Never, Ever Give Up

Towards the end of my last blog post I surmised that perhaps I was nearing the end of this roller

coaster ride which I’ve been on for eight months or so. Well, as I’ve learned already, life doesn’t always unfold as I expect it to, nor, necessarily, as I want it to. However, as they say, “A bend in the road is not the end of the road. Unless you fail to make the turn.” So far, I’ve been able to negotiate every turn—albeit some with more gusto than others.

Never Cover a Totem Pole with a Green Stocking

I realize this is another one of those compound blog titles. They usually result from a combination of at least two things. First, an overloaded brain, which I find is a frequent experience for me due to the limited capacity of the one I have. (I’ve tried changing my mind now and then, but the other one doesn’t work any better.) And second, the inability to be decisive about the main point of the blog post. So I just stuff in a combination of everything. Then try to sort it out later.

By the way, if you’re just looking for a brief update on my health, here it is: “I’m better than yesterday and not as well as tomorrow.” If you want more, read on. I dare you to.

The Continuing Saga of This Mortal Body – Act 2

ACT 2, SCENE 1:

Having been scoffed at in no small amount by my boss last week, and being called various things that I think I remember coming from the movie Forrest Gump, on Friday morning I finally succumbed to the unbearable pressure. I called and made an appointment to see my family doctor about some low grade but constant pain in strange locations of my body. I was able to get an appointment for this morning—Monday. My boss stopped his rantings. (Advice for making your boss stop his rantings? Call your doctor. Worked for me.)

Of Drains and Dressings and Freedom from Them

[In my next few blog posts I plan to summarize some of the things I’ve learned over the past many months of dealing with cancer. Of course the learning will continue for the rest of my life, but alas! This blog post won’t! I’ve always said “Once you stop learning, you may as well be dead.” Well, I’m not dead yet, so here goes…]

But first an update on my health, since that’s long overdue (both update and health, that is). It was a few weeks ago that the drain, along with all its attachments, was removed from my upper left leg. I had no idea what the hidden part of this thing would look like. How thick was it? How long was the part that was actually inside my leg? What did it look like? What was it made of? 

Learning to Dance With a One-Legged Tan

Okay, I know that’s a crazy title for a blog post but I just had to. And that’s because there are several things that I want to tell you about and don’t know which one to include in the title. So, sometimes you just have to put it all in one mouthful. 

My almost-seven-year-old grandson totally gets that. When he’s hungry and the food looks so good, he just can’t decide which part to taste first. So he just stuffs it all in. Like a bad blog title. You just have to do it. But then that’s what freedom smells like sometimes. Do it now and deal with the consequences later. (Don’t ever tell him I said that. It’s just that I get it too.) I don’t condone that as a habit, but I know how it feels when you just have to, now and then.

Someone Left the Gate Open

Just in case I lose you because you don’t want to read any more of this update, here’s a summary of this past week: It’s been crazy!

Want more detail? Okay. It’s been a roller coaster of emotions. It started literally a few minutes after I’d posted my last update—the one where I finished with the late breaking news that all 20 lymph nodes that had been removed were clear. After I’d posted that update Dr. Bahl, the radiation oncologist, called me with more details on the results of the PET scan. It seems there are two more spots in the proximity of the original tumor removed from my lower leg that appear to be malignant. They’re not small, but not quite as large as my record breaker. These are both 8 mm in diameter and they are of concern to them. And the only way to rid my body of these is more surgery. Oh my! (Just another detour to the end, as my friend Lori observed.)

Don't Mess With the Good News

Chances are that you’ve experienced this a time or two. You have some really exciting news—something that has just made your day, or at least it’s certainly something that’s so important that you want to tell everyone about it. So you run to someone you thought was your friend and you gush it out.

But all you get in response is a strange look on their face. They wait for you to finish (or worse yet, they interrupt you), and then proceed to tell you a story of their own which they think is important. Sometimes it may be similar to yours, sometimes it bears no resemblance. Yet the reality is that from your perspective (which of course is all that matters to you at this point) you cannot imagine why anyone in the world (except, perhaps, their mother) would care even a little bit about their story.

Don’t you just hate it when that happens? It’s so annoying when your bubble gets burst. It can be so deflating.