My brother left this morning.  My sister and brother-in-law have driven him to the airport.  We said our good-byes; Mom and my sweetie were up, but Dad was still (is still) sleeping.

I did pretty well yesterday.  Much as I enjoy the company and the stimulation, there’s no getting around the fact that it knocks me out, and I’ve had much more company immediately after this latest infusion than I’m accustomed to having.

Still, we walked and we swam, and we enjoyed the spa.  I showered and rested and read a little.  I had a good lunch on the leftover guacamole and hummus from the other night.  I spent the afternoon quietly– reading, napping, watching TV.  Supper was a mixture of leftovers, including the remains of the rotisserie chicken from a few nights ago.  That’s quite easy for me to eat, and I really enjoyed it.

We retired at 8:00 so as to be sure to be awake to see my brother off.  I slept pretty well and we were up in plenty of time.  We’ve taken our walk, and my sweetie is making me breakfast.  Happy Thanksgiving!

I didn’t get to the pool yesterday.  I fell asleep again, and by the time I woke up I realized I would still be drying off (etc.) when my cousins left.  I had thought to do down after they left, but by then it was pretty sunny and I thought it would be better not.  I napped and read and noshed and napped and read and noshed for most of the day.  My sweetie made a shopping expedition to look for sour lemon candies for me to see if we could do something about the nasty taste in my mouth.  He found a couple of things, one from a health food store that might have tasted better if it didn’t have the nastiness to compete with; the other I haven’t yet tried.

And that was pretty much it for yesterday.  I was snoozing at supper time, but I woke up just as the rest of the family were having dessert, and I had a frozen waffle and sat with them for a while.

We made sure to go to bed at 8:00.  At 8:30 we turned off the light, and I was gone until after three.  We dozed until five and then got up.  I actually manage to the short walk we’ve been doing this trip.  I’ll be glad to get to the pool after breakfast.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Yesterday my energy level was up a bit.  After the walk, which was easier than it had been, I had breakfast and then took my swim.  I really wasn’t ready to get out of the pool after a single lap of crawl, so I paddled around for a few minutes and then did a lap of sidestroke before getting into the spa.

After that, I showered and rested for a while.  When my brother and sister and cousins came over, I joined everyone and we sat and talked.  It’s delightful being together, even though I don’t have enough energy to stay with folks all through the day.

I took my sister’s photo disk from her and went through it, using my original disk (which had semi-meaningful photo labels instead of the strictly numerical labels on hers) to figure out which photos we were leaving in, and I got them into iPhoto and gave them to her.  She had, by then, figured out how to get iPhoto to make a slide show, so she made the slide show with my file, and it worked.  The photos are great, and we’ll see what Mom and Dad do with them.

In the early evening, my brother started to play his guitar.  He plays by ear, and he plays (or chooses to play, when he’s here with us) quiet music.  After a while, he switched to the piano, and started playing Beatle’s era music– the kind of thing I can probably play along with if I have the energy to play my flute.  I hope we have a chance to play together.

My sister and cousin-in-law took on the task of creating dinner, which was a sumptuous feast.  (It was much too sumptuous for me, of course, but it really was good.)  There were hors d’oeuvres (hummus, asiago, crackers, crudites, sour cream dip, guacamole) before the meal:  chicken parmesan, green beans, salad, potatoes, and garlic bread.  (Have I left anything out?)  I had a small piece of chicken, nibbled and the sauce and cheesy crust, and left it at that.

Then we sat around and talked.  There was a Bette Davis movie on TV.  I must have dozed, because it was well after nine when my sweetie dragged me off to bed.

We didn’t wake up until after 5, and my whole body is achy.  I think the swelling in my feet is marginally down.  I feel more stable walking, but my muscles really didn’t want to take me for that walk, so I turned around before we’d gone very far and took a rest.

My cousins are leaving this morning.  I’ve really enjoyed the chance to spend time with them.  Happy Thanksgiving.

Yesterday morning, still a bit unsteady, we took our early walk.  If I hadn’t known, intellectually, that I could do it, I wouldn’t have gone.  It took me the first quarter of this (not very long) walk to get a sense that my feet and legs would really carry me all the way there and back.  But I made it, and had breakfast, and had my swim.  Again, it was just one lap.  I wanted more, even just floating, but I figured that it would be a long and stimulating day, with a big family dinner at the end of it, and I wanted to husband my resources.

