mike_s Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 I saw my oncologist today for an evaluation of my CT scan, and she said that my CT scan was "perfect". We talked for a while about some residual lung issues I am having and I am going on Advair for those. Based upon the length of time since treatment, and the fact that there has been no reoccurance, she thinks the chances are two out of three that there will be no reoccurance. The danger of reoccurance is based upon the fact that one out of three people who develop lung cancer develop a second lung cancer eventually. Those are substantially better odds than two years ago. I know it's small of me, but I want to go make an appt. with Dr. "You are going to be dead in six weeks" just to say "Hi". It is almost three years, and I am still here. I hope you are all responding well, and have excellent test results. Regards, mike_s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maryanne Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 Wow Mike.... Way to go, that is the best news. How encouraging to hear you were stage 111B and have been LC free for over 2 years!! I am so excited along with you. Your life sure has changed, for being LC free to a new a pretty wife. Keep the good news coming. Maryanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don M Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 Good deal Mike. Keep it going. Don M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_s Posted November 30, 2006 Author Share Posted November 30, 2006 "Maryanne"]How encouraging to hear you were stage 111B and have been LC free for over 2 years!! I had ConnieB's example to live up to. She was very encouraging to me, on a couple of occasions when I had just about given up hope. Same stage as I was, and been around FOREVER. CONNIE YOU ROCK!! Your life sure has changed, for being LC free to a new a pretty wife. I think Naphalai is quite pretty. That is not really why we are together, though. I think she is maybe the kindest person I have ever met. Maybe it is the Buddhist thing. When we were travelling around HK and Bangkok, she absolutely would not pass by a beggar without giving them something. The girl makes $500/month and is entrepreneurial and buying property so half of her income goes to land payments. She also supports her son in Thailand to the tune of about $120/month. This makes her net disposable income about $130/month. HK is not cheap to live. She is stretched tight, and buying lunch for $1.00 at a roadside stand is really a treat for her. She gives a beggar half that without even thinking about it. She never asked me for a dime. "Michael, we are very fortunate, we are healthy, we are in love, we have each other. We are very, very lucky. We must help others who do not have what we have." This is "tam boon" (making merit, its a buddhist thing) for us and we must do it. For anyone reading this who thinks Asian women are submissive, I offer a standing invitation to meet my "soon to be wife". They absolutely believe that it is their job to take care of their man, and oh my god they are good at it, but trust me, there is a "quid pro quo". That "S" word is not even in the ball park. It goes both ways, and I am fine with that. Of course my feelings could be colored by the fact that: 1) My (American) wife of 22 years left me because she wanted to be "young and in love". Excuse me? We have been together 22 years and you just figured that out? or: 2) My (American) fiancee dumped me when I was in my last week of chemo and radiation and almost dead. She couldn't handle the "uncertainty" because she did not know how it would affect her future life.. She showed up at our favorite bar with her new boyfriend the next day and wondered why none of our friends would speak to her. I went to Asia because I loved it as a kid when I spent a couple of years there when I was in the Marines, and I really just wanted to look around, and see if I still liked it. I was sure I was going to die soon. It was a vacation. I did NOT go to Asia looking for a wife. I had already decided that I was going to be single for the rest of my life no matter how much I screwed around. I kind of screwed up, because I met Naphalai, and now I just want for her to be my lady. I think I will manage that soon. I am very, very happy. Regards, mds PS - This post got kind of long and personal. I am sorry about that. This may sound kind of wierd, but you guys supported me when I weighed 140lbs, had a bald head, could't eat, couldn't sleep, was so stoned on pain meds that I didn't know what day it was, and thought that surviving till the first of the next month was a reasonable goal. I love you all, and I kind of think of you as my family, even if I don't come around much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Wood Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 Congratulations, Mike! Awesome! Don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trish2418 Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 What great news, Mike. And here's to making the most of second chances. Trish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe B Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 AWESOME !