Monday, Paradigm Shift

Now some of you think a paradigm is only twenty cents but I’m here to tell you it’s a major change in the way things are done.

I was laying in bed waiting for the alarm to go off, thinking about topics for this mornings blog when I realized I didn’t have much to report on. Life is pretty much easing back into a normal routine.

So, since now I’m finding little of interest in this adventure of mine, I have decide to only blog when there is something of note. This way if there is a blog entry it’s more likely to be a good one.

I’ve entered a healing phase where changes are slowing occurring and it’s about a much fun as watching paint dry. So if I don’t post, don’t worry, the chances are I am not lying in a pool of vomit, to weak to get up.

This recovery phase seems to focus on the throat, right now it seems I have an ample supply of paste stuck in the back of my throat; I’m being really unsuccessful in clearing it out.

The drooling is reduced to the inbred hillbilly mountain folk level, and is controlled with no more than three or four wash rags a day. Volume of the voice is getting better each day but the slight pain in talking is keeping me shut up, thank you very much.

Feeding is progressing, yesterday I easily finished a pudding cup, it was supposed to be flan flavored, I’m thinking my tastes buds are still pretty much off, tasted more like scrambled eggs but went down pretty easy.

I think I’ll plan on taking a couple to work, pudding cups, for snacks, I got to get intake up to 1500 calories a day to facilitate the loss of Filmore.

I still tire so very easy, but I am trying to get back in the swing of things at work, right now I am so far behind it’s like I just started a new job.

Anyway, stay tuned to this channel for updates; just don’t expect them daily, maybe every few days, and definitely when Dr appointments are on the calendar, May 9^th and 10^th are the next ones.

Quote of the day:

The I in illness is isolation, and the crucial letters in wellness are we.

You guys out there have been the ‘we’ for me, and you have my thanks for all the support you given. I felt that I have never been alone in this journey.

Now let’s get on with the healing and living of life.

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

Sunday, the day of rest

Started out normal, awoke and was up by six. This meant I was able to get my first nap in a bit after eight. Here I am looking for nap number two in the next hour or so,

I have this resting thing down pat.  Trying to figure out what to do next, feeding time or time to do some laundry?  Feeding time always means a dish washing session afterwards so it is the bigger of the two, but feeding will have to happen some time this morning.

I managed to get nothing done yesterday other than the naps. Biggest thrill of all was walking out to get the mail.  I did have a great visit from friends later in the afternoon.

Like a train going down hill around a curve picking up speed and no one is at the throttle,  woo wee it’s going to get interesting. Eight-eight days till the great expedition, twenty-eight till memorial weekend at the ranch, and the possible Filmore and medi-port eviction pending, going to be fun.

Quote of the day:

Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing.
Wernher von Braun 

All you guys enjoy the day of rest, take a nap, and take it easy, I plan on it.

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

Simply Saturday

Saturday, the day that dawns with such promise for fulfilling the plans made all week long. Who would have thought that Saturday would need to last 40 hours to accomplish all we set out to do.

Not me, I planned for nothing, so I have a chance to be able to make my list.  Slept in a bit, got up at 7, threw a load of laundry in the machine, and now sit composing this missive.

It’s a bit different doing this later than at 5 or 6. It seems like different creative juices are available and my thoughts are more settled down.

Last night was bit rough, after catching a nap from 5 to 9, I ran up to Wally World and picked up the pudding cups. Got home and had a chocolate-vanilla one, going fancy here. 

The chocolate part I got down easy but the vanilla tasted so wrong it was all I could do to force myself to swallow. I managed to finish the whole thing so that’s a start; I plan on adding one to each feeding until it’s a quick feed. Eating a pudding cup right now isn’t all that fast; it takes 5-10 minutes to get one down.

So for fun and games I get to look forward to eating a pudding cup, I still have lemon and caramel flavors to try.  What a diet, ruckpack for energy and vitamins, a pudding cup to train the throat to swallow again, and cans of Nestles goodness for substance.

