elbow rehab, various updates

I just want to say thank you to all the people who have been writing me uplifting messages in the last few weeks, the volume of messages has made it hard to really respond so I'll try to answer all the questions here...

Obviously this season didn't go as planned and had to be cut short with surgery, but I'll be healthy next year and should return to my 2007 form pretty soon. This whole season was an up and down experience, and I learned some valuable lessons- namely: just get fixed when you know you need to get fixed. Having the bone chips and spurs removed in my elbow makes me wish I would have gotten it done earlier in the season- because I'd be back on the mound already and probably pitching a lot better than I was when I left. Now I can sleep at night, my elbow doesn't lock up, pop, or get stiff from all those gremlins in there.

So for all you kids who write me asking for advice about your sore arms...don't listen to your little league coach or your high school coaches- go see a doctor. If you want to keep playing baseball, get it treated as soon as possible because you don't get a second chance all the time.



It's been about 3 weeks and I'm starting to do strengthening exercises since just about all of my Range of Motion has come back. The first week was kind of disorienting, just because it's so much less invasive than the Tommy John surgery I had in 2003. When I had that one, I was pretty much in pain for a few weeks and had weird bruising and swelling, had to wear a sling, etc.- I couldn't even carry a bag of groceries for 2 months after TJ! There really hasn't been any pain, and the only effect was some swelling from the joint healing back up. I haven't taken any pain meds or lost any sleep since getting it done.

Now I'm fully functional, and my strength is coming back really fast. I do manual resistance exercises with my physical therapist @ TMI in arlington, which is to say he bends, straightens, and puts resistance against my arm using gentle pressure in order to isometrically fire the muscles and stretch the injured tissues. I'm about to graduate to swimming and weight training! Pretty soon I'll have the option to start with a throwing program, but I'll most likely just put it off until a few weeks before my normal throwing starts. Kameron Loe had this exact procedure last year and rebounded pretty well this season, so I've got some good advice from him on what to expect.


It's a gradual process but like I mentioned- this is a walk in the park compared to the 12-18 month recovery of a more invasive TJ or shoulder surgery.

Arthroscopic surgery is a much easier, less invasive process. Basically I've got 4 new holes that are all healed up...

So what is a "scope" surgery? Well they open up some holes, stick in a camera in one and a clamp in another to take out any loose stuff (chips) or use a little drill/suction tool kind of like a roto-rooter pipe snake to shave down any bone chips or muscle tears. it's pretty high tech, and the doctor is able to preserve a lot more of your skin, fascial tissue, muscles and cartilage this way. I think the entire process took 1.5 hours. It's pretty common and typical recovery periods vary from 4-12 weeks depending on the joint, and severity of the cleaning out process.

A bonus- I've got a tooth sized bone chip in a medical envelope as a souvenir! Not sure whether to make a necklace out of it, or keep it in a jar, or sell it on ebay...maybe I'll wait to see what advice my readers have...


Up on the schedule for me, I've got a lot of packing to do as Kam and I both need our own places- he's got a bulldog puppy now which is awesome, but dogs need yards and we live in a condo building. I'll probably get a house as well, I just need to start looking (pre requisites- must have a big garage, no construction nearby, and good internet connections...) so that way I'm not without a place in D/FW.

Also, I'm going to have to do my offseason throwing program in california due to much better outdoor conditions...after having my previous TJ, the constant warm weather in Arizona made my arm much less achy then if I was to be dodging the constantly fluctuating metroplex weather in December and January. I'll be travelling back and forth since I've still got commitments with my charity events and the D.A.R.E. program in tarrant county. The things I'll miss most about living here full time are going to Dallas Stars games, and being able to work out with Jose Vasquez, our strength coach for the rangers. I'll also have a hard time replacing my martial arts training from last offseason @ the International Aikido Association.

but hey, there's always next year to come back better than ever. Hopefully, the lessons I learned while pitching less than 80-100% healthy will make me even better when I'm healthy!


once again, thank you to everyone who writes me the great messages, and all of you who've attended or will attend my fundraising events and help out the children's hospitals, children with hemophilia, and other causes we've raised money for.

c.j.

5:03 AM - 31 Comments - 51 Kudos - Add Comment

August 21st @ House of Blues- GH charity event still on!

hey everyone, I am in fact getting arm surgery this week, but I'll still be there for the Charity Event at the House of Blues on the 21st! I might be in an arm sling and not able to play the game, but I can still hang out, sign autographs, etc.

