Thursday, July 26, 2007

Radiation: Three down and 32 to go. Still no ill effects! Compared to chemo, this is a cake walk.

Lots of good stuff happened today! The glass man came today. We now have a shower enclosure and a mirror. The rest is scheduled to be completed next week.

The Shower



The Mirror. The circles are where the lights will be and the squares are where the electrical outlets will be.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Radiation: Had my first treatment today. It only took 20 minutes - curb to curb. It took longer to get the gown on than the treatment did! It's just like getting an x-ray. The machine makes lots of clicking noises then the techs come in, move the machine and change the "wedge". (The wedge is to direct the beam in an arc. ) I guess that's a good thing so it'll miss vital organs, ribs and things. Someone said she didn't mind radiation because her techs were all buff men. Me? I get two ditsy blond that are this big and a frumpy effeminate guy. Just my luck. One down and 34 to go!

Monday, July 23, 2007

Radiation: Went today for my final "tats". I just thought I was a kindergarten project before! I don't think there is a spot on my chest that doesn't have paint or sharpie on it!! Today they did a lot of x-rays to make sure my marks are correct. My first treatment is actually tomorrow. (I thought it was going to be today.)

Hair: My hair continues to grow. Yea! It is getting darker and darker. Double yea!

Trey: Trey drove to Dallas on Saturday to visit his friend Cristian for a week.

Bathroom/Bedroom: The painter finished painting our bedroom. It's more golden than the photo shows.

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Hair: Well, the hair is starting to grow back. It's like a five o'clock shadow on a 15 year old. However, it seems to be dark, so I guess it won't be ALL gray!

Bathroom: Things are moving along. The painter stained all of the woodwork, painted the bedroom ceiling, and patched the holes in the sheet rock.

Monday, July 16, 2007

Phew! What a week. As you know, I went to visit my friend Audrey in Oregon. I've now been to every state in the lower 48! We had a very nice visit. Sunday, we went to see the volcano fields in central Oregon. We went into a lava tube. Apparently these tubes are formed when the lava on the outside cools and the lava on the inside keeps flowing. What's left is a tube large enough for a person to walk through. In some places it was 30 feet high and 50 feet wide! Way cool.

Monday, Audrey went to work, so I rested. Tuesday we went to see the waterfalls around Portland. Again, very nice.





Wednesday, I went to Denver for a work meeting. The meeting was very productive with presentations by senior Microsoft management. Friday night we went to Corteo Cirque du Soleil. The show was fantastic. If you ever get a change to go to a Cirque, do it!! For a preview, kick it here: http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/CirqueDuSoleil/en/showstickets/corteo/intro/intro.htm.

Radiation: Went to the Radiation Oncologist today. Got my CT scan and all the requisite markings. My first treatment is scheduled for Monday, July 23.

Bathroom: The painter is scheduled to come tomorrow. He is supposed to prep the walls for the wallpaper, stain the woodwork, and paint the bedroom and closet. Things are finally moving ahead!

Happy Birthday Mark! Today is my brother-in-law Mark's birthday. He is 39.

Thursday, July 5, 2007

4th of July: We went to my parents house for burgers, hot dogs and beer. We had a wonderful time. Hope everyone had an equally wonderful day.


Week of July 7 - 14: I will be in Oregon visiting my friend Audrey and in Denver at a work meeting. So I won't be posting anything until after the 14th.

Tamoxifen: Started taking it yesterday. No side effects as of yet!

Monday, July 2, 2007

Short Story: Feeling better day by day. My port site is healing nicely, although I still can't sleep on my right side or my stomach. A few more weeks and I should be healed enough to vary my sleep positions. Got a fairly nice bruise around my port incision and it's starting to itch. But that means it's healing, so I can handle it.

Nails: Got my acrylic nails put on this weekend. Another step towards "normal".

Next steps: Went to see Dr. Abernathy (Medical Oncologist) today. She wanted to start me on tamoxifen after my radiation, but the study protocol that I am in calls for concurrent use. So, I'll start taking tamoxifen this week and my six weeks of radiation will start mid-July. For more information on tamoxifen, kick it here: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Therapy/tamoxifen

Travel schedule: I'm going to New Orleans for the day tomorrow. It'll be the first time I've been since I started my treatments. Then I'll go visit my childhood friend, Audrey, in Eugene, Oregon July 7 - 10. On July 11, I go to Denver for a business meeting, returning home on Saturday, July 14. It's the first overnight business trip I've taken since February. It'll be very strange!