Saturday was World Hemophilia Day. And I was determined to squeeze as much fun out of it as possible. Especially when Decker’s Daily sponsor, Nina, asked me on Twitter if anyone was going to sponsor me for an iced mocha on the big day.
I hadn’t really thought about it- sponsorships had dried up, so I used the day of recognition to breath new life into my waning, mooch franchise. Using Twitter and Facebook status updates, I began an increasingly aggressive campaign for an iced mocha that, by Friday night, had reduced me to threats; if I didn’t wake up to a sponsorship, I warned no one in particular, then I’d take to kicking thickbloods in the balls all throughout the day on World Hemophilia Day.
That wouldn’t be good. Especially since Gwenn and I were speaking that evening at the University of Wisconsin-Madision…
Fortunately, I woke up to three sponsorships from two former Decker’s Daily mocha friends, Bob G. and Scott K. Thanks, guys! By day’s end, one of Nina’s- responsible for starting my obnoxious ranting for mochas- friends had also sent a mocha my way. (Thanks, Alex!)
It’s all in good fun, made extremely obvious by what I found at a coffeeshop that Gwenn and I dutifully hunted down on the East side of Milwaukee called Rochambo Coffeehouse. “Why is that written on the dollar?” “I don’t know, it’s been there forever.” After I had one of the best iced mochas I’ve ever had on the road, I got a good picture of the blood clot dollar.
Too cool, right? When we left, another sign aside from the dollar and the great taste of the drinks was the fact that there was an STD Clinic right across the street called the B.E.S.T.D. Clinic.
Riding high on a mocha buzz and the love getting sponsored, I was stunned to see Gwenn’s status update on Facebook: “If
Shawn thinks that an iced mocha is the best thing he’s getting on World
Hemophilia Day, then he’s going to be pleasantly surprised later.“ It really was coming up Decker on this Saturday afternoon- I was beginning to wonder why everyday can’t be Hemophilia Day…
Gwenn and I had work to do, our last talk on the road fell on the evening of World Hemophilia Day, so after coffee we drove from Milwaukee to Madison. On the drive Gwenn asked a question I knew was comin’. “What is THIS?” “What?” I asked sheepishly, knowing full well that I’d hijacked her status update by commandeering her cell phone when she went to the bathroom at the coffee shop.
Yes, I posted the sexy message to myself.
The talk at UW-Madison went well, it was a dinner event in which about 40 students turned up. Since it’s on my brain, I mentioned during my introduction that I’d met my favorite band as my dying wish during my freshman year in high school, but didn’t mention Depeche Mode by name. Afterward, a group of the students asked who I met- they were dying to know. The table broke out in smiles and envy when I said it was the Mode.
“You guys know Depeche Mode?” I asked curiously.
It was a day of pleasant surprises, and I owe even more thanks to Brittney and Alex for organizing such a great way to end the semester. At the beginning of the talk I acknowledged World Hemophilia Day, and at the end I encouraged students to donate blood for all of us thinblooded mooches out there looking to bum some clotting factor or iced mocha sponsorships.
No matter what you got yourself into on Saturday, I hope that your World Hemophilia Day, regardless of your ability to clot, was as rewarding as mine. 363 days until World Hemophilia Day 2011! And no, in case you are wondering, I didn’t get lucky that night. Gwenn and I had a few hours to sleep before our flight at 5 am, and on-the-road hotel sex isn’t really our thing. But, after the talk, she did take me for a second iced mocha.
One of my friends, Katie, had surgery this week for problems she’d been having as a result of Crohn’s, mainly recurring and consistent pain. I was so happy that the procedure went well, and hope this is the beginning of a pain free existence for her. One that is long overdue.
She’d been hoping that it wouldn’t come to this. They tried experimental treatment strategies, all kinds of attempts were made, but each one fell short of it’s intended goal. She was fearful that something would go wrong if she had surgery, and just kind of accepted the discomfort as par for the course…
I’m typing this fresh off a talk that Gwenn and I just gave at Virginia Wesleyan College. I only mention this because each time we speak, I relive the worst moments of my medical existence, but in 1999 when my t-cells dropped below 50 and my viral load was pushing a million copies. It was the culmination of years of fatigue, years of accepting less and just being thankful for life in and of itself. Though Katie knows the feeling of fatigue well, she didn’t have the attitude that got me in trouble- I thought I had HIV whipped.
It was a tough pill to swallow when I realized that wasn’t the case. My “surgery”, metaphorically speaking, was having to go on HIV meds- which I feared because of all the complaining I heard from friends about side effects at my support group. But, after getting used to it, and also after getting my first lab work back and seeing the dramatic change in my medical misfortunes, I felt something I hadn’t felt in quite some time: energy.
Once I got my weight back up to normal, I couldn’t believe what it felt like to sleep three less hours a day. It was only after feeling healthy that I realized how much my pet virus had bullied me without me even knowing it.
The day after her surgery, Gwenn and I visited Katie in the hospital. She was sitting up, chatting with us and her parents who came to town to be with her. I was relieved to see her in such good spirits. Maybe it was the high quality pain meds, or maybe it was just her own sense of relief and hearing the doctor say, against her worst fears, that everything went according to plan.
I love all my negatoid and positoid friends, and wish only the best for them health-wise. And as Katie returns home this weekend, just up the street from me, I’m certain that this is her moment of turning the tide against her own medical bully. It’s a life-changing moment…
So, Katietron, I can’t wait till your guts fully heal. When they do, your first iced mocha is on me, buddy.
No, not a tour of duty- the military hasn’t lowered standards enough to accept a soldier like me. Instead, I’m taking my music on the road to promote the release of A Symptom of Life… check out the tour schedule below!Follow the red line- that will be me starting on Tuesday, May 11 and going through Saturday, May 22.
LIFE IN PHOTOS
Face Time fun with my Goddaughter. She was digging our phone chat- even though we were about three feet away from one another.
Making the enemy quit out with @squirrel_munky and @vaineos :)
Closing out the Joe with @gwennbarringer this afternoon.
Since 2000, Shawn and Gwenn have been speaking about sexual health together, sharing their personal story and empowering others to be safe. If you are interested in having them speak at your event, fill out the Contact Us form.
Check out Shawn's music and buy his book, My Pet Virus, which is now available on Kindle!
It will be the funniest book you've ever read about someone having AIDS... guaranteed!
It will be the funniest book you've ever read about someone having AIDS... guaranteed!