I'll repost the flyer on here, but basically what you need to know:


the tickets are available on the House of Blues website
Rad prizes from Activision, Gamestop, Southwest Airlines, etc
we're going to be in the Main Room there- which is pretty rad
Money raised will be going to Scottish Rite Children's Hospital
Educational Info will be there for how to volunteer around the metroplex
you can get food and drinks from HOB

I'm trying to get a few of the guys on the team to come out and mingle, we'll see who and how asap.


thanks for all the well wishes!

c.j.

10:11 PM - 22 Comments - 28 Kudos - Add Comment

ranger fans in new york!

thanks for coming out strong yesterday! very brave of you guys and gals to fight through that vicious yankee crowd to watch us win it.


hope to see more of you out there in the next two days!

c.j.

5:51 PM - 12 Comments - 18 Kudos - Add Comment

Prize list for the Guitar Hero Charity Event

Prize List

Top 8 Contestants will each receive a Rangers Gift Bag with a Autographed CJ Baseball hat , Video Games, Gift Cards to GameStop

4th Place - $50.00 Gift Card to Game Stop

3rd Place – 4 Tix to Game plus Meet and Greet

2nd Place – Nintendo Wii

1st Place – Flight Sim Ride with CJ, Autographed Paer T-Shirt , Chance to play for Grand prize on August 21st for 2 Round Trip Tickets on Southwest


Performance of the Night – Gets Xbox 360 GHero Controller with custom made CJ Wilson "skin"

Ten Contestants in Face Off with CJ
- Each will get gift card to Game Stop plus Video Game
- Third Highest Score of the Night gets 4 Tickets to Rangers Game
- Second Highest Score of the Night gets 4 Tickets to Rangers Game
- Top Score of the Night Gets 4 Tickets to Rangers with Meet and Greet and Autographed Paer T-Shirt

7:21 AM - 1 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

May 15th- Guitar Hero Challenge!

Pre register for your parking and building entrance now for CJ's Guitar Hero Challenge.


( See instructions below: This Does Not Register you for the challenge or reserve you a spot in the challenge, You must do that at check-in the night of the event.)


We are just a little over a month away until we rock the runway at Southwest Airlines for the Scottish Rite Children's Hospital of Dallas.

THURSDAY MAY 15TH
Doors Open @ 6PM.The Challenge will start at 6:30PM Sharp.
$20.00 Donation. Cash or Checks, Sorry no credit cards accepted but an ATM is available. An additional donation of $10.00 to play CJ at GHero (Limited to the first 10 people that sign up).

I will be announcing some pretty cool prizes and changes to the event soon!!

Southwest Airlines has automated there visitor check in-processing so you won't have to "sign in" when you arrive. You can pre register now by emailing your name, address and email address to CJsGHeroEvent@yahoo.com.

Once we enter your name into the system you will receive an email that you will need to print and bring with you. The email will have a barcode imprinted on it. When you arrive security will scan that barcode into our system and your visitors badge will be printed for you!

We will need the complete name, address and email address of each person in your party!

PLEASE NOTE THIS DOES NOT REGISTER YOU FOR THE TOURNAMENT JUST ENTRANCE INTO THE SOUTHWEST AIRLINES PARKING AREA AND HEADQUARTERS BUILDING. Located at 2702 Love Field Drive, Dallas, Texas (Please use the SeelCo Entrance off Denton Drive). Doors open at 6PM on Thursday May 15th.

Thanks to Our Sponsors

Texas Rangers, Southwest Airlines, Activision, Game Stop, Bayer Medical, Coram Hemophilia Services and DallasParty. com

9:33 PM - 8 Comments - 16 Kudos - Add Comment

we did it! thanks everyone

Hopefully you heard on friday night that this was our most successful event so far!

tons of dvds, games, and toys were donated, along with more money than the first two events. all of this is going to come in really handy for Cook's Children's Hospital and the video game room/ treatment area.

we're presenting a big check with additional funds kicked in by the rangers, and going on a shopping spree for games, systems, and tvs this week.

Thanks to everyone who came out to our event on friday- Rob from Gamestop and Rob from Southwest Airlines did a fantastic job! Without you two guys and your ideas, patience, and hard work- there's no chance we'd be getting off the ground on these events.

congrats to all the guys and gals who won stuff- and thanks for not going nuts on that dad who embarrassed his son by complaining.

if you have pics, post them on your page in a "Cj's event" album or something like that! Hopefully I autographed and played songs with everyone who wanted to hang out- if not- we're doing this again as soon as the team gets back from spring training.


