Twenty Chemotherapies Later

If you are wondering where we've been, it's a place in Boston called Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

After being clear of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma for 8 years, tumors were found in the gallbladder I needed to be removed due to a serious infection brought about by a blocked duct.

Unlike the Lymphoma, this is not curable cancer. As a highly aggressive tumor, the chances of long-term survival are slim.  The options were surgery with chemotherapy or don't do anything and just let it kill me.  Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a kind that gives up easily.

We opted for the surgery followed by chemotherapy. The surgery removed all visible tumors but there were still tumor cells which developed over a year. Then we started standard chemotherapy which had a minimal effect, then we tried one possible alternative which too had a minimal effect.

The second alternative, based on the existence of a DNA variation found in people susceptible to breast cancer has slowed the tumor growth considerably. That has been the twenty bi-weekly chemotherapies I've had so far and am scheduled to continue until it too stops working.

And it will but we don't know when.  Isn't that true of life in general?

I have visited death several times in my life.  I call them my practice runs.  One of my favorite buttons from the 60's, after Frodo Lives!, is "He who isn't being born is busy dying."  I will continue being born every morning when I wake up until the morning I don't.

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The Poetry of a Pompous Twit

Occasionally, when a fit hits me and I reorganize my home office; I come across long buried memorabilia.

This time is was a wire ringed notebook of poems I wrote just before leaving for my stint in the Marine Corps, during same and a few years after.

What was I thinking?  With what was I thinking, (Don’t go there!)

Who was this self-importantly bloated bit of pure pomposity?  Certainly not me… Can’t deny it.  It was handwritten in my once readable handwriting.  Dribble,  Dribble, double-Dribble.

The temptation is to burn it, or shred it first and then burn it. 

Did I? Of course not.  I put it back in its layer, like a bone, for some future archeologist to find and THEN shred and burn as they mumble to themselves, “Dribble,  Dribble, double-Dribble.”

The moral here is to never clean the office again. Who knows what might be find in this box or that?

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While we still have power…

So far this well touted blizzard has been very well mannered.  Two PM was its scheduled time.

I find seeing questions on the various weather related sites as to the “scheduled” time for this natural phenomenon to arrive.

We are so attuned to seeing the world through the eyes of one lens or another, and there are SO many more lenses out there of late, that we have come to see the world as a scheduled event. 

The close-by passage of an asteroid in the very near future is being posted with the times it will be visible with hand held magnification.

It takes away a little of the wonder, a little of the mystery of the world. Consider the mythology that would be written if our less electronically connected ancestors looked up and saw a rock flying really close to the earth. Now our reference point is it will pass inside not only the orbit of the moon but inside the orbit of communications satellites.

The glad tidings reported is that it isn’t “scheduled” to hit either the earth, the moon, and most important, any communications satellite. And we go about our business sure in the veracity of that information.

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An Awkward Fourth

Now that most holidays have been cornered on Mondays having a “You must take the day off” holiday on Wednesday is a tad confusing. Not confusing as to whether or not to take off on that day, but to which weekend it should be associated.

The previous weekend, which started in June, was called the “July 4th Weekend” by many in the media.  But now, the day before Independence Day, the same media is referring to next weekend as “July 4th Weekend”.

As I think of it, perhaps having a holiday on a Wednesday is not that bad an idea after all.  Instead of one, you get two weekends.

But…

That means you have to take Monday and Friday off.  Which leaves your work days as Tuesday and Thursday… Oh, dear…

Happy Independence Day!!

LiveJournal Tags: Holiday

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A Few Thoughts About Facebook

Time stamping expressions of good will.  I just sent Anniversary and Birthday wishes to my two sisters on Facebook
. 
One, I know has a page but never looks at it. The other may have one but hasn't invited me to it and her married name brings up way too many choices.

But, I did express positive emotions about this day in their general direction.  And it's dated and time-stamped to show I was thinking about them.

As a person who generally avoids the company of human beings, this is such a  happy medium. It beats the mail, the telephone and even email in general.

It's a can of spray paint on the digital wall.  If you happen to walk by and see these nice things about you it should make you smile.  If you missed it, you may
hear about it from a friend.  If you don't at least the positive thought is out there enriching the galactic dharma.

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_________________________________________________________________________

Back to Opera.

This jumping back and forth from Chrome to Opera is making me a little dizzy.

We're back to Opera now that the version 12 has become stable. It's much faster than Chrome and the screen UI is much more intuitive

The more important thing is Scribefire is now working again. It wasn't for a while.

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They’re Back

The family has been away for almost a week.  I had to stay back to work.

How do did I know things were wrong?  I forgot both of my cell phones yesterday. Can you imagine going though an entire work day without a phone.  I have a landlines phone.  I don’t recall the last time I picked it up.  Everyone seems to talk to everyone else via either cell, text or whatever newly developed method of communication there is out there.

When will the phones we still have hardwired to the wall go the the way of the box crank-phone  with the separate earpiece hanging on the wall? 

