Well it has been a while since I updated this blog and A LOT has happened since my last post so here goes:
It became obvious with a few weeks to go until the travel component of our total was due ($5K) that we would not be able to fundraise the $5K to cover that part of our target. Ideally we would have liked to have fundraised $10K each to cover both the travel component AND the Amnesty component but it was just not going to happen. So we bit the bullet and paid for the travel part ourselves.
Since then we have managed to reach the $5K target for Amnesty so that is the main thing. This was helped along with a very successful ASCENT silent art auction held at Conduit Arts: http://conduitarts.org/ on Thursday 31 May. My good friend Teleesh (2nd in charge of the Real Hot Bitches) sourced around 30 incredible contemporary artworks from her friends in Melbourne's art world and I sourced a few from NZ. We hung all the work on Wednesday and Thursday with the help of Felicity, Cindy and also the gallery owners Leo and Marie. The night was fuelled by mulled red wine and beer (with Cindy and Anton manning the bar) and we had a great turn out. Here are some pics:
It became obvious with a few weeks to go until the travel component of our total was due ($5K) that we would not be able to fundraise the $5K to cover that part of our target. Ideally we would have liked to have fundraised $10K each to cover both the travel component AND the Amnesty component but it was just not going to happen. So we bit the bullet and paid for the travel part ourselves.
Since then we have managed to reach the $5K target for Amnesty so that is the main thing. This was helped along with a very successful ASCENT silent art auction held at Conduit Arts: http://conduitarts.org/ on Thursday 31 May. My good friend Teleesh (2nd in charge of the Real Hot Bitches) sourced around 30 incredible contemporary artworks from her friends in Melbourne's art world and I sourced a few from NZ. We hung all the work on Wednesday and Thursday with the help of Felicity, Cindy and also the gallery owners Leo and Marie. The night was fuelled by mulled red wine and beer (with Cindy and Anton manning the bar) and we had a great turn out. Here are some pics:
Cindy and Felicity using the spirit level app on Felicity's phone
Teleesh striking a pose
First attendees
And it's happening!
So all in all it was a great success, raising over $2K!
We also did 2 weekends straight of sausage sizzling at Smith Street Woolworths. Being a vegetarian, I was put on onion chopping duty which I thought would entail me standing around with stinging eyes and tears running down my face. Not so, turns out after the first couple of onions it's plain sailing. Two weekends in a row was more than enough for us, but we did raise about $1.5K all up! A good result. Here's Anton nerding out at the sausage stand:
We also held our final quiz night last week and drew the Monster Raffle! So apart from one final 'Bitching for a Cause' tomorrow night, all of our fundraising is done and dusted which is a mighty relief! We plan to throw a party for all of our mates that have helped us out and supported us over the past few months when we return from Kilimanjaro.
Radiothon began at my work last week so I have been working longer hours than normal. Despite not having had a drink since May (Anton and I are doing a 'No Goon June - Dry July combo') I still managed to get sick after day 6 at work. Total bummer, especially after being so good taking zinc, iron, and vitamin C, exercising daily, and not drinking. But there's not a lot you can do when your body has other ideas. I wonder how many other people on our trip have been laid up sick with 4 weeks to go. Hoping to be better by Saturday so as we can get some training in the Dandenongs in!!
We shall see. Have had Sunday and today (Monday) off work so back into it tomorrow and drugged up with some antibiotics and Sudafed.
Have been stocking up on some essential gear now that the Winter sales for Mountain Designs and Kathmandu have kicked in. We now own down sleeping bags with thermal liners. Hopefully they will be warm enough for freezing conditions near the top, but not too warm for Summer camping fun at festies and the like post Kilimanjaro.
That's all for now folks!
Helen