Which is, pretty much, what I did.  I showered and rested (reading and napping) for a while.  I went over to my aunt’s condo, where my brother and sister are staying (it’s two doors away), and looked at the progress on the photo disk we’ve been working on for my folks.  (I haven’t written about it here because Mom reads the blog, and we hadn’t told them about it, but now that we have I can say that a lot of the “organizing” I was doing after our trip here last month was going through many, many photos.

Then I came back to my parents’ condo and rested some more.  Our cousins showed up a little before noon, and I spent some wonderful time with them before I decided I should retreat and rest a bit more.  My stomach wasn’t comfortable.  I’d had an Ensure, but I wasn’t really happy about it, and I finally had a little yogurt for “lunch”.  I rested most of the afternoon, and then got dressed for dinner.  My feet have been slightly swollen, so I needed to change the strap on my sandals to get them on.  This turns out to have had consequences.

It was at the club.  Service was slowish, but (maybe because there were so many people around that the conversation was very lively) not nearly so annoying as last time.  While we were waiting, I thought I’d avail myself of the restroom.  On the way, my right sandal, which I had made much too loose, rotated around my foot and tripped me up.  I went down to the floor most dramatically, and had many, many people (family and staff) in attendance.  I was fine.

I had the calamari appetizer and called it dinner.  I ate only about a third of it.  (I thought it was a huge portion.)  I was getting pretty tired by the end of the meal, but I made it, and I’d remembered to bring the key, so when my brother drove my sweetie and me back in the first car of our procession I was able to let us in.  It was about 8:00.

We sat and talked for a while.  I nibbled part of a yummy cookie that a friend of my parents had made. By then it was late for us.  (After all, we’re normally ready to wind down for sleep at eight.)  So we said good-night.  I don’t know what happened after that among the guests.

But I slept well, and this morning I felt very much steadier when we took our early (and still very short) walk.  And that’s a good thing.  Happy Thanksgiving.

Mom had already gone to the pool by the time I got there, and she’d about finished her swim and was heading for the spa.  I swam just one lap (two lengths) yesterday.  I could certainly have done another, maybe two, but I’m not pushing.  I enjoyed the spa.  And I felt triumphant about the ease with which I was able to do my lap of crawl.

The rest of the day was pretty quiet for me.  I chatted with the family, read a lot and slept quite a bit.  My Michigan cousin (unfortunately not here) has recommended a seafood place that I’d never had a chance to try, and I was eager to do it, and that’s where were ended up getting our dinner (takeout).  It was really excellent, and I was glad to have tried it.

In my email yesterday was a note from a college friend that I haven’t seen since (hmm), let’s say 1972.  I’d written to her a while back, and she meant to be in touch, but her life went a bit crazy at just that point so I was only hearing from her now.  With luck, I’ll be able to see her, at least briefly, next month.  That would be a major treat.

So that’s yesterday.  Today we have cousins coming, and the whole gang will go to dinner at the club.  It will be a long and stimulating day, and I plan to nap on and off while I can.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Well, we got here.  I was a wreck by the time we arrived, what with the long day, the fact that I was just coming off the infusion, and the general “we’re taking a trip; what all can go wrong?” anxiety.  Actually, not much did go wrong.

We got to the hospital shortly after seven.  I had no trouble going upstairs and the nurse was right there.  She went off to get a kit and one of my favorite infusion nurses, also there early, came in, wondering what I was doing there.  Then Dr. S’s nurse came back, they disconnected me, wished us a good trip and offered congratulations to my parents, and I was off.  The cab wasn’t where I expected it to be, but we found each other and were off to the airport, through the growing mid-town traffic.  It was about 7:15.

The wheelchair was a wonderful idea.  Not only did I get to sit down for check-in and security, but passage through both lines was expedited.  The result is that we were at the gate by 8:30– for an 11:30 flight.  I was dehydrated, so my sweetie bought me some water, and that helped a lot.  I didn’t even feel like reading.  I just sat in the wheelchair.  I didn’t quite doze off, but I sort of floated in a daze.  After a bit, we shared a mango smoothie, and that gave me a little more energy.

