On April 1st voting on my project should be open to win one of two $250,000 grants that will go towards completing A.Refuge.
It takes two clicks to help me complete my vision and live out my dream of educating people, inspiring people, and helping other people reach their goals.
Please, vote every day for A.Refuge. You can help my dream come true.
http://pepsirefresh.com/arefuge
The story of why everything went wrong the first time and why I need your help to set it right:
In July of 2008 I had a tumor removed from my pancreas. This tumor, although not cancerous, was slowly destroying my life. It produced insulin all day, every day. This affected my brain functions due to my glucose and insulin levels never being in balance. It was growing inside of me for many years. The larger it grew the more productive it became. While growing I had a harder time at focusing and a harder time with handling every day situations. Eventually, it got to a point where every day was filled with multiple anxiety or panic attacks triggered by even the most forgettable of hurdles one could face. The whole time this was going on I simply thought I was losing my mind. It was not until February of last year that symptoms arose to suggest a tumor.
That day in February I ended up waking up with double vision. I went to the hospital to get a catscan of my brain. My doctor thought I got hit in hockey. During the catscan I passed out. I began to dream that I was stuck in a hospital and all the staff and doctors would not let me go home. They kept asking me what drugs I was on. I kept yelling at them that I never take drugs. I kept pleading to let me go home. I ran away from them. I begged my parents to help me escape. Then the dream came to an end and the nightmare begun.
I woke up in the hospital strapped to a bed. There were monitors and plugs all over my body and an IV in my arm. I had no concept of what was real for the next hour. The dream I just had transitioned to reality in a way that didn’t completely signify “You are awake.” Apparently, my glucose levels bottomed out due to all the insulin in my body eating up the glucose. I was near coma/death levels and it was actually a huge blessing I didn’t end up in a coma. I later learned that everything I did in my dream, all the running, all the yelling, and all the pleading I actually did in reality. It was the scariest moment of my life.
Soon after this incident and after a lot of testing they found the tumor and it was removed. The doctors explained it had been in me for years. It is the direct cause of A.Refuge stalling out three years ago, before it got to a point where it could stand out as unique and represent my vision.
I am now tumor free and at 100% good health. More importantly, I am finally on the right path towards seeing A.Refuge become what I set out to make it. This project is of such huge scope that I simply can not do it myself. Even if I could, I could not do it in the time that it deserves to be done. That is why I am asking for help.
With your help I can push A.Refuge forward to the next level. A level where people interacting with it clearly understand its mission, its purpose, and its potential to change the world. That’s really the goal. To change the world. Through positive influence, inspiration, and education.
With your help I can change the world.
June 5th, 2009 at 12:25 pm
Hey Gary this is your old friend Jason. I just read your story and was floorbound by what you had to go through. I can’t imagine how great it must feel to know you were not crazy… Well I think you are crazy, but the genuis type of crazY. Anyways, I’m glad you are ok. Anything myself and the band can do to help, just let me know. We will be at warped this year let’s hook up sometime soon. I always wonder what and how you are doing. Talk to you soon
Jason
June 5th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
Dude! Happy almost birthday!!!
That’s great you’re on Warped !!! I’ll check out the dates and do my best to make it so I can get some shots of you guys there. =)
Thanks for the really kind message. Yeah, I am really slowly catching back up to everyone I care about and all their projects. You’re on the list. I’m glad you found me first =)
I’ll shoot you an email this weekend! I’m just now finishing up getting ready to go up to Santa Barbara to shoot one more 311 concert =)
yayyyyy! you rule dude! thanks again!!! <3