2003 Hallelujah! The end is in sight. I begin this year's leg on July 14, 2003 and finish on July 25, in Paducah, Kentucky where the Tennessee joins the Ohio. The finish is during Paducah's Summer Music Festival, so the excitement is two-fold. It is difficult to think what life will be like without being so focused on the River and training for the swim. Life will be different, but it is really not the end; it is the beginning of a new phase. My mission statement speaks of educating myself about the Tennessee River and its surrounding watersheds. Well, I have done that and more. When the swim is completed, there will be more time to devote to environmental activism. (Which may mean simply more time to pick up litter before it gets into the river, and talking to people about run-off.) Bob Jones High School has given me the sponsorship of our environmental group. We made great strides last year in making BJHS an environmentally responsible school, and now there will be more time to do more within the school and beyond. In preparing for the last leg of my journey, my family continues to make concessions to support my mission. It is difficult on everyone, but they are all incredibly patient and helpful. In frustration, last night my husband kindly pleaded, "After you finish this swim, please- No more causes." My parting words as I conked out from a hard day of training were that I would keep my passion for saving the Tennessee River in perspective. Well, the next morning while doing a long swim set, I thought about what he said, "No more causes." What exactly does that mean? How can one live a life without a cause? What kind of life is that? Is that where you go to work, come home, eat dinner, watch TV, and go to bed? Oh boy, I am in trouble. I cannot live that way. Life without a cause seems an awful place to be. Without cause, there is no hope. A state of hopelessness is unacceptable; as long as one person believes- hope exists and change can take place. So, I cannot give up my cause ...but I can do my best to keep it in perspective with the rest of my life. I think my family will agree. Every year I learn more about the problems facing our environment and the Tennessee River. The scary revelation this year has to do with hormone disrupters in our environment. It seems they are found in pesticides, herbicides, the food we eat, and the medications we take. At the most obvious level, fish and whales are being found to be both male and female- one fish, two sexes. This makes reproduction impossible, cancer more probable, and causes a multitude of other problems. If interested, an interesting source for learning more about this can be found in the book, Our Poisoned Future. It is curiously informative and presented in layman's terms. Books that discuss the "real" problems we are facing in our environment are unfortunately not on the best seller shelf, so it probably will have to be ordered. I leave Saturday, July 12, 2003 for the Birdsong Resort. There is a press conference at 3:00 and from 5:00-7:00 the Business and Professional Women of Camden, Tennessee are having an open house for me at Kris' Kafe in Camden. Gail Humphries of the BPW has been wonderfully supportive of the swim. She met me at my open house in Chattanooga on the Star three years ago and has kept in touch ever since. Brenda Tabor, of the Paducah Visitor and Tourist Bureau has worked overtime getting ready for their Summer Music Festival and the end of my swim. I am not exactly sure what she has planned- the women at Paducah's tourist bureau are rambunctious, creative, and goal setters- but whatever it is, it can be found at their website, Paducah-tourism.org. As excited as I am about the finish, it is sad that the end cannot be a reunion of all the people at TVA that made this swim possible. TVA has been as supportive as my family and I am indebted to so many people within the organization. I learned so much from my captains and others. Perhaps I enriched their lives as much as they enriched mine. Maybe some of them will be able to make it to the finish and join in the celebration. If that is not possible, please know that I kindly remember all you and carry you with me in my thoughts and in my heart. It is raining. Some people are complaining. Not me. Water is the source of life. Without water, we die within a week. That makes it the most precious commodity on this planet- OK, next to air. Take time to smell the rain, to watch its miraculous flight from the clouds, and to thank God for its abundance in the Tennessee Valley. We are blessed. "For God so loved the World"...take care of it. mimi P.S. Journaling during my swim has become one of the highlights of my day. Receiving emails from people who have logged on and are offering their support. July 5, 2003     July 11, 2003     July 13, 2003     July 14, 2003     July 15, 2003     July 16, 2003     July 18, 2003     July 20, 2003     July 21, 2003     July 23, 2003     July 26, 2003     July 29, 2003     August 1, 2003     2002 I am incredibly excited about this journal. I hope people read it with interest, an open mind, and a desire to make a difference. If you read it once and are not impressed, please try again later. This is new to me, so it will take me time to get it together. During my swim, July 22-August 2, 2002 I will write in it every day after I finish detoxing from the day's swim. Sitting in my office preparing for my final days of school, makes this year's river swim leg seem so far off. But it is not. I have upped my swim training to four days a week, and in another week it will be upped to six. It is tiring. Unlike running where when I run ten miles my body lets me know then and there it is tired, the fatigue of swimming creeps up on you. Last week I took a nap at 5:30 pm at did not wake up until the alarm clock sounded at 4:00 am yelling at me to get up and swim. This summer is going to be extremely stressful. For the month of June, I am taking a Slingerland training course in Knoxville, TN. Slingerland is a method of teaching reading and writing to dyslexic students. Though I am thrilled to be taking the training, swimming two hours in the morning, going to school for eight hours, and running for two hours at night is going to be tough. But hey, I love a challenge. And there are two things I am passionate about: Taking responsibility for the environment and teaching struggling readers to read. Unfortunately I am going to be gone from my family too. That will be tough. June 22 I am speaking at the NATIONAL CLEAN BOATING CAMPAIGN in Chattanooga. I hope every one that can will come to Chattanooga participate in the activities. It will take place on the banks of the Tennessee in downtown Chattanooga. I will give more information about it later. Every year I learn more and more about the problems facing our environment and the Tennessee River. The mostly frightening revelation this year has to do with what we put in our fertilizers. I did not know that it was "legal" to put toxic waste in fertilizers. What is moral does not seem to be as important as what is legal. Toxic waste in fertilizers seems to be common practice throughout the world, but the United States is the only developed country that does not have limits on the percentage of toxic waste allowed. Fertilizers can contain cadmium, lead, berylilium, and radioactive byproducts. It is spread on the fields where our food is grown. When it rains it ends up (where else?) in the river. (Most farmers are unaware of this practice and may only find out when they have poor crop yeilds.) Check out the internet for more information on "toxic waste in fertilizers". We started an environmental group in our neighborhood called, "Friends of Coldwater Creek". We not only do litter pick-ups and keep an eye on the creek that feeds into the Elk River that feeds into the Tennessee River, we also watch out for each other's property. The group is going well. I want us to learn how to do water testing, so we can keep our creek as clean as possible. Perhaps in the fall we can get the Tennessee Clean Water Network to get us started. It is a beautiful day. Take to time truly enjoy it. "For God so loved the World....." Take care of it. mimi Click on any of the dates below to read my journal entry for that day. These are my thoughts while training for my next swim July 22-August 2, 2002. May 31     June 17     June 19     June 21     June 30     July 1     July 15     July 20     July 21     July 22     July 23     July 24     July 25     July 26     July 27     July 28     July 29     July 30     July 31     July 31b     August 2     August 13