Kickstarting a Dream

What a ride this has been! This is the first time I have run a crowd funding campaign, and it has been a fascinating experience. My emotions have ranged from thinking this is exciting, to uncertain, to heartwarming, to what-in-the-world-were-we-thinking, to hopeful, to exhilarating.

There was the initial jump in responses, there was the dreaded "Day of No Pledges," there was all the great press we got, there was the exciting pledge match, there was the thrill of scrolling through my Facebook feed and seeing people playing the Pointless Challenge, and there was the amazing push at the end which got us not only to the goal but over the top!

I don't think I will ever forget that Friday night when we hit our goal which ensured we would get the money we raised. It was a gorgeous evening, and so our family decided that we would bust out the grill for the first time this season and enjoy an outdoor dinner. The pledges had been pouring in all day, and my friend Meriah kept texting me, telling me to get out the champagne, that the goal was in sight. I, being cautious, kept saying "maybe... maybe". Jason was grilling up the burgers and hot dogs, the kids were running around the yard. I kept getting alerts on my phone about another pledge coming in, and another one. We dished up dinner, dusted off the patio furniture and sat down to eat.

Then, we were at $49,990 and everything froze.

My phone dings with an alert that someone has increased his pledge by $11. "I couldn't take the stress!" he told me later.

We did it!!!!! Amazingly, with support from around the globe, we had reached our Kickstarter goal and unlocked the pledges.

US:      We did it!
KIDS:  Did what?
US:      We raised a bunch of money to help build the brewery & theatre!
KIDS:  Oh. Can I have another hot dog?

And so we celebrated, opened a bottle of wine, feasted on hot dogs and hamburgers, and marveled at the generosity of human beings.

Here are the numbers (because I love numbers):

• Duration of the campaign: 39 days
• Amount raised: $52,536
• 105% of goal reached
• 522 backers from across the US, Canada, Australia, Poland, Israel, UK, Germany, Russia, Sweden, and Japan.
• Average pledge amount: $100
• 3,306 people watched the video
• 57 people increased their pledges during the campaign
• 36 people donated after we reached the goal. I have even gotten messages from people saying that they missed the deadline, can they still give (the answer is yes! Email me to talk more: tori AT pointlessbrew DOT com)

I find the Kickstarter philosophy quite fascinating. It is all based on their motto that all-or-nothing funding works. They publish all of their statistics, and their numbers back up this method:

• Of the campaigns that made it past 60% of their funding goal, 98.6% made it to their full goal and were funded. 
• Of the campaigns that made it past 80% of their goal, 99.3% made their full goal and were funded.

In other words, if you can reach a critical mass of people caring about this project, you are highly likely to get it to launch. I had all these numbers in my head throughout the campaign, but they only helped squelch the fear so much; there was still that chance that we might be in that tiny percent that fail!

So, what now? Well, Jason is busy cooking up all sorts of new brew concoctions, planning for auditions, working on permits and licensure, and I am busy dreaming and scheming about the family series which we are calling "Little Peeps." Much work, much fun, and all of it made possible by the support of our community around the world. "Thank you" doesn't begin to scratch the surface.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In other news, the Healthline list of Best Lung Cancer Blogs of 2015 has recently come out and I am happy to say that I made the list, along with several other awesome bloggers, though I think the judges missed out on quite a few great ones. Most of all, I am happy to still be around, living, enjoying life, and still able to write and share this journey with others. Dare I hope for 2016?

Shall We Play A Game?

(I was a kid in the 80s and thought that was one of the coolest movies I had ever seen.)




As my regular readers know, Jason and I have been working toward opening our dream business, Pointless Brewery & Theatre. We are in the middle of a super exciting and nerve-wracking fundraising campaign through Kickstarter. For those of you who aren't familiar with Kickstarter, it is a website that gives artists a platform to get the word out to a large audience about their project, and people can make donations (pledges) to help make this project come to life.

The awesome/terrifying thing about Kickstarter is that if you DON'T make your goal, you lose all the pledges.

Let me say that again...

You lose ALL THE MONEY.

So far we have raised over $37,000 and have more than 300 people from around the world supporting our project. All that love feels pretty amazing.

Here's the harsh part: we need to hit our $50,000 goal by April 20 or we will lose over $37,000. 

Yikes. Please don't let that happen. If you haven't watched our video and learned about our project yet, take a moment now to do so. It's worth it, I'll wait. Just click here: http://kck.st/1EEAQ08


Now comes the fun part, and why I quoted WarGames above.

