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6 month follow-up

CT scan was mostly normal. The tumor marker that had been climbing dropped 10 points. The only thing that doesn’t look good is a small growth in a thyroid nodule. Another medical test. This one doesn’t require fasting or contrast.

DynoReads

DynoReads

life after chemo

Finished chemo on May 23. Had my follow up and all the extra tests. No sign of cancer. My hair is growing back....it did change color - sort of. My hair was very fine before chemo, it’s even finer now. So fine it appears colorless. Hopefully this is short lived. My supervisor at work thought I breezed through chemo, until the last two treatments. I guess I’m good at hiding fatigue, weakness and burning pain. For a while I thought I would have to quit teaching because I would forget the topi

DynoReads

DynoReads

Religion and manners (or lack there of)

Going through chemo I haven't minded too much the physical changes happening. Well showering when my hair was falling out was a nightmare - very fine hairs that I could feel but not get off.   How others are reacting is getting to me. At work I've had to report two cancer survivors to administration. Both tried to offer me support, before I had announced my cancer. One chose to discuss it in the public bathroom where students were present. The other thought it was a great idea to tell

DynoReads

DynoReads

Challenge accepted - recipes needed

I work at a school where one core value is “non-judgmental.” One teacher commented on the social studies annual north/south lunch that southern food is just better than northern. I’ve lived in Texas 22 years and southern food seems to be deep fried or boiled. Share our recipes for god northern food. The recipes need to be simple enough for students to make.

DynoReads

DynoReads

Feeling down tonight

Warning guys - female reproductive issues   This past Tuesday I had a total hysterectomy after 10 years of dealing with endometrial hyperplasia. After the surgery, the gyn examined a suspicious ovarian cyst and determined it is cancer. Good news, the cyst was intact and he believes he got it all, but sent everything off to a lab to be sure. Waiting on the results is wearing me down. Hormone induced mood swings probably aren’t helping. And no, I’m not a candidate for hormone replacement

DynoReads

DynoReads

Watermelon Dresses

Wen my niece was 3, I was in my sewing phase. Some fabric company had just come out with a set of watermelon fabrics, with one looking like the rind, and another being red with white and black watermelon seeds. I also found a pattern for preschool girls dresses that was a watermelon. I made it.  It had this huge bib like collar that was half a watermelon, and the pockets were triangle watermelon slices. I even found lady bug buttons and added felt leaves and ladybugs.   It was my first

DynoReads

DynoReads

Royally screwed by medical offices

This has been an absolute mess. I have to get my knee fixed, it keeps shifting. So you don't have to look that up, it moves in directions it's not supposed to, in my case both too far forward and too far towards the outside of the knee. You have to have a pre-surgery clearance no more than 30 days before the surgery - so they know the anesthesia won't kill you.   So I start the process May 5th, with the blood work and ekg, chest X-ray the 9th - first available appointment. The ekg was

DynoReads

DynoReads

Attention To Detail, Or Loosing The Human Touch

Somewhat ironic that this may contain errors caused by only having my left hand to type...   my dad dad had died 3 years before I got engaged, so I wanted to keep my name. I also have some now obsolete software manuals authored in my maiden name. Our compromise was to combine, ex Williams-Smith. First issue is that my driver's liscense couldn't have 14 characters. The hyphen was deleted, and using the example, WilliamsSmith.   I have to bring photo I'd to all doctors appointments. So the off

DynoReads

DynoReads

Accident Part 2 Omg

So I tried to call my primary care physician for the name of orthopedist. The number is disconnected. Maybe I have the wrong number saved, so I do a google search. In Nov. 2016, 8 area doctors were arrested for a "pill mill", and prescribing fatal doses of hydrocodone. Mine was one of them.   So I have to find a new primary care doctor as well as an orthopedist.   Btw, for those that might remember, I was upset hearing my doctor ordering ammunition, same guy.

DynoReads

DynoReads

Unintentional Consequences Of St Louis And B'more Riots.

I laid the bike down yesterday when I ran into gravel across the road on a blind curve. Sheriff came, police and ambulance. One deputy got surly with hubby when he asked why there weren't warning signs out about the gravel. After all the road is a popular route for bikers on their way to Big Slick's Bar and Eatery and The motorcycle outpost. Gravel like that is a serious danger for bikers. Later when the ER is releasing me I can find my license in my purse, but not the case I keep my license and

DynoReads

DynoReads

Dividing And Conquering

Sometime in 2009 or before, I was home alone with my son when my phone rang. We had caller id on a huge globe, and the caller was listed as "Victoria, BC" with a number I didn't recognize. I let the answering machine get the call. The message, from a woman, was "Where are you babe? I miss you. I love you." I thought it was a wrong number as my phone number was unlisted. Except I discovered that hubby had forgotten his personal cell phone, which was ringing with a call from the same number. A m

DynoReads

DynoReads

Dear Neighbor.....