Before we have small devices with atom sized transistors embedded into our developing skull bones before birth?

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Why Do Microsoft Updates Require a Reboot but…

With very few exceptions every update for today’s software seems to be done in the background and quietly.  Why is it then Microsoft, the company in my case that built the bloody OS, with very few exceptions, requires a reboot whenever their software is updated?

Is this backwards DOS compatibility, (if that exists.  It does sound good, though)

This would go unnoticed if I didn’t spend so much time now interaction with my three Android based devices, an EVO 4G, a Droid X2 and Kindle Fire.

Except for the memory card self destruction on my EVO on  a regular basis; each of these devices seem to know when to update and how to do it without getting in my way.

Take heed MS.  You’re not the only kid on the block by a long shot. Think buggy whip and journalist…

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Treated Myself to Sushi!

This was a day that was expected to go one way.  Of course, as most expected days go, it went on its own way with little regard.

I won’t say it went bad. I won’t say it went good.  It pretty much went in a neutral way.  I didn’t shine or stink.  But it isn’t over.  This day is going to take three days, two more, to feel done.  Perhaps that explains the neutral feeling.  When the race hasn’t finished running, no matter what the odds, you can say the results for certain.

I’ll try not to be so obtuse about this in the future.  If you know me at all, you know the odds of that are very slim.

Don’t worry, this has nothing to do with the cancer.

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Merry Christmas

This was a very pleasant morning.  Just the stocking and core family gifts.  The major gathering is tomorrow.  That will be fun.  This was pleasant.  They are different in subtle ways with neither being better, but more appropriate to the time, place and people.

The gist of the matter, this is a holiday, last year, I didn’t know if I would make or not.  I am so happy I did.

Love is good.  Don’t waste it!!!

Hogmanay!!!

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Thanks for the well wishes

There are times when you find out just how many people are part of your life.  This has been one of them.  The routine of life, where you get up, drink you tea, shower, get dressed and go off to work, work, finish work, come home, have dinner, watch TV, answer email, go to bed and see only the few members of your family and the people with whom you work builds a false sense of being part of a very small community.

Then the proverbial fan became struck and my support structure came together with amazing speed and solidity.  I can only say thank you so many times, but consider it a looped messages that will only end when I do.

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Dana Farber

Back from Dana Farber. The scan and blood tests came up clean. I go back in October for a look over with the next scan three months after that!!

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Post Chemo-Hubris

On Thursday, I went through the third of six planned chemotherapy sessions. On Friday, I managed to make it through a business meeting in the morning but by mid-afternoon I had just enough energy to make it into getting the white blood cell shot before I was wasted for the rest of the day.

Then, with the help of the associated medicines to counter the negative side effects I was feeling better last night. I agreed to go out to a Mexican restaurant in Norton, MA. The food and company was invigoration.

The hubris is was in not thinking ahead and having the Mole Enchilada with hot sauce. I’ve done some pretty idiotic things in my life, some of which culminating with my being given supreme unction, but last night at home, the suffering was at least a six where supreme unction is a ten.

And then, what do I do. I not only agree, but suggest Thai food for tonight. I was wise enough to settle for the Phad Thai and not the green curry, but still, I might as well run with scissor behind Dr. Crane.

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LiveJournal Tags: Chemotherapy

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That Was a Quick Ten Years

Image via Wikipedia

As I recall the 1960’s, they took forever.  Starting with Eisenhower still President and ending with his VP, Nixon as the same, everything in between seemed so full of moment, as narrated by Walter Cronkite.

A visit to the Newseum in Washington, D.C. last summer brought to focus how we were and now are presented with what is happening in the world.  Back then the filter was huge.  The networks had only forty or so minutes to tell us about what had happened in the last twenty-four hours. Then we went to the newspapers for details and Time and Life for the color photos.

This morning, before my shower and tea, I knew about a drone attack in Pakistan, bridge curve deaths in San Francisco/Oakland and saw pictures of New Year’s celebration around the world.  I heard about the New Years Honours in the UK and New Zealand and the death of a philanthropist phrama heiress.

When I bring up Thunderbird, my email will tell me much more about what the intimate and commercial connections to me think I should know.

And then there is Facebook and Twitter. Before and after midnight last night, I was communicating with friends and acquaintances from Juneau to London, from New Zeeland to Manhattan. 

I watched the first day of the year unfold through them from the fireworks on the South Island, to Sydney, New Delhi, Cape Town, Paris, London, Boston, New York, Philadelphia and then went to bed.  Midnight is no longer so singular when you watch it happen over and over again.

And now we’re off with the kids to see Avatar. (We already saw Sherlock Holmes and loved it.)

Happy New Year, all!

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LiveJournal Tags: New Year

At Eight PM Last Night

Image by sgtret via Flickr

In my youth I had an image of where I would be so many decades later, meaning at my age now.  I saw myself sitting in a high backed easy chair, by a fire, across from the missus, reading a good book.

