Yesterday was a big day for social issues. So far I’ve asked you to join World Water Day events to support water awareness, boycott bottled water to fight climate change, and Bum Rush the Chartsto stick it to the recording industry and support indie record labels. Black Lab are great aren’t they?

The Financial Aid Podcast has just released the initial results of Bum Rush the Charts and they look promising. Black Lab’s Mine Again didn’t make the Top 100 on iTunes yesterday, but they certainly had an effect and hopefully caught the attention of the music industry. Finally, proceeds from the affiliate sales commissions plus an additional 50% match from Black Lab will be donated to ScholarshipPoints.com. If you’re a US college student, sign up for a chance to win a scholarship.

I’ve been listening to Black Lab and I really like ‘em. Thanks for letting me brag about making history!

I’m in desperate need of new clothing and you digg users can help. Buy a kickass Threadless shirt for only $10 (new shirts being added daily for 30 days) and help clothe a poor graduate student in style. Everyone wins!

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In celebration of his show’s first anniversary, Stephen Colbert is auctioning off his highly valuable, extremely realistic portrait that currently hangs above the fireplace on the set of Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report.”

It’s too bad there are some jokers out there that have false bids jacking the price to $100 million. Although, I WOULD like to believe these are real bids. It certainly would be nice for Save the Children.

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Look at these photos and consider donating some spare change:
http://flickr.com/photos/tags/katrina/show/

Click here to support the American Red Cross disaster relief fund for Hurricane Katrina victims

riders at the Moonlight Ramble-Forest Park, St. Louis August 20-21 2005

I “rode the night” this past weekend for the benefit of Hostelling International. ‘Ramble’ is apparently the first night ride of it’s kind, tracing back to the 1960s. In fact my buddy Jim, took part in a similar race in Denver the same evening. He took a nasty spill but is going to be fine thanks to his helmet. The course was about 21 miles from Forest Park in St. Louis, West through Clayton (my city) then back thru the park and east to downtown St. Louis, then back again to the park. It was my first organized long distance ride and it was much easier and fun than I had anticpated. I’m considering purchasing a road bike. There is a great bike shop in University City, MO called Big Shark. I made it through the course safely, although I wasn’t so sure at the beginning. There were approximately 15,000 participants which made for an interesting ride for the first 5 miles. I was amazed at the scope of people there; kids on BMX bikes, toddlers in carriers, old men and women, not to mention all of the recumbent bikes, tandems, and home brew bikes. It was a great group of people with which to spend a cool evening in the park. As I came back west from downtown, it was amazing to feel how much the temperature dropped as we approached the park. This ride through St. Louis gave me a greater appreciation for the city, and certainly a greater appreciation of cycling. I think I’m hooked!

I have recently commited myself to train for the P.F. Chang’s Rock N’ Roll Marathon in Phoenix, AZ on January 9, 2005. I am a member of Team in Training, the premier endurance training organization for runners, cyclists, and triathletes. The ultimate mission of Team in Training is to train athletes for various events, who in turn commit themselves to raising money for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). I have an honored teammate, Josie, who is a 4 year old girl that was diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Lymphoma (ALL) this past April. She is as cute as a button and full of energy, despite receiving chemotherapy. She has great hope that someday she will be better. With the help of LLS and Team in Training, she can get the help she needs.

My goal is to raise $3800 by the end of October. This money will go directly into our local St. Louis chapter of the LLS to support patient treatment and family support programs that Josie and her family count on everday. Please give what you can, since every dollar counts. You may send your generous gift to me by clicking donate now link above.

Your gift is 100% tax deductible and your credit card statement serves as a receipt.

Thank you for your support of me during my training, and especially your support to Josie. She is very grateful.

I hope to have my training schedule available soon so you can track my progress and possibly use it for your own training program. I’m a firm believer that if you stick to the schedule, anyone can run a marathon.

-James Britton