Living large in Lewisville!!!  I plan to get out today, some how, somewhere.

Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.

Winston Churchill

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

Free Food Friday

The office is having Posada’s Mexican Food, fajita’s, beef and chicken, rice and beans, the works. Me, I’m having nada, nothing, another free food Friday wasted.

But my attempts in eating have made a little headway. The applesauce was ok, managed to get about 2 oz down, the stuff tasted ok but had an acidic burn on the back of the throat.  And about 2 oz was all I really wanted. 

Last night I tried an avocado; these were one of my favorite snacks, avocado and Pete’s mesquite, eaten right from the half shell. About a quarter of one is all I got down.  Seems like the issue is I don’t seem hungry and after a couple of bites I am just too full to eat any more.

A co-worker at work had a great idea, those pudding cups and jello cups are the way to go. I was planning to stop by Wally World and grab some but fell asleep first, maybe tonight.

I was pretty washed out last night. Missed my stop on the A-train, slept right through it, and had to catch a return trip from the sneaky Pete’s station. Got home and pretty much went of bed, getting up to have a couple of cans of Nestles before going to bed around 10.

Going to see how I feel after today, if I am that tired then I think I should work from home a couple of more days and build up some stamina.  On the plus side the throat is feeling the best it has felt in a long time maybe 75% normal. This was a wonderful feeling to wake up to.

Quote of the day:

Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.
Lance Armstrong

Stay strong;

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

Thursday

Two days in a row! Made it to the office and survived, well, mostly.  Really dragging by the end of the day but that means I enjoy my evening nap.

Going to try applesauce this morning, I know I can swallow a big ol pill so applesauce shouldn’t be that big a stretch.  I need to start adding more food to diet and less can crap, Filmore must go.

I do believe I have entered a new phase of recovery, the throat feels like I’ve got something stuck in the back of it that I can’t seem to hawk up or swallow and the throat is filled with glue or paste.

Still filling the spit rags with mucus/glue/spit; at least I am discreet about it, at least at the office I am.  At home its Katie bar the door, I’m over a trash can gagging and hawking and trying to clear the throat with limited success.

Strange thing I’ve noticed, I don’t seem to get hungry anymore. Seems to me a long time ago I used to get hungry and need to eat. Now I can’t remember what that was like. I have to remind myself I need to take nourishment.  There is no feeling of fullness, one can, two cans or four cans it’s the same.

This at least has hope, with a little luck I can control my weight when this is done and finished, I’m at 198 right now and wouldn’t mind stabilizing at around 190.  I guess time will tell, way I look at it; it should cost less to feed me at 190 than 230, just saying.

Hang in there, it’s Thursday and Friday is just around the corner.

Quote of the day:

"If you’re going through hell, keep going." – Winston Churchill

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

Happy Hump Day

It’s a hump day and it’s a happy one.  I’m at the office and just realized I wasted all morning and failed to prepare or upload a report.

Yesterday went well, spent it at the office, still dragging a bit but overall not a stressful day except around lunch time.  Not too good with some of the food smells. I remain amazed that my sense of smell is so keen these days.

Trip home was uneventful with the exception I don’t speak much, had a HOV buddy so I managed to be home by four. Home by four and I bed asleep by five.  My new mantra is never passing up a chance to catch a nap.

I have wonderful news to report, water tastes good again.  Yesterday evening, swishing out my mouth I realized the water wasn’t nasty tasting any more. 

Taste buds must be coming back, water actually tastes pretty darn good, almost sweet, fresh and pure.  I’m talking about distilled water here not tap water. Even on the best of days that tap stuff is nasty.

Just a note to let you know I’m out and about, still kicking.

Laissez les bons temps rouler

Twofer Tuesday -

That’s right, it’s a twofer day, two for the price of one. Like manna from heaven, gems of wisdom are likely going to be drifting down in pairs, like good boots, two make one, it's a twofer.

