Monday's Air

[jaminkw]

Morning All! Don't know what the story of the day is in your neck of the woods but here it is weather. Hate to complain about the chill though with all the devastation going on with freaky tornadoes. My heart goes out....

Will walk a bit later today to give the sun time to move up in the sky a little more. Thought I'd better pop in now because my hiatus is over. Time to get back to work. My stomach isn't thrilled about it but I can only delay the inevitable need to start catching up in the office for so long. It will just be worse if I wait much longer.

Have a good day everyone and do stop in and let us know what the weather is in your parts.

Judy in KW

[eric byrne]

Good Afternoon Everyone,

I woke up this morning to a brilliant sunshine and blue skies,Setting out for the gym,I had to scrape the frost off my car.Arrived at the on ramp to the M80,a hugh tailback as far as the eye could see,nothing moving,I skirt around a roundabout,to try an alternative route,thats blocked too,nothing left but to return home.

Would you believe another boiler repair?,the repair requires two guys to do the work and the spare part to be fitted costs £500,thank goodness I took out that maintenance contract,the guys are still here thats four hours,plus,Sally and I have to meet up with a financial advisor this afternoon,so having to leave the repairmen a door key they can post through my letterbox when we leave.We are meeting the advisor at the Tudor Hotel,since I didnt want to risk a home visit,from a week ago.

I spent today tidying up outside,swept the rear patio,and did all my front edging borders,the place is now looking pretty neat and tidy,I seem to have spring clean fever, since I cleaned my car out on Saturday morning,I took Irene and young Max to the Glasgow Science Museum,Max loves this place,I could'nt get him out the door at closing time,we also took in a 3D film in the Imax theatre,the film was called "Under the Sea",super to watch,all about sea life in tropical waters,Max amazed me with his recall of the sea creatures later,lion fish,sea dragons,clown fish and seals,well he is only six.

Missed ABC on Sunday,I didnt have my neighbour Betty to run there so I decided to visit a large flea market in Glasgow,too much for Sally to walk,so I dropped her at my sister Dot's,borrowed her husband Jim to share the trip with,it was an enjoyable wander around,bought a couple of things for Jack and Emma.Returned to Dot's for some fun and games with the kids.

Its been a week since I last posted,although I did drop in for a little lurk now and again,well everyones has been really busy,JudyMI still in hospital?hoping JudyKW is feeling well,Bud getting over his aches and pains,gosh seems everyone has been having a bumpy ride recently.Bud I am still a bit confused about your studying Pharmacy?good on you looking for a new career,I could do with some new adventure like that myself,we have a excellent Open University here in the UK,you can study at home,with the occassional summer school classes.my problem is focussing on something specific,I am interested in so many different things, all the ologies as we joke here.Pharmacy?can I imagine you in a Pharmists Shop,making up prescriptions?,or does this lead to some other career?.

Got to go,I will try and pop back later.Enjoy the rest of Monday,everyone.

[Joppette]

Good morning all!

Well Judy, it's sunny here today. However, just North of us, they got 20 inches of snow Saturday! They are in a "state of emergency" in 3 counties. The power is out, and all of the other stuff that happens, or rather doesn't happen, when power goes out. We were so lucky to only get 2 to 3 inches, though the roads were dicey for sure on Saturday night.

As for the chemo? The only reason I mentioned "maintenance" is that my doctor told me that one of the chemo's I will be taking is frequently used for maintenance for those with chronic lung cancer. I will be doing the four rounds, and hopefully then be off it again. The two chemos are Cisplatin and Navelbein (or Navy Bean as Ned put it). The two will be given and then 8 days later a shot of neulasta to counteract the white blood cell attacks.

As for the hair? I'm looking for this to be an opportunity for change! LOL. The last time, I was totally bald, and when it grew in it was light brown and very curly. I so loved that. But as it grew in, it turned back to dark brown, and straight, like it's always been with me. No matter what I'll be okay with it. Not thrilled, but okay.

I have lots of phone calls today. The oxygen supplier is scamming the system I think. I wonder how many elderly and inactive folks check their tanks to be sure they are 100% full? The last two times, more tanks were less than 1/2 full than those that were full. Fortunately they seal them shut so I had proof to show them. They just meekly changed them out and said it wouldn't happen again. I'll just bet! So they get fired today and that is good.

