Cancer - A Bump in the Road

Back on December 28, 2011 I started a new phase in my life.  I went for my annual mammogram which resulted in the diagnosis of Cancer.  It was called DCIS (Ductal Carcinoma in situ).  It was a stage zero cancer  (doctors told me that if I was destined to get cancer this was the best kind to get) that has been taken care of.  After two surgeries (both lumpectomies)  in February (2nd and 16th) I was put on a cancer medication (will be taking it for five years) and as of the end of March I started a seven week course of radiation treatments.

I knew that the chances of me being diagnosed with cancer at some point in my life was pretty good.  My mother died from the disease.  She let it run its course and did not tell anyone, including the family, until what turned out to be about a month before she succumbed to the disease.  I vowed that if I were to get it that I was going to do everything to fight it.  I am winning the battle.  Surgery removed all traces of the cancer, the medication is keeping any cancer cells from slipping out to the rest of my body and the radiation is making sure that any cells left behind are being, as they put it, "fried".   That sounds so radical.   I guess that it is.

So far things are going great.  No major side effects are showing their ugly head and because of the fact that I was so active before all of this started it is a good chance that many of them will not materialize.  I am just getting back into full swing at the gym.  It has taken a little bit of time, but I am getting there.  I have managed to maintain my weight (I lost 50 pounds last year) so I am very happy about that.  I am ready to start losing the next 50 - then I will be ready to take my dream trip to New Zealand.

Christmas 2011

As you can see by the date on the picture it was taken in July. These are the Sierra Buttes and yes they still had snow on them in July. This was my first trip home since I went home for my father’s funeral in 2007. This was the highlight of my year to say the least.

They first six months of the year were fairly normal and run of the mill. I got up each morning, ate breakfast, and depending on the day I either stayed home and “futzed” around the house or I went to the gym. I also spent time reading, watching television and being on my computer keeping in touch with family and friends via digital means. I must admit that I also made use of those old fashioned means of communication – pen and paper. I still have a few friends that do not make use of modern technology and I have to resort to putting pen to paper and actually slowing down my mind to allow the words to flow.

Going to the gym was good for me. I have gotten more exercise in the past few months than in all of the years since I graduated from college (I hate to admit it but that was 1966). It has helped me to lose 50 pounds or thereabouts depending on the day etc. It has been a long time since I have felt this energetic. It is nice to go walking and not have your back hurt etc. I was at the 30 pound milestone when I made my trip to California and it helped considerably – I fit in the seat comfortably and I did not have to ask for a seatbelt. I was in 7^th heaven. I have since lost the additional weight and I noticed the other day that it won’t be long before I will have to buy some new clothes that fit better. I have another 50 to go before I reach my ultimate goal. It may take some time, but I am confident that I will make it. The reward at the end is a trip to New Zealand to visit my pen pal.

I would have been farther ahead in my goals if I had not lost a fight with my driveway on the Fourth of July, just four days before I left for California. I took a wrong step and ended up face first in the dirt. I had a purple eye and a bummed up left foot (a really bad sprain and a small fracture) that put me in a “black boot” for six weeks. The flight to California was not the best, except it was nice to have someone push me around the airports in a wheelchair from one point to the next. By the time I got to Reno, got to my room and took off the boot my whole foot was purple and swollen. I guess that it did not like the changes in altitude along the way.

However, I did not let this mishap stop me from having a grand time in California. A week in the mountains with my family was very enjoyable. The weather was magnificent – temps in the 70s and low humidity; the views from the “cabin” (a three-bedroom, two bath A-frame with all of the amenities) were very beautiful and being able to spend time with family was priceless. I was able to drive so I was not housebound, not that my brother would have let me sit around and do nothing. We revisited old haunts and places where we had lived as kids etc. I realized something – things that appeared large in our childhood were actually rather small. I guess our memories tend to make things larger than life. This trip did bring back some really nice memories. My second week was spent at Vance’s house in Cottonwood after which I drove back to Reno via Susanville so that I could see just how much my college town had changed – WOW!!!! Recognized just one thing – the theater on Main Street.

After I came home, things slowed down quite a bit, except for the weather and bouts of excitement provided by Mother Nature. Within a very short period of time we had a hurricane resulting in massive flooding, an earthquake and an early snowstorm, all of which hit the Mid Atlantic states with a furry. The earthquake was the biggest surprise. I did not feel the shaking but I was at the gym and it sounded like a freight train ran across the roof. I did not realize it was a quake until a fellow exercise buff came in and told me. The hurricane and the snowstorm just brushed by us personally, but hit other parts of the state harder. For some reason we seem to be in a “protected” zone that doesn’t get hit as hard as everyone else. We get our share of unpleasant stuff, but we come through relatively unscathed.