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick C Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 Very cool! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharonjo Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 Congratulations Mike, that is awesome! Best of luck to you and your fiancee. Keep up the good work! Sharon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marym Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 Mike, Congratulations! Mary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karen335 Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 Mike, This is great news...Please keep us updated on how you are doing. When your new lady gets here. We welcome her with open arms and gentle hugs... Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eppie Posted December 3, 2006 Share Posted December 3, 2006 Here's a dancing bear for Globe trotting Mike and his pretty wife! YOu Rock! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_s Posted December 4, 2006 Author Share Posted December 4, 2006 "eppie"]Here's a dancing bear for Globe trotting Mike and his pretty wife!YOu Rock! I LOVE the bear!! Just a quick note to say that all of Naphalai's paperwork is complete. Wooo Hoo! I just got off of the phone with her. It has been a really, really long road, but she submits her paperwork to the American Embassy in HK this week, and then they will give her a date for an interview. Any applicant for a fiancee visa to the USA must be interviewed by a US Consular Officer. They want to make sure that she is really my girl, and not just some rich Chinese chick who is paying an American that they don't know to marry them for a Visa. When she passes the interview they will take her passport, put a visa stamp in it, and mail it back to her in about three days. Once she has the visa stamp in her passport, she can come to the USA. Looks like I am going back to HK soon to get my girl!! We wanted very badly to make it by Christmas for obvious reasons, but if that does not happen it doesn't matter. Starting out 2007 with my new bride is fine! Naphalai has never seen snow before. One of my brothers is waaay into snowmobiles so one of our first stops when she gets here will be REI (or something like it) to get her geared up, then on to the mountains. This is the PERFECT season for it. Can you imagine what it will be like for her? She has never SEEN snow. I am going to have a blast teaching her to build a snowman. Best Regards, mike_s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Connie B Posted December 4, 2006 Share Posted December 4, 2006 ((((((((((((((HEY MIKE)))))))))))))) I'm sitting here reading all your posts and I'm hear to tell you my friend, you have a LOT to be PROUD OF! You have beat the odds and you have ROCKED YOUR WORLD! That is just AWESOME! I am sooooo proud of you. Life is too toooo short, and if we don't live it up, no one else is going to do it for us. Congratulations my freid on a JOB WELL DONE!! Keep up the good work!!!! I am SO HAPPY FOR YOU! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_s Posted December 5, 2006 Author Share Posted December 5, 2006 "Connie B"]((((((((((((((HEY MIKE))))))))))))))I'm sitting here reading all your posts and I'm hear to tell you my friend, you have a LOT to be PROUD OF! You have beat the odds and you have ROCKED YOUR WORLD! That is just AWESOME! I had a good example, Connie. ::hugs:: I am sooooo proud of you. Life is too toooo short, and if we don't live it up, no one else is going to do it for us. Noone knows like the people in this group that there are no guarantees in this life. A little over a year ago I decided to quit living my life CT Scan to CT Scan. I am still going to get checked, but I am trying to live my life LARGE. New wife, high-tech startup company that I hope will pay off in a couple of years...the whole ball of wax. Moderation is for monks. Congratulations my freid on a JOB WELL DONE!! Keep up the good work!!!! I am SO HAPPY FOR YOU! Thanks again for your support Connie. It meant a lot at a few very, very bad times. Best Regards, mike_s P.S. If things work out, in a few years I will be posting from somewhere in Asia. I am going to move there... haven't decided where yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maryanne Posted December 5, 2006 Share Posted December 5, 2006 Hi Mike, Your life has turned completely around. All things happen for a reason, as our new friend on here Bill says "it is what it is" Yours was meant to change. For every up there is a down. For every down an up... You have been through that part of your life that was so difficult. You deserve this... I am so thrilled for you. What a difference a couple of years makes. There is always hope. You and Connie and many others on here have proven that. Best of luck, my friend. I know you will keep us posted of when you guys will tie the knot. Maryanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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