[Work Humor]

Supposedly, these are actual quotes takes from Federal Governament Employee Performance Evalutaions - from some of the posts I have read these could apply to a portion of the medical community!

1. "Since my last report, this employee has reached rock-bottom

and has started to dig."

2. "I would not allow this employee to breed."

3. "This employee is really not so much of a has-been, but more

of a definite won't be."

4. "Works well when under constant supervision and cornered like a rat

in a trap."

5. "When she opens her mouth, it seems that it is only to change

feet."

6. "He would be out of his depth in a parking lot puddle."

7. "This young lady has delusions of adequacy."

8. "He sets low personal standards and then consistently fails to

achieve them."

9. "This employee is depriving a village somewhere of an idiot."

10. "This employee should go far, and the sooner he starts, the

better."

11. "Got a full 6-pack, but lacks the plastic thingy to hold it all

together."

12. "A gross ignoramus...144 times worse than an ordinary ignoramus."

13. "He doesn't have ulcers, but he's a carrier."!

14. "I would like to go hunting with him sometime."

15. "He's been working with glue too much."

16. "He would argue with a signpost."

17. "He brings a lot of joy whenever he leaves the room."

18. "When his IQ reaches 50, he should sell."

19. "If you see two people talking and one looks bored, he's the other

one."

20. "A photographic memory but with the lens cover glued on."

21. "A prime candidate for natural de-selection."

22. "Donated his brain to science before he was through using it"

23. "Gates are down, the lights are flashing, but the train ain't

coming."

24. "He's got two brains, one is lost and the other is out looking for

it."

25. "If he were any more stupid, he'd have to be watered twice a

week."

26. "If you give him a penny for his thoughts, you'd get change."

27. "If you stand close enough to him, you can hear the ocean."

28. "It's hard to believe he beat off 1,000,000 other sperm."

29. "One neuron short of a synapse."

30. "Some drink from the fountain of knowledge; he only gargled."

31. "Takes him 2 hours to watch '60 Minutes'."

32. "The wheel is turning, but the hamster is dead."

[Iressa Questions]

For those of you who are taking Iressa - did you experience a decrease in appetite? My mom who has always been a healthy eater is only eating one or two small meals a day, she says she just isn't hungry. I don't want to push her because she does have a weight problem but I also don't want her to lose weight the unhealthy way and I want her to keep her strenth up. Any thoughts?

[finally the answer weve been waiting for!]

Jamie -

yeah for the surgery - one thing we did to help our kiddos feel included was to have them draw pictures for grandma - my oldest had just learned how to cut paper hearts so she got lots of them! Best of luck to you and your family. Many prayers for you and your family coming your way!

[HAPPY DANCE]

What a way to start the weekend off!

Yeah Ray!!!!

[Iressa IS working!]

Onc confirmed that Iressa is working for my mom! Her cough is almost non-existent and chest x-ray showed no new tumor growth in her lung since March . Will have CT after 2nd round to check lymph nodes. This news was well timed as the folks pack up to go to Canada for a week! Thanks for letting me share!!!!

[New to Forum]

Thank You Thank You Thank You - for all of your kinds words and messages of hope. They made me cry not out of sadness but because I have finally found a place where I my thoughts and fears will not be a burden and I can share freely without ruining my make-up 50 times a day so I will primarily try to post at night!

As for the treatments questions, my mom and her Dr. are not sure that she could tolerate the chemo - she does not do well with strong drugs (she ended up in the hospital for severy dehydration after taking prednisone for 5 days). If the Iressa does not work then she will try a course of radiation, if that doesn't work who knows???? I was suprised that she would agree to the radiation - my mom is a quality of life advocate and has told me she does not want to put us through what we went through with my MIL who died fighting - I told her she needs to do what she wants to do and if that means nothing I am with her or if it means chemo I am with her. She is precluded from most trials because of prior cervical cancer.

The most important thing right now is that she is living her life - just spent a weekend in my hometown and all of my parents old cronies hosted a huge catfish fry and gathered for a night of catching up and they leave on 6/17 to spend a week in Canada.

Thanks again to all of you and my sincerest hugs go out to all of you I will be here for the long haul!

[New to Forum]

Hello all! I have spent the last couple of days just reading and absorbing and I cannot even begin to tell you what a comfort these posts have been. My mother was diagnosed in Jan 2001 with NSCLC - a non-smoker. She had complete pnuemonectomy (sorry - I know I butchered the spelling!) on left side. Onc did not believe they got all the cancer - Mom chose not to persue additional treatment and was all clear until Mar of 2004. Had bronchoscopy for stomach problems, results came back concerning, subsequent CT and PET scans show cancer back in multiple lymph nodes and two tumors on right lung (non-operable). She has been on Iressa for a month and we go back to Dr. Friday for checkup. I think it will be positive as her cough has subsided significantly over the past couple of weeks.

The past few months have been so emotionally charged...I have been going to all Dr. appt as my parents don't hear everything the Dr. tells them and what they do remember it is hard for them to communicate back so I have been designated listener/questioner. My mom's onc is awesome but also very cautious. She has not given us any timelines but has encouraged Mom to go where she wants and see who she needs to see while she still feels good and she has been. I am the youngest of 3 kids and the only girl so I am VERY close to my mom and understand her and her wishes so I have been designated her decision maker when the time comes - an overwhelming designation, I might add. Your posts have given me more hope than I have had over the past few weeks and for that I am thankful! What makes this all the more devastating is that we lost my mother-in-law to ovarian cancer almost 2 years ago (she was dx 2 months after Mom) and we were with her when she lost her battle. I feel like I am in a BIG BLACK HOLE with no escape - it is all so overwhelming.

Well I must go and get some work done - it has taken me over an hour to write this because I have to keep wiping the tears away. Thanks again to all of you and I am sure I will be around a lot - I am going to need it!