We have had more than our fair share of grey and gloomy days over the past couple of months, but nothing that we should really complain about – even though I do because they can be depressing for me. I am a sunshine, blue skies and warm weather person and make no bones about admitting it. Going into winter is not my favorite time of the year and already I am eagerly looking forward to the coming of spring and warm temperatures.

All in all this has been a decent year. I have had good times with family and friends and look forward to continuing these activities. Maybe I will even expand on them. I hope that everyone has a happy holiday season, whether it is Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza or whatever, and that 2012 brings you loads of love, good cheer and happy moments.

$3349 vs. $1269

The above numbers represent prices quoted to me for a new flue for my oil furnace. The first company (which shall remain nameless) came to the house, inspected the flue and told me that it was in very bad shape and the following things needed to be done: a large hole cut in my basement wall so that the terra cotta tiles lining the current flue could be broken up and retrieved; a new 5" stainless steel flue inserted; an insulating material added to the chimney; fix the hole in the basement wall; replace the crown of the chimney and install a new rain cap. All of this was going to cost me $3349.

Sticker shock hit and I called a second company to inspect the flue and give me an estimate. They came, checked things out and quoted me the price of $1269. Why so much difference in the prices I asked. I was told that the first company had added all sorts of procedures to inflate the price. I was so glad that I called the second company (one that I had dealt with in the past and new to be honest). I had my flue repaired that very afternoon and I was given a lifetime warranty on the work as well, something that company number 1 did not offer.

I am so glad that I called company number 2. I had the money to pay both companies but being the "tightwad" that I am I did not want to part with so much money. I am of the opinion that company number 1 thought they saw an easy mark. I may have had blond hair at one time, but I have never been "dumb". Only goes to show that it pays to get a second opinion, someone may be trying to take advantage of you.

Goodnight Irene!!!!!

The end of last week was the end of a very eventful week for the east coast. First we had an earthquake (8/23) and then a hurricane (Irene - 8/26-27). I do believe that Mother Nature was trying to give us a message. I have yet to figure out what it is, but when I do I know that it will be very enlightening.

I was at the gym for the earthquake - it was all noise for me as the building protested. No rippling of the ground etc. Truth be told I really did not know that an earthquake had happened until the next patron came in and asked if I had felt "it". "It" being the earthquake - 5.9 on the scale and centered in Virginia. There was minor damage in Baltimore and DC, but nothing that claimed lives.

Irene on the other hand came ashore in North Carolina and proceeded up the east coast - hitting land a couple more times and slinking away as a tropical storm going towards Canada. Each part of the country was the recipient of it's own type of damage from wind, storm surges, high winds and mega rainfalls. It had been decades literally since some parts of the northeast actually experienced this type of storm. The politicos went to work and they evacuated thousands of people in harms way and closed stuff down - some are claiming they went overboard, while others were glad for the precautions. I am a firm believer in the fact that there would probably be many more storm related deaths if these precautions had not been taken.

My little corner of the world was barely phased by either event. My trees stood firm and only gave up a small portion of their branches and we avoided the lose of power as well. The only thing that went wrong was the fact that we lost cable for a couple of days. A minor inconvenience considering that we could have lost the contents of our freezer, which was full to capacity with newly purchased supplies.

We were told to prepare for the worst and expect the best. This is exactly what happened for me and mine but for others it has been catastrophic - loss of a few lives, loss of home, loss of a way of life and in at least one case the loss of a whole a town. It is as if it never existed. It is going to be quite some time before some semblance of order is restored and lives can be put back together again. My heart felt wishes and prayers go out to each and every one them for a speedy and full recovery.

Another Fitting Monument

It has been over six years since my husband - Paul John - passed away. Does not seem like it has been that long, but it has.

My husband was cremated and expressed the desire that his ashes be scattered at his "crabbing spot" on the Eastern Shore. This will be done someday, but in the meantime he is resting on a shelf above the television set in the living room.

For the longest time he was in a plain black box, but I decided that I needed to find something more appropriate. After searching I came up with the sea chest (thought that it was a nice homage of the fact that he was in the Navy and his love of the sea) and it has been his home ever since. The "sailor" bear is a Boyd's bear and represents his younger self and the old time seafaring man (hand made by me years ago) is representative of him in his later years.

I tell people that he is with me always - he is sitting on a shelf at home being a part of the family on a daily basis.