Gamestop is gonna go all out- and as you guys can tell with all the prizes that they gave away, they're really serious about hosting awesome tournaments...

Southwest Airlines was awesome providing us with all the volunteers, food, parking, and prizes as well.

Bayer agreed to help sponsor our next few events to cover upfront costs and rental fees- which is huge because more money can go to the kids this way!


I've gotten a lot of really passionate emails on here from those of you affected by childhood illness, hospitalization, and the loss of family. Those of you who've shared your stories just make me more determined to keep up the momentum so that more people can get into the spirit of giving, and bringing attention to reality.

with your strength, we all grow.

c.j.

11:46 PM - 9 Comments - 20 Kudos - Add Comment

Friday- come on out! sign in for the tournament!

The Guitar Hero Benefit Tournament is going down!

doors open at 630.
we will be serving food.
entry is a $20 donation.
the GH3 tournament starts around 7pm.
32 contestants...multiple prizes.
we're giving away tickets to stars games, flights on southwest, and autographed memorabilia.

I'm seeding Mofobian and Jayahre as my top contestants.

anyone can join- although unless we get another 20 people who want to do a jr division, it's gonna be on expert.



here are some pics from fan fest

9:11 PM - 8 Comments - 14 Kudos - Add Comment

GH3- It’s up to us. FEB 1st! 7-930pm updated Directions!
Current mood: optimistic

okay I know a lot of people are bummed about the news from this week about the GH3 tourney getting cancelled...

BUT

I am determined to fight on and throw the event anyway

I don't need a @%^^ radio station. We don't need a big fancy corporate sponsor! I need you- my myspace friends! Help the kids at the hospital get access to high-tech games, tv's, and movies so that their time spent isn't lonely, depressing, or mundane. help them see a light hearted escape from Iv's/ needles/ chemotherapy.

please.

the people at southwest airlines, activision, and gamestop all want to help.

we don't need ticketmaster- we can sell tickets at the door. the room is huge that we're gonna throw these events in, and has really awesome sound systems, big overhead projectors, a Downtown Dallas skyline view, and food!


What we really need are for you to go, show up, have a good time, and rock out while some of the best xbox shredders in the great state of texas boogie down to your favorite rock jams.


who's still interested?

pwn some noobs!

if you can't- and want to donate xbox 360 games, G-rated and PG rated movies on DVD, and or checks- (lots of people have asked)

mail it to

Texas Rangers Foundation c/o C.J. Wilson
1000 Ballpark Way
Arlington Texas 76011 make checks payable to "texas rangers foundation c/o cj wilson
if you donate any DVDs or xbox360 games, please make them age appropriate!

in another week or so we're going on our first shopping spree for the kids- my goal is to get a few nice flat screen tv's, some game systems, a ton of games and dvds and eventually couches and chairs so the kids and their families can bond and relax in comfort.

sign up! help out! post ideas as comments


- EVENT WILL RUN FROM 7pm to 930PM

- All Donations are Tax Deductible!

- The event is to be located at the Southwest Airlines Flight Ops Center at Dallas Love Field.

don't say- "well I don't know where that is" I will get DETAILED DIRECTIONS AND PARKING INFO by the end of the week.

-You know where Dallas/Love Field is- off the 35E or off the the Dallas North Tollway! just about 10 minutes from Downtown Dallas!

Southwest Airlines Corporate Headquarters
2702 Love Field Drive ( Must Use Seelco Street gate to enter).



From I-30 ( East or West)
Take 30 to I35 North, Take I-35 North to Mockingbird Lane, Take Mockingbird east to Denton Drive. Go North on Denton Drive to Seelco. Make a right on Seelco. Seelco will take you to the Southwest Airlines entrance.


I35 (North of South)
Take Mockingbird east to Denton Drive. Go North on Denton Drive to Seelco. Make a right on Seelco. Seelco will take you to the Southwest Airlines entrance.


From HWY183 / HWY114
Go South to Mockingbird Lane, Take Mockingbird east to Denton Drive. Go North on Denton Drive to Seelco. Make a right on Seelco. Seelco will take you to the Southwest Airlines entrance.

From 75 / Tollway (North or South)
Take to Mockingbird Lane. Take Mockingbird west to Denton Drive. Go North on Denton Drive to Seelco. Make a right on Seelco. Seelco will take you to the Southwest Airlines entrance.

6:30 PM - 32 Comments - 41 Kudos - Add Comment

DISREGARD THIS BLOG AND READ THE ABOVE ONE!

