Suzi Meehan's idea of true relaxation is reading a book while sitting on the beach and listening to the waves crash. But she doesn't have time to do that.
The cancer that claimed one of her breasts in 1992 returned last year, invading 15 vertebrae, five ribs, a shoulder blade and her left hip.
"The doctors told me I have a year left to live," she said. "I don't believe them."
After receiving her diagnosis, she went through stages of anger, denial, fear then anger again.
"Finally, you come to the point where you accept it and you decide what you want to do with the days you have left," she said. "I don't do anything I don't want to do anymore - I don't clean bathrooms."
But she definitely has a list of things to do.
High on her list of priorities is the Children's Museum of Northern Nevada, where she serves as executive director.
She hired a business coach, Bob McCann, to help her make the museum financially stable so it will continue to operate when she's no longer here.
But she needs the community's help.
"I want people to help the museum now and not wait until I'm gone," she said.
While Meehan was growing up, she learned in school that the world was in danger of severe overpopulation so she decided to have only one child.
However, she also planned to be a foster parent because she spent seven years of her childhood in foster care. She had her one child but her ex-husband never wanted to bring in any foster children.
Now, as museum director, she is satisfied that she is doing what she can to help children.
"If a parent interacts with their child, that child is going to grow up well," she said. "That's why my goal is to make this an education center, not just a children's museum."
And the kids help her, too.
"When I start feeling down, I just go upstairs and play with the kids," she said in her downstairs office. "When you see kids laughing or somebody lets you hold their baby, it's rejuvenating."
The night before her mastectomy eight years ago, Meehan said she walked the halls and and asked herself what she wanted to accomplish if she only had a short time to live.
She decided she wanted to raise her son, who was 10 at the time, save her marriage and open the children's museum.
Her son is now 19 and in the military, the museum is operating in full swing but her marriage ended in divorce.
However, in December of 1995, she met Bob Hunt, who is now the exhibit designer for the museum.
They met while she was working in real estate, which she did for 29 years, and he worked for Computer Care and came to fix her computer.
After five years of dating, the two tied the knot last May.
"It was unbelievable," Meehan said. "It was the most beautiful wedding that ever was."
She didn't formally send out invitations but nearly 70 people showed up who had heard about it.
"I don't have any family in town but I have the most wonderful friends," she said.
And a wonderful husband.
"He's somebody I can talk to," she said. "He's a good listener."
She makes it a point now to let people know how she feels about them.
"I tell my son and my husband I love them every day," she said. "I get a lot of hugs every day."
Meehan also wants to raise awareness about breast cancer and encourage women to get yearly mammograms.
"I'm not being quiet about the cancer," she said. "I want to get the word out."
She turned 53 last Tuesday and to celebrate took a ride in a blimp in Las Vegas, one of the things on her list "to do before I die."
She also made a list of 1,694 books she wants to read. She still has 1,300 more to go.
"It's real hard to know when you're going to die," Meehan said. "Everyone knows they're going to die but they want to be surprised. If everybody lived with the knowledge that they had a year to live, what would they do differently?"
She has come to accept her illness but it's still scary.
"I can see how my death is going to be," she said. "I don't like how it will be."
Doctors have told her that the cancer will eventually spread to her organs and that's when she'll die. But they've promised that it will be painless.
Until then, like everyone else, she has to live day to day.
"Every day is a new day," she said and pointed to her screen saver which reads, "Live with intention, do what you love."