Anyway sendning wishes for a happy and good day for you all! I agree with KW Judy. I don't know why but I love hearing from the different folks around the world, and what their weather is like. I've always been a weather geek, and it interests me. I pray for the poor folks devastated by those horrible tornados. What a tragedy.

Judy in MI

[jaminkw]

Good to see you Eric! Those unexpected bills seem to be going round like a virus. We've been infected multiple times with various repairs this winter. Good to hear you are still having a good time out and about. Sounds like a nice day exchanging spouses with family. And aren't those grandboys terrific.

Judy, I think you'll do well with the regime you describe. My first line was Carboplatin/Taxol/Avastin. My onc said 4-6 depending on how I tolerated it. Well, you probably know me by now but the side effects were cumulative. After the 5th, I told her I was glad because I only had it in me to do one more. I don't know about Navy Bean and hair. I just don't remember from Ned. I do know my sister did 6 or more Cisplatin with something else I can't remember and she had only thinning. She had our big thick hair so because the number of infusions were limited, it was really not even noticeable. You could be lucky on that score. I can sympathize with your weight loss concern. Have to admit though, I could have done with that problem. I weighed in at 104 lbs when dx'd and ballooned up more than 20 lbs at one point. I'm down from there some now but if you want some of mine, I'd be glad to contribute if I could!

Now I really am goofing off and have to get to work. Good day all.

Judy in KW

[Joppette]

LOL Judy. I think us catching you goofing off is great! Goofing off is a good thing I think.

On the thick hair issue, that is not something I was ever blessed with. My 3 brothers all have these huge heads of thick, luxurious hair. No receding hairlines, not even a hint of male pattern baldness. One is 58, one is 56, and one is 47.

I, however, (unfortunately struggled with) have always had very fine hair. It's really soft, but feels just like the hair on an infants head. Really fine. I think that is why I began to lose large amounts of hair after the first treatment the last time. The baby hair can't stand up to chemo's protein robbing effects. The good news is that it's always looked thin, so it's not like that would be upsetting to me. So we'll see. I'm not heading to the barber until I have to! LOL.

We'll see about the weight. Those steroids can increase appetites, and a month from now, I may be going the other way in my silly complaints! Although I have a lot of size 12 and 14 clothes in the closet. I don't have any of the smaller sizes. It's okay.

Now I'm goofing off. I'm heading out to get some stuff done.

MI Judy

[Janet B]

Good morning everyone!

I had a very peaceful easy weekend. I feel well rested today and ready to do a bit of housecleaning.

The only bad thing that happened this weekend is that my poor old Sean (my Golden Retriever) fell all the way down the stairs. He didn't cry out, and doesnt seem to be limping or in any pain, but he seems to have aged so much in the past few weeks. He is going on 12, and lately his back legs just give out without warning. I am going to be a HUGE baby if anything happens to him. He is my best friend and my best caregiver.

Judy in MI, you like the weather report - here in CT it LOOKS like a beautiful spring day. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the daffodils are growing. BUT, you open the door to enjoy and realize it is only 35 degrees out!

Which brings me to Eric - I am so jealous that you got to tidy up your yard this weekend. Our summer ended with a flood that devastated my garden, patio, lawn etc. I am dying to get out there, clean up, and see if any of my perrenials made it.

Judy in KW, I don't go to flea markets, but there is a HUGE antique sale in MA a few times a year, it is acres and acres of booths. Some sell things in the thousands and others things for a couple of dollars, it is a lot of fun. (plus they have fried dough!) Here in our town we hava a place called recycled furniture. It is like a huge garage sale in a store. I stop in once a week, and always find something I have to have!

Bud, you amaze me. I get tired just cleaning one room and you are in pain and still fishing and bike riding! Take it easy, dont push yourself too hard - but I love that you live life to its fullest!

Diane - My daughters both swear by Trader Joes. Yes, they have $2 wine. They call it two buck chuck. They also sell a lot of nice already prepared foods. Like stuffed salmon, stuffed peppers, etc. We dont have one close to us, a new building was just built in town and several people were hopeful, but no, it is yet another boat store (living on the water we have a lot of them!)

To go with the hair conversation, yes, I used to have really nice thick hair. Since I started Tarceva 5 years ago, it is very thin, patchy, and brillo pad like! Plus it never grows. I have only had it cut 2 or 3 times in all these years! My avatar shows what it looks like after copious amounts of mousse. I will try to post a pic of what it looks like without. (I cant do that from my ipad I believe, so I will have to find another computer to do it)