Found out yesterday that Filmore has an evection notice, four weeks and he’s gone, and with him the medi-port goes at the same time, it’s a twofer. Of course this means I got to get serious about poking food down my throat.

And to help in that task is ruckpack, energy & Wellness nutrition.  Check em out at www.ruckpack.com.  There stuff is so good they sold out and are waiting for the next shipment.  This is a combat tested & proven formula, a twofer for kicking Charlie’s butt.

And to boot, in the package was pictures of my two beautiful grand kids, the princess and the beast; she is a princess and he is a beast, takes after his dad no doubt, but with his momma’s sweet disposition. Need I say, another twofer.

Feeling pumped, going to try the in office work thing again, last week was a little early but maybe today is the day. I like working from home but feel more productive working from the office, at least when I need to interact with the level1 techs.

Got a ruckpack down Filmore so anything is possible, let’s roll, got to chatch the A-train and then the green line, yeah, a twofer.

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

It's Monday –

It has been twenty days since I finished treatments.  At first it actually got worse, every day seemed to be a bit worse than the day before.  Overall the whole situation was getting out of hand.

Then about 12-15 days I started to notice an improvement, it was little steps but they were steps in the right direction.  I believe I am getting better and the future is looking up.

Today is the first of the follow up exams. Today I meet with my oncologist, I’m sure there will be lab work to check to see how we are doing after the chemo and a general exam to make sure I am recovering well.

I will be wearing a shirt provided by Sissy and crew, it’s one of the nice ones, it’s a Tommy Bahama, model Pina-a-Lotta, It is a keeper.

I look forward to the next few Doctor appointments; it will all be about getting better and recovering.  I will ask about when FIlmore can go and if the medi-port is going to get yanked anything soon.

If all goes well today, I am planning to try to work in the office tomorrow; I think I can make it all day without getting totally wiped out like last Monday.  Most of my Sunday was spent taking naps. After wine making work I spent the next two hours crashed, only getting up in order to take a nap.

Way I see it , the doctor’s appointment at ten should be done by 11:30 then lunch and all I have to drear is four hours of a Monday.  I think I can handle that.

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

Weekend Day Two

It was another great night’s sleep. I managed ten hours this time with only a quick wake up at 4:30 AM. I was up and round by 10:30 planning on doing nothing.

Throat continues to improve, one small step at a time, but I swear that each day is better than the day before.  All I managed to do yesterday was feed Filmore and sit around reading or watching old movies.

Looks like that is what I’ll be doing today as well.  It has made it to 4:30 PM and I still haven’t got enough down to post a blog entry.  Is this a good thing? Little things keeping me preoccupied and forgetting to post?

Had two sets of visitors to day, the bean counter stopped by and we talked about the great expedition, it’s coming then the Starkster dropped in and we worked on the wine kits. Started a Tango and went to settling on the other, port has another week before we need to address it.

Loyal minion is home from the paint ball center and taking a nap, which is right out of my play book, sounds like a good idea.

Consider this a post, a place holder until tomorrow, tomorrow, when things are bound to be more exciting.

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

Weekend Day One

That’s right; it’s the weekend, and so far it is shaping up to be a great one. You ever wake up and just know it’s going to be  great day?  Today is like that, I am expecting great things.

Maybe it was the fact I slept straight through for eight hours, and finally feel rested up. Maybe it the fact I can tell the throat is making progress, it isn’t right by a long shot but it is moving in the right direction.

Sipped a little coffee yesterday, very little, but it wasn’t water. In fact I even ate about an ounce of chocolate malt. The best part is the chocolate malt it did sort of like taste like chocolate

All I need to do is to start forcing fluids by mouth since the taste is moving from dead rat taste to a more natural flavor.  Makes swallowing a tad bit easier. Yeah the taste buds are re-awaking and maybe there is hope on dumping Filmore.

Filmores existence is predicated on my inability to take enough nutrients by mouth.  Once I can do that, Filmore is history.