I'm sure your child is precious to you. All parents think their child is precious. I know your child is excited about his Christmas presents and wants to show our son. Our son is excited about his as well, and wants to spend his Christmas vacation playing Xbox One with his dad. You know the one who works 12 hour shifts and only gets to spend a day with our boy every other week?   We understand your son loves your pets. We love ours too, and consider her part of the family. She protects us, lo

DynoReads

DynoReads

Unfinished Work

When someone dies, there is always some unfinished work left. Usually it's something the deceased started. Today I found something I started for my brother when he first got sick 9 years ago. I was knitting a prayer shawl that should end up like this, only in denim blue heather:     The pattern, http://debbiemacomber.com/knitters/alixs-prayer-shawl, was slightly beyond my skill level. I can make it, but can't recover from a dropped stitch without tearing out rows. About 5 years ago I was b

DynoReads

DynoReads

Strange Day

It started with a dream. At first the dream was nice. I dreamt I bought an old farmhouse, a southern one sitting on blocks, to restore. I got some pets, at first tiny puppies, that became some kind of pet rodent that really peed - like rivers. Suddenly there were a few youths at the summer porch door asking to borrow any camping gear I had. I told them I didn't remember any, and suddenly the summer porch is filled with angry youths who find 2 sleeping bags I forgot (In real life we had them, but

DynoReads

DynoReads

When We See You Again - The Final Goodbye

So my brother's memorial happened, despite mother nature's best effort. The nasty rain here delayed my flight, The unusual snow fall, plus cold wet spring prevent the bush for my brother from being dug until two days before the memorial. Which meant we didn't have the sign ready since we weren't sure what we would be able to get. Rather fitting I think for my brother and our family. We never quite fit the mold that society expected of us, my brother more than the rest of us.   Many people who

DynoReads

DynoReads

Games People Play

Games belong on sports fields or tables. I absolutely abhor games. I was brought up that manipulating people is disrespectful and just plain wrong.   The one girl I work with plays games. Our job description is cleaning cars, we get $3 more an hour than drivers do because it is harder work in less than pleasant conditions. She will do everything possible to get to do customer pick ups and drop offs, including taking 45 minutes to clean a car. She claims she's tired, that's why she's slow, beca

DynoReads

DynoReads

echos of the past

Tonight while trying to get a date set for my brother's memorial one of his friends messaged me on FB. I thought it was his first girlfriend, but it turned out to have been someone he dated later.   In the last couple times my brother and I talked, we finally talked about the foster home, what happened, why people didn't listen. I learned a lot. It wasn't that people didn't listen, they did, and some even reported it, but the people investigating dropped the ball.   Tonight I learned that e

DynoReads

DynoReads

endless circles

I've tried to write this so many times, and keep deleting it. I really don't know how to say what's on my mind. My brother, R, wasn't feeling well at the end of October, but our sister, M, thought he could wait until he saw the specialist in December. I spoke with M before thanksgiving when she wanted one of our dad's recipes. I suggested getting R to a doctor then, but she felt it could wait until the specialist visit in December. The appointment with the specialist was January not ea

DynoReads

DynoReads

Moving forward, maybe

Yesterday was bittersweet. My sister sent me a text to write our older brother's obit. She had wanted to do it, but a crisis with her adult children interfered. It was also my younger brother's 37th birthday.   The obit was simple, we had a max of 4 lines. XXX, 51, of XXX passed away on January 24, 2015 at UPMC. He is survived by 3 sisters and one brother. Preceded in death by both parents and 1 sister.   Very sad summation of nearly 52 years.   It says nothing of the boy I remember: The b

DynoReads

DynoReads

Grief is weird

My brother died this morning after a two week battle with the complications from flu.   I've lost others before, both my parents, a couple close friends even a coworker. So I thought I knew what to expect from grief.   Only I have this overwhelming sense of rage. At my brother whose drinking weakened his body so much that it couldn't fight off the flu. At his medical proxy and caretaker, both family members, who waited to get him to a doctor. At my sister who wasn't ready to let him go last

DynoReads

DynoReads

Utopia?

FOX has a new reality tv show, Utopia. The idea is to place 15 people in an isolated setting, limited supplies, no rules, and let them create a new society, based on a Dutch show. Sound possible? Except the deck is stacked for fights. Some one who hates "bible thumpers" a Pastor a red neck a survivalist (doomsday planner) belly dancer a lawyer an ex-con and others more compatible.   Is it possible for them to create a functional society? Can they stop fighting enoug

DynoReads

DynoReads

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