Will you play a game with me? It's called the Pointless Challenge, and here is how it works:

1. Post a picture of something that makes life less pointless. 
2. Pledge to the Pointless Kickstarter campaign http://kck.st/1EEAQ08 
3. Tag 3 friends to do the same.

The picture can be anything that makes you smile, that makes you happy, that gives you that giddy-in-the-tummy feeling, that makes your soul sing. It can be complex, it can be simple.

So, will you join me? Share on your Facebook wall, post to Twitter. Invite your friends to take a moment out of life to remember what's important.
 

Living On Borrowed Time....

There is a constant clock ticking in my mind.

Tick...tick...tick....

"Living on borrowed time...."

I've passed my expiration date.

Tick...tick...tick....

The thing that scares me most, that threatens to tear me away from my family lives inside my body.

Tick...tick...tick....

One day my luck's gonna run out.

Tick...tick...tick....

Ya know what sucks? Having your future torn away from you when you were just digging into your career. When things were looking so bright. Awards rolling in, people taking notice.

When you have a house full of small children counting on you.

(They're still counting on me.)

So what do you do?

You dust yourself off, take stock of what you still CAN do, where you still CAN play an important role, what dreams you STILL dare to dream.

My cancer is well controlled right now.

Right now I have time.

Tick...tick...tick...

Right now I have time to plan for my family's future. To get things in place to take care of them when I'm gone.

(Did you know cancer is expensive?)

Life takes unexpected turns. You adjust. You make the best of it. You still dare to dream big.

This is the only life you get. Even if it is cut drastically short.

So you shift gears. And dream.

And ask for help.

You.

Yes, you sitting at your computer, looking at your phone. I'm talking to you.

You know all those times you have read my blog and asked yourself what you could do to help?

Now's your chance.

I. Need. Your. Help.

I need you to dig down and pledge to support this dream, to support my family, to give cancer the big middle finger.

Right now.

Take out your credit card and pledge.

Every one of you who has read my writings and been touched by me baring my soul as I faced the unimaginable (your word, not mine).

You can make a difference. You can help build a future for this family.

You can help create something that I will get to be a part of for the next months and (dare I hope) few years. Something to live beyond. A legacy.

Tick...tick...tick....

But we need you.

I need you.

Give.

Challenge your friends to give. Tell them why it matters.

Because sometimes life is super crappy and unfair and horrible. But you know what makes it bearable? The people. The people who pick you up when all is lost. The people who allow you to hope for better days. The people who give you the strength to dream.

The people like you.

Now's your chance.

Tick...tick...tick....

Click here. Watch. Give.

Pointless Brewery & Theatre to explore the intersection of brewing and improv

An interview with Mark Maynard, in which I discuss beer, cancer, Yes And, life choices, improv, and facing challenges head on.

Pointless Brewery & Theatre to explore the intersection of brewing and improv

Couple opening Pointless Brewery & Theatre in Ann Arbor

We got some nice press coverage for our dream project, Pointless Brewery & Theatre.

Don't let stage IV lung cancer keep you down!

Couple opening Pointless Brewery & Theatre in Ann Arbor



Want to join our Pointless endeavor? Pledge to our Kickstarter and enjoy lots of Pointless perks!

Assorted thoughts on twins and more

As the shock of raising two babies at once (with an almost 3 year old in the mix, too) is wearing off, I am starting to see a lot of wonderful things about having twins.

Autumn

It seems no matter how we place the girls in their crib, the wriggle wriggle wriggle until their heads are touching and they are holding hands.

Autumn, Mikaela

It reminds me of their first night in this world. See, in the womb they had been positioned head to head, with the top of Mikaela's head touching the side of Autumn's. Their first night in their incubators, Mikaela, tiny as she was, managed to scoot all the way up to the top while Autumn wriggled all the way to the side. I think they were trying to find each other.

Mikaela

I walked into their room the other day to find them chattering to each other in their crib. So adorable. And they both giggle in their sleep! What's up with that? Z did it too. Quite wonderful.

Mikaela

I am getting excited about going back to school in the fall and starting work on some creative projects coming up. I'm not sure how it is going to feel juggling work and the newly-enlarged family, and I get little pangs of sadness to think that I might miss out of those great moments that the kids have. I was complaining to Jason that it is hard having both a family and work that I love. Then I paused and we looked at each other. He said, "Isn't that exactly what we have been trying to create?" Oh, yeah. I guess I am actually incredibly lucky. Nice to have it back in perspective.