I was told today that my personal crusade to unite the metroplex in digital rock music has been halted.

The radio station who had promoted our previous video game tournaments backed out today- 3 weeks before the GH3 challenge.

This really sucks folks!

why? well apparently the Rangers don't advertise enough on the radio station for them to care about any of the sick kids that I'm trying to bring video games to. This led the Rangers to cancel the event that I had been planning with my good friend Robert Champagne who some of you might know as the guy who gives the speeches at my events. He works for Southwest Airlines who had agreed to get our best venue yet- tons of huge electronic wizardry, food, fun, prizes and stuff was gonna blow your mind on February 1st.

Initially I was really angry that all the hard work and volunteers from southwest airlines and myspace that had wanted to help have all just been wasting our time. Thanks radio jerks. Thanks for blowing it. I'm REALLY pissed because "since the holidays are busy we've had to delay things" and I've been trying to get this event going for 3 months now- since before the last one!

all of you that offered to help, help me plan, show up and dominate the game- we're all out of luck. We'll have another chance.

Activision might even be willing to sponsor our next event themselves...and they make the game so that would be awesome for sure. Gamestop is a willing partner. But this is not a promotional snorefest- this is to raise money for a very specific cause and apparently that's really hard for corporate people to understand.

I'm going to make sure that the cause I'm trying to rally everyone up for is not lost. My goal was to furnish the outpatient clinic at Cooks Childrens Hospital with some new tv's, games, dvds, and make the kids a little less sad to go to the hospital. They will know that those of us that care can still make a difference, and that the strong can and should help out when we're able to.

I'm gonna go on a shopping spree to bring in as much stuff as possible to the hospital, and spend the next few months organizing my own 501-c charitable organization. I want more control over raising money to help kids (last year with Boys and Girls club, this year with the hospital) and once that is set up- you can send in toys, games or donations to the charity and it will all be through MY CHARITY and not through all these other 3rd parties trying to profit off of sick kids getting chemotherapy.


Setting up my own charity is no doubt an enormous task but it will be worth it in the long run.

C.J. Wilson's Children's Charity Fund has a nice ring to it. I will let you know when that gets finalized. Hell I might even hire some of you to help run it!


I'm truly sorry- nobody has been looking forward to this event more than I have.

2:35 PM - 34 Comments - 53 Kudos - Add Comment

80-next guitar hero charity event- updates!

okay so here's what I got so far

Friday: Feb 1st (friday night)

we will get down and see who is the greatest guitar hero of the DFW metroplex area.

The venue will most likely be the Southwest Airlines Ballroom @ Dallas/Love Field. Where is that? Look up Dallas /Love Field! I'm getting directions and flyers etc printed out asap, they will be at gamestop for those of you who want to know more details, we'll get it going soon.

we're trying to iron out the details in order to RAISE THE MOST $ for the outpatient video game room at Cook's Children's hospital in FT worth. the more people that attend, donate, bid on auction items, and play in the tournament, the more we can help the kids there!

so- comment if you've got an idea that would bring out more people, raise more money, etc or would be able to host, cater, etc.

LET ME KNOW!

thanks,

c.j.


If you want to volunteer to help at the event- setting up ticket tables, selling raffle tickets, assisting with the thematic planning etc, mail me on here. okay?

word.

january 8th UPDATES: we are still working on prizes but to describe the venue more- it will be bigger and with better built in TVs than the last 2 venues. so far we have 4 overhead projectors and possible another 4 37" flat screens on rollers- all with seperate speakers so each little sector is gonna be in it's own bubble. Also- there will be more food and it will be easier to access than the previous two events. Inside the southwest airlines building there are a lot of really cool aviation themed decorations and I think you will all get a big kick out of seeing the memorabilia from fighter planes to helicopters etc.

I am getting a lot of people offering to help out, but the biggest thing I can say is to bring more people!

Kids from the hospital will be going out there as well so you will be able to see just who and how you're gonna help with your donations at this event. By the time the next one rolls around, I will probably have set up my "C.J. Wilson's Children's Charity Fund" that I have been working on with the help of my friend Robert and some others. Once that comes together- people will be able to submit tax deductible donations year round to help out kids in need, from Boys and Girls clubs to Hospitals to shelters, little leagues, schools, etc.

Thanks to everyone who has come to the last 2 events, and is coming to this one. Remember that you affect every person you ever meet, and some you never do.

c.j.

6:07 AM - 20 Comments - 23 Kudos - Add Comment