I have the oncologist doctor appointment on Monday,  That’s the first follow up but not significant in assessing the results of the treatment.  More like a meeting to schedule the follow up  and to make sure I’m at least trying to get better.

I want to go back to work in the office five days a week. That’s because if I can do that then I have regained my strength and am no longer on a first name basis with Mr. trash can. 

Right now the crap in my throat has the consistency of peanut butter, you can’t seem to clear your throat and trying to usually leads to a gag reflex episode that most likely involves Mr. trash can. I hate it. I want that crap gone, at least it is getting better, from once every fifteen minutes to maybe once an hour, the throat is getting better.

Talked to warrior child yesterday, he has found an amazing product for me so stay tuned to here about it.  He is busy juggling family, school, the army. He is one amazing young man.

Faithful minion help fill the garrison brothers keg yesterday. Retirement keg is working. There are two, possibly three wine kits to be decanted and racked this weekend. It may be time for patty to start her last kit. I need to build up my wine inventory for the day I start drinking wine again, I got time to make up.

Porch garden is looking good, all pepper plants are up and looking strong. I am hopping that they can stay on the front porch another thirty days before I have to move them to the back yard.

It’s the week end – I plan to max it out, I have tomorrow to rest up if I over do it.  It’s going to be a good day.

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

Weekend Eve

Technically that is correct; the weekend doesn’t really start till after 4 (COB), but it’s in full swing come Saturday morning.

So today is dedicated to looking forward to the two days off and all our plans. Mine include a wine making exercises and rose trimming with a possible run to the dump. Talk about exciting; woo wee, living on the edge.

Thursday was a pretty good day, managed to work with Alan and stay awake for most of it.  I can not believe how washed out I was after the single day in the office. Three days to recover? Dang it Bobby, I’m not in that bad of shape am I?

Once again, looks like rest and recuperation is to be the order of the day for this weekend. I’ll take care of the email that has piled up since yesterday and then look around for a problem to work on.

If I was at the office the problems would come looking for me.  It seems like the issues have been really weird lately. 

A co-worker, Jeremy, isolated an anomaly in a built in performance tool that we have been using in most of our diagnostic testing. Now we are going to question its reporting every time, not good.

Heck of a find, I think it should be reported so they can do a bug fix.

Hoping for some early morning thunderstorms, I would like to sit in my garage and watch the storm roll on through.  We haven’t had a good storm here in a while, granted there was one a week or so ago but I slept through it so it never happened.

All I got to do is get through eight more hours of tedious waiting and it’s the weekend.

Stats this morning:

Blood pressure:  123/78

Blood sugar: 143

Weight: 199.5

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler

D-2 Till the Weekend

Looking forward to the weekend. This might be the first one in several weeks that hold promise as to be more than a rest and vegetate  type of day.

Not that I am planning any great projects or adventures but I am actually feeling pretty good.  The way I feel has a big impact on how the day goes.

Yesterday was a slow day, I was re=covering from the day before that one. I overdid it a bit on Wednesday so I paid for it yesterday, and today I am good to go.  Looks like I still don’t have a full day of energy in me yet, but I am getting closer.

Si if I have the timing down tomorrow is a down day and Saturday is a good day. Here is to hoping it happens that a way.

Meanwhile back at the casa Pedro, I have had to lay down twice since I got up this morning, what’s up with that?  Today is supposed to be a good day not an  I am a worn out puppy day.

Working from home is on the books as I have already slept off most is the morning and still haven’t got the blog posted.  And I started at 5:30  already.

Plan on a little wine making this weekend have at least one ready to bottle and maybe a second one as well. Patty has a kit she needs to start and Jeremy has port to finish up. I washed bottles yesterday and have a few more to clean up but then I am ready.

Two days to go and it’s the weekend. . . hang in there, stay strong.

Stats this morning:

Blood pressure:  110/78

Blood sugar: 155

Weight: 198.5

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler