Things are starting to ramp up again!

Hi All

I have my next CAT Scan tomorrow morning here in Moscow at the hospital. Oh boy. I get to drink a barium fruit smoothie tomorrow morning! I hear its the latest thing. No, really! Well, maybe not really, but that's part of the protocol I have to follow. The scan tomorrow will help my doctor assess whether (a) the Interleukin-2 is working, or (b) the tumors are continuing to grow. I'm a little nervous, as I feel like this one test will decide my fate. Well, not really, but both Dave and I are tired of waiting and want to get on to the next phase of my treatment, whatever it is. We're hoping I'm in the 5-7% of IL-2 patients where the tumors actually shrink, but will take an arrest of growth, and no new tumors! The test results to go my doctor at the Oregon Clinic in Portland, and we have an appointment next week to go over them and to plan the next step. I may be a bit nervous about tomorrow, but the trip to Portland is beginning to give me nightmares!

On the other hand, Thanksgiving was loads of fun! We decided not to drive across the state to the Willamette Valley, and instead spent Thursday here at home, cooking dinner and watching football/basketball/whatever sport was on TV. We had invited a number of people to dinner but only one person could make it. Dave and I cooked Cornish Game Hens rather than turkey, and had a ball! After an evening of playing Tripoli and Vanessa and Dave's Wii (wheeee!), we settled down for a long night of sleeping off waaayyyy too much food. On Friday we set out for Stanfield (near Hermiston), 3 hours south, to my brother and sister-in-law's house for a day-after-Thanksgiving-feast of prime rib with their family and my parents... and more playing of Wii. Good grief. Did everyone get one of these Wii things and we're behind the times? Sheesh! We spent the night and stayed just long enough on Saturday to watch my beloved Duck football team lay a big stinker in L.A. SIGH. No national championship, no Rose Bowl, only bitter, bitter disappointment. I'm still trying to overcome the depression from that one.

Its supposed to snow overnight. I think Dave is hoping for a blizzard so we can go for a walk and I can hit him in the face with a snowball.

It's the little things in life that make it all worthwhile. ;)

Until Next Time!
Cheryl

Redrum?

All quiet on the blogging front thus far. Classes are out for the week here at WSU, and combine that with the fresh half-inch of snow, there's a real Shining vibe here on campus.

Redrum? Redrum?

Cheryl and I braved the freezing rain and cold winds Saturday evening to watch my Oregon State Beavers unexpectedly redrum the Cougars 52-17, thusly ending any bowl chances for Wazzu (it's always fun to crush another team's hopes and dreams, leaving a hollow shell in our wake) while ensuring a possible Vegas Bowl berth for the forces of good. By halftime, what was left of the student section left to go get warm, dry and hopped up on schnapps, and the orange ponchos easily outnumbered the crimson sweaters.

What a bunch of wussies. I'm an old school Beaver; watching my team get blown out in the pouring rain, that's nostalgia, man. That's vintage 1990s-era Beaver football, and we got hopped up on schnapps before the game.

Young people these days...

On Friday, Cheryl and I had an opportunity to experience the Nintendo Wii for the first time, and now that our muscles have stopped aching (no joke), we desperately want one. If you'd like to get us one for Christmas, that'd be great, but I imagine we'll pick one up for ourselves beforehand. Extra controllers/games, however, might be an excellent suggestion.

No news from the Oregon Clinic as yet regarding the latest PET scan, but Cheryl will be bugging them some time this week to make sure they didn't forget about us here in the frozen wastes of western Idaho.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Hi All!

Hooray 3 day weekends! Busy day at work today, and I was happy that 4:00 came around.

This weekend: fall cleaning. Whoopee. But boy howdy our apartment needs it! Neither of us have been particularly motivated to clean lately, so its time. Thanksgiving is coming up, and we're inviting people over for dinner. Probably want to get the piles of magazines and Magic cards off the floor! Since my Ducks are not playing Saturday, that'll give us plenty of time to clean!

Not the most exciting life, but hey! It's a 3-day weekend!

Cheryl

As if this year didn't already suck the big one

One of my few joys during the workweek is NBC's Thursday night comedies. Around 8 o'clock, I fire up a martini (or three) and Cheryl and I settle in to watch My Name Is Earl, The Office and 30 Rock (although Scrubs I can live without). Truly, it is one of the few high points of my week.

(The fact that three TV shows are the highlight of my week speaks volumes as to the podunkitude of our current area of residence.)

Now, with the WGA strike, those shows are being shut down for the immediate future - and probably most of the year, to hear the posturing on both sides.

Great. Now what am I supposed to do on Thursday nights? Watch NBA basketball? Is this what the world has come to?

(Addendum: it has been pointed out that, yes, I do own a large screen TV and have a voluminous DVD collection, so I should quit whining (but I whine so well)).

Dave

All quiet on the western front

Been a while since the blog has been updated, but there just hasn't been much to report other from the continuing trickle of medical bills (which, thankfully, insurance picks up all but a smidgen of). No word from the hospital as yet regarding when Cheryl goes in for her next PET scan, but I'll assume it'll be sometime in the very near future.

We will be splitting Turkey Day between our house with friends and expatriates in the area and her brothers' place in the Hermiston area - a much, much closer drive than all the way to Eugene. We've just been traveling so much lately ('specially me), I don't think I've got many more long drives in me without a lengthy sabbatical.

The day where I enjoyed lengthy road trips is long, long past. What's the phrase, "getting old ain't for sissies?" Ain't that the truth...

Dave

Things are just going along as usual...

Not much to add at the end of this week. Despite some serious skin peeling, I'm feeling better -- well enough that Dave and I are going to try a new restaurant in the area -- a tricky action at the best of times in the Moscow/Pullman area. Its been given good reviews, so hopefully we'll get through with a nice meal!

Today was reminder that its good to have friends while going through a difficult time. I read an article recently about breast cancer survivors who noted that a close group of friends with whom you can pour out your fears, dreams, and hopes helps relieve stress. Talking about my cancer diagnosis to friends and relatives certainly helps, and I'm grateful to all of you I've poured my guts out to recently. This morning I spent time with a friend who is going through similar (but not identical) stressful times, and as he/she noted, being able to turn to someone and say "I know exactly how you feel!" is such a relief sometimes.

The Cancer Support Center at Providence Medical Center gave me a list of online cancer support groups, and I'm still a little shy about beginning to use these resources. There are surprisingly few local (Moscow/Pullman) cancer support groups for general "cancer" -- breast cancer, colon cancer, yes, but not more general groups for all kinds of cancer. Perhaps that will be a goal for me next week. I'm good at procrastinating ;) I guess while its good to talk through many of these issues, I think I'm getting tired of talking about it. Lets get on with life! Cancer? What Cancer?

The most positive aspect about this week is that I'm finally getting back to finishing the master's thesis. I haven't opened up any of the computer files in 2 1/2 months, and I'm getting some editing done on the first four chapters today. I need to finish this for both Dave and I. Completion is good!

Cheryl