Its Monday morning

Wahoo! How exciting! NOT! I could have stayed in bed. Tomorrow I have to get up really early and take Walter to the airport. He wants to be there at 6 AM that is. At least there will be no traffic.

So I came across an interesting little news story this weekend. According to a recent study, not that I necessarily believe all new studies, thyroid cancer patients treated with radioactive iodine (that would be me) are at higher risk for other 'secondary primary cancers' such as central nervous system, breast, prostate, kidney, Hodgkin lymphoma, leukemia, myeloma, and salivary gland. We are also at reduced risk of getting cancers of the head and neck, lung, esophagus, and bladder. (Are these two things supposed to even each other out?) I also like how this study followed people for 2-359 months. I had to think, how long is 359 months? I am a little slow sometimes (chemo brain, scarecrow effect) and it took a while for my brain to compute that into almost 30 years, but it finally came through. (Why couldn't they just say 30 years in the first place?)

So what does all this mean to me? Well, now I have something to worry about - more kinds of cancer to get... Something to ask the doctors about - but they have already assured me that thyroid cancer has nothing to do with breast cancer... At least this wasn't a story that was over inflated by the media for once. Or at least not yet. They only announced these results about three weeks ago. Another one of the many little bumps in this roller coaster ride. Well, I go back to the oncologist at the end of April and will talk to him then. Anyway, does it really do me any good to possibly know why I got cancer this time? That is another point to ponder.

In the meantime, I am hoping my garden will finally bloom... No crocuses yet. Perhaps they are cold. It is another 23 degree morning. Tomorrow, they claim may hit 70. I won't believe that until I see it.

$5.20 profit

That is how much money I collected doing laundry yesterday. However the question remains - is it really profit or just resorting of money already had. It probably fell out of my pockets in the wash. Possibly from Walter's but he is usually better about that than me. Needless to say, that while I temporarily felt flush, the feeling didn't last long as I considering the source of the money. (And then spent $5.44 on lunch out.) It was quite a different feeling from the time I found a twenty dollar bill on the side of the bike path. Yes, I really did. I was RICH! And then I spent it. Sigh.

Anyway, more of my exciting life. Yesterday was very cold but I took a walk. Today I want to garden and take a walk. We are going to the diner for breakfast and then to the hardware store to buy parts to repair the toilet. How exciting can you get?

Its a lovely day

The sun is shining, melting the snow that appeared last night. My cold seems to be easing up. We had ice cream for dessert last night and bacon for breakfast so my cholesterol and fat content are at properly elevated levels as well.

I might even consider some yard work this afternoon myself. I need to rake the leaves that are stuck in the corners of the garden preventing the arrival of my crocuses, tulips, and daffodils. They seem to be a bit late this year - perhaps that have been under the weather. (That is such a bad pun I am embarrassed I came up with it.)

I did get out for a walk with a friend yesterday and even though we were exploring and kept having to back track, we didn't get lost and only got rained on a little bit. I am holding off today's walk for this afternoon, after coffee with friends. Today's forecasted weather at 9 am - high of 25, 20 mph wind, equals 11 degree wind chill! I would prefer it to be a tad warmer - call me a wimp but I am.

I am the scarecrow

If I only had a brain. Yesterday I went to CVS to buy three things, I got two of them and then walked around the store and couldn't remember what the third one was so I left. I remembered what it was just as I got back to my car. I went to Trader Joe's to buy three things. I bought two of them and then when I woke up this morning, I remembered what the third thing one was. I needed to bring a little pile of papers back to work yesterday. I put them downstairs on top of my purse. Halfway to work, I realized I forgot them. More proof, I have no brain. It just keeps piling up.

Perhaps, I do have one out. I can claim my cold is somewhat returning which could be causing memory lapses. Or perhaps I can just use my good old chemo brain excuse. Regardless I have no brain. Yes, that is correct my cold is somewhat made a come back. Enough already! Go away!!!!! I am sick of being sick.

Today is a lovely rainy day in Boston in the mid-30's. Its snowing about 10 miles from here so I guess it could be worse. However I get to go out in this lovely weather, with my cold germs. First I am going to my psychiatrist. Then I am off on a secret mission. (Yes, its a secret, or I wouldn't have used the word secret.) No, I am not going to tell yet. Perhaps another day. No, it is not a job interview, a doctor appointment, a medical procedure, or shopping.

