A Thank You & Cystic Life Launch Day Celebration

Joshland Note: I had planned on writing this post about Cystic Life before the following events unfolded. Ronnie, you beat me to the punch. Now you made me re-write it!! Damn you, kid.:-)

I woke up Sunday morning still groggy and hoarse from a night of karaoke. I could barely keep my eyelids open while logging on to my blog dashboard when I happened to notice a "Welcome To Joshland" title on someone else's blog page! It was my fellow CFer "Fibro" Ronnie Sharpe posting wonderful comments about me, my blog, and YouTube page. You can read the post here:

RUNSICKBOYRUN.COM - Welcome to Joshland!!

Ronnie and I met in October via Blogger and his blog RUNSICKBOYRUN.COM. Since then, we have been emailing back and forth quite a bit. Even though I don't know that much about him, I do know is this: He is a good man. Ronnie is a great advocate for the CF Community. I nicknamed he and his fiancée, Mandi, the "Human Cystic Fibrosis Search Engines". If there is an article about, medical study for, or new technique or equipment to help people with CF...they will find it and share it on their blog. Ronnie embraces the things that come with having CF and genuinely cares for all the people who read his blog, friend him on Facebook, or email him with questions. I also like to call him "R-Diesel" because in addition to the fact that the dude is built like a mack truck, he goes 100 mph all the time. He gives a lot without expecting anything back. It's a nice thing to see in a world full of "me, me, me." Those words go for Mandi as well...except for the "built like a mack truck" part. :-)

"Ronnie Hood", "Maid Mandian", and their band of merry website people have created a social networking site called Cystic Life that launches TODAY. The CF community will finally have their very own social networking site to talk about the crazy world of Cystic Fibrosis and connect with people across the globe who walk a similar path! Even though so many people have the same disease, it affects each of us so differently. By connecting with one another we can help each other live longer and fight harder. We also won't feel as isolated as we did many years ago. I am in the process of writing a story about this very subject, so I won't go into great detail here. I'll just say this: before the internet, having this disease could sometimes be a very lonely and frustrating existence.

Cystic Life is not just for "Fibros" and "Cystas" though....its for our family and friends as well. If you have ever had Cystic Fibrosis touch your life, this is the place for you! You can learn more about it, share your stories, or pay tribute to a loved one who has passed. I swear, at one point last year I was trying to figure out how to create a site like this, but it never left the beginning stages for one reason or another. Thank goodness Ronnie and Mandi had the ambition - as well as the people and connections - to make this wonderful idea a reality. Check out Cystic Life here:

http://cysticlife.org/

I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. I attribute connecting with Ronnie to writing this blog and The Breathe Event from CFvoice.com. Two very special things that have changed my life, given me focus, and connected me to amazing people. Thank you Ronnie and Mandi for sharing my blog/YouTube site on RUNSICKBOYRUN.COM and connecting me with new readers who I can share my stories with. And thank you for creating Cystic Life. My sister Angela is somewhere wonderful smiling and sending good vibes to both of you today.

Welcome to my new readers! I don't post everyday, but when I do, I hope you'll come visit and read for a while. The YouTube content is in the making, so look for that very soon.

Peaceful and Creating CF Awareness Things,

Josh