day, I will be doing an online fundraiser for Dr. Faustman, the researcher who’s work is the most exciting to me. www.faustmanlab.org

The prize will be an Ipad mini.

It sounds spammy. It’s not. I’m staring at the ipad right now. I kind of want to just open it and keep it, but I won’t. My husband’s company kindly donated it.

So come back on Sunday. Tell your friends. And if your pancreas works, be grateful.

CJane posed a question on FB today, about how she gets emails from women who have converted to Mormonism because of Mommy Blogs, but then are crushed when they find out that our lives aren’t really all that sparkly, that Mormons have the same problems as everybody else. She posed the question of how blogs can be more real, or even if we have a responsibility to show the grittier sides of our lives.

I kinda grinned at that, because dude, I don’t think we sparkle over here very much. We’re pretty gritty, aren’t we? At the very least, we all have a strict policy against putting up cute pictures of our well dressed and well coiffed children, so at least we aren’t making anybody feel bad because our kids are cuter than yours. (Because they are. Totally. My kids are gorgeous. Unkempt, dirty, sticky, mismatched little bundles of awesomeness.)

Still, it’s not like we reveal everything. (more…)

…and not just for the kids. For me as well.

Yes, peeps, I am headed back to school. For my Associate’s. Yes, I already have a Bachelor’s. In a few years time, if I play my cards right, I might just get my high school diploma!

I am going to the local community college to become a Radiographer. Think X-Ray Tech, Bone Density scans, MRI’s, etc., etc. I’m looking forward to it. I need to get some biology pre-req’s (anatomy! Hello!) out of the way before I can enter the program, but oddly enough, I HAVE all the other requirements for an Associates so I just need the required Bio and Psych classes. (Also writing 101. However, my transcript did get me out of writing 102. Explain that one, suckas.)

I haven’t been to college for 10 years.

Do people still take notebooks and pens to class? Or is it all laptops and ipads? Do people still GO to class, or just download lectures? I have 2 online courses and one ‘brick and mortar’ class+lab. Not sure how this is all going to work.

Also, anatomy books? Pricey.

Wish me luck. Give me advice. Thanks

P.S. I was all set to raffle off an Ipad mini that would kindly be donated by my husband’s company in order to raise money for Dr. Faustman. Apparently online raffles are illegal, unless you have a “no purchase necessary” option. Grrr….you guys totally would have donated for that, right?

It’s January. Which means I’m cleaning.

Our bedroom has long been a mess. Not just your typical hey, get those socks off the floor kind of mess, but the kind where there are piles of stuff in each corner that have no home. Actually, it’s not really stuff—it’s paper. Books, mostly, because we got rid of some bookshelves and then waited a long time to get new ones, which means there were lots of homeless books for a while.

But we got some Christmas money, and hoo boy, we spent it on shelves. Big Ikea shelves, which aren’t what I would call beautiful, but are at least a step up from the Walmart shelves we had in there. Add a new coat of paint and new bedding, and it feels like a different room! Or, at least I think it will, once we figure out where to house all these homeless books. And what color to paint the walls. And which new comforter to buy.

And what to do with the paper. It’s always the paper. (more…)

So, this year my main goal is to raise money for Dr. Faustman. Her research is very exciting to me, and she needs $25.2 million dollars, currently she has $13.5 of it. My occasional 50-100 bucks that I send her way just isn’t going to cut it. Frankly, I don’t have millions, and well, most people I know, in fact it is likely that everyone I know, are in the same boat.

I asked someone who has a history of raising money how to do it. He said “You ask people.” It was less than helpful advice.

So I am thinking if I use that same 50-100 bucks to buy something cool-ish, and then raffle it off for $3/ticket (given directly to Faustman labs, so you can take the tax donation) that it might make some money. Hopefully. Maybe.

The question is, what would you guys (since you and my facebook friends are pretty much the target audience here) be willing to buy a ticket to get? It would have to be something I could mail easily. Costco has gift cards to Legoland, or they also have Nutri System cards if weight loss is your goal this year - and no, I have no idea if Nutri System works or not. I could just do a gift card to Target or Amazon.

What say you, peeps?