The flight took off a bit late and was a little rough at the beginning, but generally not bad.  I had had the inspiration to grab an inflatable neck pillow that we’ve had for at least 30 years, and I found that it kept me very comfortable.  (In fact, my neck and shoulder have been much less painful since the flight.)

We landed exactly on schedule, but were the last ones off the plane.  I claimed my wheelchair, which made other things take longer, because the wheelchair guy had to do assorted chores before he could leave the gate area.  Our bags were already there.  We called my parents in the cell-phone lot.  They didn’t hear us, but– fortunately– my brother was with them and he heard and called us and confirmed our location.

Then we got home, and I pretty much collapsed.  My sweetie did my unpacking.  We made up the bed together.  And that was about it.  I spent the rest of the day dozing, except for supper (rotisserie chicken, two flavors, with very nice sides of potatoes au gratin and corn.  After supper I fell asleep.  At 8:30 my sweetie woke me to take me into the bedroom and I fell asleep again immediately, and didn’t wake until 3:30.

This morning we went out at about 5:45 for a really short walk.  (My sweetie brought me home and then went out again.)  At the beginning I didn’t know whether I’d be able to do it at all, but it did get a little easier as I walked, so I was happy about that.  Now we’ll have breakfast and then go to the pool.

So here we are.  We made it, and are surrounded by people we love (and who love us). Happy Thanksgiving.

Today was pretty rough.  I didn’t sleep well, and I didn’t manage to nap at all.  I worked this morning, and did some more clearing away of the main project I’m trying to finish up.

We did the last-minute laundry– Wednesday linens, but also any clothing since Monday.  I was physically tired by the time I’d folded everything, and feeling a little queasy, so I took a nausea pill.  I packed the last few items (stuff I wore yesterday) in my main suitcase, and updated the list for my carry-on bag.  Then I switched pocket books and put travel stuff (meds, my plastic bag of liquids and gels, etc.) into the large bag I’ll carry with me.

I don’t usually print my boarding passes on my printer (although I do print them out on my father’s printer, coming home), but I figured I’d get a jump on things.  Unfortunately, the only thing that printed was the bar code– no name, flight number, etc.  I don’t know why not.  I tried numerous attempts (saving as a pdf, taking a screen shot and printing that) but nothing worked, so we’ll have to reprint at the airport tomorrow.  Oh, well.

I didn’t want much lunch.  I ended up eating a banana, but I felt nauseated later and managed to give up some of it.  That seems to have quieted me down a bit, but I might take another pill before bedtime.

I had a lovely note from my niece in Arizona telling me something about her new apartment, which sounds very nice.  I wish I could see her more often, but I don’t see her sister much either, and her sister is pretty much in the neighborhood.

But it’s another day, and tomorrow will be hectic but largely beyond my control.  Once we get to the airport I will be Taken Care Of, by one person or another.  Happy Thanksgiving.

Happy anniversary, Mom and Dad!  I wish I were there to celebrate it with you, but at least my brother should be there now, and we’ll be down in a couple of days.

Meanwhile, about today:  I needed to stop at the bank, so we left a little early for the infusion, and signed in at the hospital at 10:40 for our 11:00 appointment.  They took me for vitals a bit after 11.  Dr. S was in clinic, so his nurse examined me and cleared me for the infusion.  I was clearly feeling better, had regained some flexibility in my ankle (but it’s still much weaker than the other one).  My liver is still palpable but less so than two weeks ago.  There’s a tender spot, but no real soreness and no pain.  We are happy.

At 12:15 I was in a chair, but they didn’t start the infusion for an hour.  The nurse dealing with me was also mentoring a staff nurse in chemo procedures, so everything was even more deliberate than usual.  Besides, “my” nurse seemed to be in great demand from everyone.  What with one thing and another, the two hour infusion was three hours long.  I’m unhappy about that because it’s one hour less of the last drug (the one I’m infusing until Thursday morning).  But we do what we can.