The first time Z saw one of his sisters spit up, he recoiled in disgust (which is particularly funny to those of you who recall how much he used to spit up). Then just the other day, his sister spat up and he casually got a kleenex and cleaned it up. Jealousy issues and all, he is still a pretty great kid.

So he does alright most of the time, but when the girls get particularly needy, Z kinda falls apart. It reminds me of this idea I had years ago of doing a variety show lit entirely by the audience. Upon entry to the theater, each audience member would receive a miner-style helmet with a light. There would be several things happening on the stage at once, so whatever grabbed the attention would be lit, and everything else would go dark. I realized it would probably just dissolve into a bunch of attention-getting tricks. This is pretty much what happens to Z. "Oh, the girls are crying? Well . . . look at me! I just dumped out all my legos! Still nursing? Um . . . then I will dump a water bottle on the couch. Did you see that, Mommy? Look at me! Pay attention to me! Mommy! Mommymommymommymommymommy!!!" Totally transparent, totally understandable, and totally exhausting.

The world's cutest triceratops

The jealousy issues we are experiencing are basically the typical new baby problems that every older sibling has, only more so because, well, two babies. Plus we cannot go anywhere without attracting at least a few gawkers. While I am the first person to agree that the girls are gorgeous, these onlookers fail to notice that they have an equally wonderful older brother who stands silently by while people "ooh" and "aah" over his little sisters.

So if you are one of those people who likes to stop someone pushing a twin stroller and comment about the babies, please take a moment to notice if there is an older sibling you are overlooking, and send a little love that way.

Zander sharing his buddies with Autumn

Tori's New Hobby

I am a big fan of trying new things and having new experiences. Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to do something that I never in my wildest dreams imagined myself doing.

Everyone in my office was going to an inter-office event, and I thought it would be a good opportunity for me to meet some of the people that I know exclusively through email and telephone conversations. The event was to take place at the nearby hunting club.

That's right, a hunting club.

I was assured that we would not be killing any actual live animals, but rather shooting at clay pigeons which, I was again assured, are literally made of clay and are not and never have been alive. "Skeet shooting" I believe it is called.

Okay, I told myself, I can handle this.

I was wrong.

As I drove up to the club, I thought, "This is pretty. It is sunny out, I'm in a fairly woodsy place, I like this." Then I turned off the car and heard LOTS OF GUNSHOTS.

I try to act calm as I walk into the lodge and meet up with the people from work. The front desk person asks if I will need to borrow a gun or if I've brought my own. (?!?!?!?!)

I borrow a gun.



She then asks me if I will need a lesson. "Have you ever fired a gun before?"

"Uh, once . . . in a play . . . I fired a gun . . . for, um, a sound effect. I was . . . offstage."

"Yes, I need a lesson."

As we walk outside, I try to ignore the incredibly loud gunfire all around me. I hang back and let the others shoot first, hoping that I will get used to the sound and stop trembling. Eventually, everyone else has gone, and I walk up to the - I don't even know the word - little half-cagey-thing where you stand while firing guns at clay pigeons. One of my co-workers hands me the gun. I am startled by how heavy and unrelentless and powerful it feels. My hands are shaking as I try to get the shells out of my pocket and I drop one on the ground. I fumble to pick it up while holding on to the gun but not wanting to hold the gun too close to myself oh my god what am I doing - okay, okay, load the gun - she told us how to do this - the safety, where is the safety? don't pinch your fingers while you push the shell in - that's right push it until it clicks but don't push too hard or you will pinch your fingers - now turn off the safety. Aim. "Pull". FIRE.

I'm nearly thrown backwards as I experience the kick of a gun for the first time. I don't want to do this again, but I have three shots left for my turn. C'mon be a good sport you can do it calm down breathe breathe stop trembling hands push 'til it clicks wait put on the safety okay here we go again.

I finish my turn in a blur while trying desperately not to show how much I want to cry.

I politely deline any more shots and try to enjoy what would have been really peaceful surroundings if not for the bullets flying around me.

On the upside, I won a prize in the drawing. I was really hoping for the Carnivore Blood-Tracking Light, but I was happy enough with my camouflage beer cozy made to resemble a shell.