Later I am going to work from home and then go for a walk with a friend if this lovely rain clears up.

The ice cream arrived. It is in the freezer. Some interesting flavors - watermelon sherbert, coconut ice cream with chocolate chips, some sort of vanilla with chocolate in it, and then a fourth pint that I cant remember. The bacon did not arrive. We will keep the house locked so don't even think about dropping by when we aren't here to help yourself.

We are not sharing

I want to be perfectly clear about this. We are not sharing. Nope, uh-uh, no way. Our next ice cream of the month that shows up quarterly delivery is due today and we do not feel that we need to share. No, we are going to hoard it and be greedy. We are going to set a bad example for children all over the world and not share. You can tell your children not to be like us! To be doubly unhealthy our bacon delivery is due in the next couple of days as well. That will not be shared either! (We definitely do not share these with the cat so you shouldn't feel left out!)

In order to get in the best physical shape for bacon and ice cream eating, I am going for a walk again this morning. I did get out yesterday and it was nice. I am enjoying being able to go for a walk when it is not freezing cold and I actually feel human. It does make it much more enjoyable. Then I will go to work for the rest of the day.

Yesterday I went and got a pedicure for the first time since September. My big toe nails were in really bad shape but seem to be returning to normal. The manicurist agrees it will probably be another six months before my toes look completely normal but right now they are covered with purple polish. Its these little things that make us feel better.

I also listened to the pain management conference call yesterday. The biggest message I got out of it is that if you are in pain you need to tell your doctor what kind of pain, its frequency and intensity and they will try to solve your problem. If you don't tell your doctor, you will continue to be in pain. Also, sometimes some medications don't work for some people so you may have to try a bunch of different ones before you find one that works for you. I felt that was very illuminating but certainly not earth shattering new news. Oh, well, it was free. I listened and got to play on the internet at the same time. (Multitasking!)

Winning the battle

My cold is finally going away! Time for a party! I can breathe! I can smell! I am not coughing! And best of all I feel mostly human. Yesterday, I did not take my lovely new prescription and didn't go into la-la-land during the day. Once I am fully healed I will try the pills again but not for a few days.

I did also land a small part time job. I will work 12-15 hours each month for a local story teller - helping her market her CDs and promote her gigs. It sounds like fun and I can work from home in my pajamas (and no one will know) and still be productive.

After working for a few hours, I also went out for a walk yesterday. It was good to get some fresh air. However, I am still waiting for my crocuses and other bulbs to start blooming. They are sticking up and getting there but not quite ready yet. It is almost the season for walking and admiring gardens but not quite yet.

Today I have work to do at home. Then a conference call to attend on pain management for breast cancer patients. After all the fun treatments I have had, I am left with some lingering aches and pains. Apparently, this is not uncommon and I want to learn more.

Then the fun part of my day is later when I am going for a manicure/pedicure this afternoon. This is my first pedicure since September. One of my big toe nails has since broken off and only partially regrown. The other one is partly healthy, and partly dead and broken off. This is courtesy of chemo side effects. Perhaps in another six months, my toe nails will look normal again. However in the interim, a pedicure is not just about the polish but conditioning your feet.

Is it me or the drugs?

So yesterday I woke up feeling more like a human than in recent days. However last week when I saw the GI doctor, he prescribed a new medication for the weird abdominal pains that he thinks are just IBS. He said try taking it at night before bed and if that doesn't work, start taking it before meals as well. I tried all last week taking it at night and it didn't seem to do anything. So yesterday I said I would start taking it before meals as well and see if it works any better. I took one and went to work. While at work, I started feeling really crappy and spacy and put it down to my lovely, long lived cold. I came home and lay down for an hour and started to feel better. Then I took another pill before dinner. Then I started to feel crappy again and my food tasted yucky (to be very technical and precise). I am not sure if this was my cold acting up or the medication. Today I will experiment. No medication and see how I feel.

Otherwise, today is off to a good start. The Red Sox are playing their opening game in Japan and it is on TV. Unfortunately, they are off to a rough start but it is very early in the season.

I never made it for a walk yesterday so perhaps I will today. I am getting out of the habit! Otherwise, work this morning, followed by work at home and then support group. Nothing too exciting.

RIP MB 1960-2008