Meanwhile, we signed a release (and paid $45) to have the slides sent over for the second opinion; we obtained a note from the nurse which should enable me to go upstairs early Thursday, and Dr. S stopped by to see us and said he wanted to check my belly before we left.

That didn’t thrill me because it was already so late, and by the time they had disconnected me from whatever and reconnected me to the pump I was so ready to be out of there, and he, of course, was with another patient by then, so it was another fifteen minute wait.  But he was pleased with his exam, so we are hopeful.

I am exhausted.  I am thrilled that there is improvement.  Happy Thanksgiving.  And happy anniversary, Mom and Dad.

This isn’t an official holiday (it’s one of the days staff can take off optionally), so I started work at the usual time.  I was delighted to see that one of our techs had checked in (he’s officially been away for the weekend) and had registered a complaint with the offending ISP.  I answered the customers whose mail I hadn’t answered yesterday, and did the rest of my online chores.

I was worried about being physically tired.  Monday is laundry day, and I do the folding, and it annoys my back.  And then I’d committed to getting my clothing all ready for the trip, because I don’t expect to be up to doing the actual packing once I’ve had the infusion.  I finished the laundry sitting down on the bed rather than leaning over it, and that helped. Then I got back to the computer, and went through a bunch of stuff I’d wanted to finish.  I’m non entirely done yet, but I’ve made excellent progress.  I didn’t quit until 11:30, at which time I realized I’d better stop because I wanted to make sure I could do the pre-packing.

I had lunch (a bit more of my leftover Peruvian chicken), and enjoyed it.

I fe;t tired, so I pulled out my list and sat on the bed to contemplate it. (We use lists; they don’t change much from trip to trip and they make life much easier.) I grabbed things out of my drawers and closet, separating the outfit I figure on wearing from the stuff to be packed.  I stuffed the usual suspects (underwear, tee shirts) into small lingerie bags to keep them organized, and moved them onto the living-room couch.  And that’s when I realized that I was perfectly energetic going back and forth between the bedroom and the living room.

And that’s how it was for the afternoon.  I didn’t let my self go back to the computer– much.  (I put in a couple of brief work sessions, but mostly sat on the bed resting my back.)  I had a phone call from some dear friends, and that was very nice.  It was quiet, but had already been very productive.

My back is a little achy, but that’s nothing new.  I feel pretty good.  At the risk of providing TMI, I’ll comment that my gut seems to have become unstuck today after a few days of not producing much, and that might be part of it.  (I also wonder whether there’s a stimulant in the spice of the Peruvian chicken.)

Whatever it is, I like it.  Tomorrow we start the siege; I hope I feel this energetic going into it.  One day at a time.  Happy Thanksgiving.

I did a lot today.  I did my usual online chores in the morning.  For the second Sunday in a row, I didn’t have my newspaper delivery, so when I called the Times, after reporting the missed paper, I spoke to a customer rep to complain that this was two Sundays in a row, and that last week I never did get my paper– and that my neighbors’ papers had been delivered, and that I was highly dissatisfied with the service.  (The replacement showed up at 11:15.)

After I’d finished my chores, I spent some time on our taxes.  I did a brief run-through before the end of the year, to make sure I’d covered things, but some of the numbers were approximations.  I realized I was missing one 1099 (which my sweetie subsequently turned up in his file).  At that point, I was pretty tired, so I decided to quit for the morning.

Then I made the mistake of checking my work email, to discover that our customers have been subjected to a phishing attack.  By the time I looked at my mail at all I was ready to fall over.  I answered a couple of people.  The attack involved a web link rather than an email reply, and I had neither the knowledge nor the strength to investigate (or reason out) what to do about it. I dropped a note to staff and went to bed.

My sweetie had a meeting of his paleontology group this afternoon.  While he was gone I did the rest of our taxes.  I think I’ve finished, but I don’t trust the software to be complete until the end of March, and I always like to check everything more than once before I file.

I made myself a light lunch, and, after doing the hand laundry, I read my newspaper (huzzah!), read my spy spoof, watched TV, and napped.  I’m ready for a light supper, but I’m too tired to fight phish today.  Bleah.

Nonetheless, here I am.  Happy Thanksgiving.