That vision came to me last night as I sat at my laptop in one room, reading Twitter on Brizzly. The missus was downstairs in her home office reading the New York Times while my son was at his desk, on his Apple reading heaven-knows-what.

This is not the image from the past because none of these things, laptops, NYT.com or Apple Computers existed back then.  Okay, way back then.

So, young people, as you sit and envision where you’ll be and what you will be doing in forty or fifty years, fahgetaboutit! It doesn’t exist yet.

Enjoy the now and the stuff that makes the now, time.
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LiveJournal Tags: Future

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The Labor Day Weekend

Image by sgtret via Flickr

The days are getting shorter and the first week of school is done.  It’s won’t be long before the leaves turn gold and red and them become so much litter.

Though we all know Summer has a few more weeks to it as the world tilts, but, tilt be damned, we have created this day in September, Labor Day. 

It was originally designed to celebrate the working man and later woman.  Now it is seen more of seasonal marker.

The fun is over, the business begins. At least in the US of A.

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LiveJournal Tags: Labor Day

August and March

A friend in Sonoma just commented on noticing how it isn’t as light now when she gets up at 0530.  Why she gets up that early in Sonoma escapes me, but I am sure she has her reasons.

 August like March is a transition month.  For those of us who renew our routines in September, a huge amount of preparation takes place in August.  Grasping onto the last threads of light in the morning and in the evening, we still thinks weeks ahead.

I have a five year plan.  I hope it is more successful than those the Soviet Union used to displace people and free will.  It really is a seven year plan but that would bring all sorts of jinx issues into play.

This plan gets revised every August.  It was a twelve year plan once.  I suppose that’s a good sign.
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LiveJournal Tags: August

Shortbread

After a very long workday, I knew I was coming home to an almost empty house. (see: cat)  With no one here, I only turned on the lights I needed to get settled and didn’t notice the square white postal box sitting on the Chinese apothecary in the atrium.

But then Facebook stepped in under the direction of a beloved niece.  She was thinking of me, alone at home on the other side of the continent.  A home crafter and accomplished artist herself she wanted to send something to lift my spirits.

She remembered a list from a long time ago where I answered the question. “What is your favorite junk food?” with Shortbread.

I know there are many people in the world who would not consider a food of such simple purity junk.  But it becomes junk food when you get a can of Dundee shortbread for Christmas, open the can and eat each round in order, like pancakes.

These shortbread squares are from a small scale and very talented baker whose web site is http://www.thehomebaker.etsy.com 

The Home Baker’s motto is From My Kitchen to Your Tummy. Homemade Treats by Mimi, Baked & Shipped Same Day.

Let’s all give Mimi a rousing set of applause!  Save another for my Niece!

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LiveJournal Tags: Shortbread

You Would Think Things Would Slow Down in July…no.

Image via Wikipedia

After a short break on the Rocky Coast of Maine and a rather disconcerting encounter with the dreaded Blue Screen of Death, we came back to find regulations unknown to us were waiting to remove a portion of our collective buttocks without properly filed documentation.

It was one of those things where everything in real time was done correctly but the documents proving that to the future were stuffed in a drawer, left open on a laptop’s desktop and not filed or were sitting in a briefcase in the trunk of car.

IOW, no big deal but the skills of an experienced file clerk were needed. That and a good, and scheduled, back-up program.  The second digital issue was fixed immediately. 

The surprise was that none of had every really done any filing. We lived in our laptops and Blackberrys.  A chart was drawn i.e.: get file cabinet, find room for it, get the proper size hanging green things and properly colored folders.

Once the receptacle was in place the next step was collection. It took only one very long meeting for everyone to figure out who had what and how to bring it all to one place.

The services of UPS and Federal Express were needed as well as a FAX machine.  There’s another blast from the past.  We weren’t sure there was a FAX machine until we noticed it was a feature in the mega-wattage printer in the backroom where no-one goes.

The collective angst was soon abated when all the pods were in place and a plan created to prevent its reoccurrence.  Part of the humor here is no one is probably every going to look at these files now they’re in place.  However,  the law of chance says, if they weren’t there, someone would ask about it tomorrow.

Believe it.

As an aside, my constant use of Evernote made my portion of this adventure much easier.  I didn’t need the FAX or the overnight couriers.  I brought up the program, signed in and, presto-change-o, there were all the files I needed.  A quick connection to a color printer and I was sitting pretty.
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LiveJournal Tags: Filing

Clouds All Over the Place.

The latest cloud that has come up in the web chatter can be found at Oursignal.com -  It grabs it’s links from a combination of the aggregate  feeds generated by Digg, Reddit, Del.icio.us, hackernews and yahoo buzz

Hackers, geeks and geek-a-wannabees, will find their equivalent to gossip chatter in this cloud.

For those addicted to Twitter, there is Twitscoop,

 

Hovering over a word at the Web site will bring up a pop up of the latest tweets on the subject. A click on any of the words will take you to a running list of the tweets as they come in.

In TweetDeck, the  Twitscoop cloud is one of the many options you can include as content in the many columns a power user

deploys to keep up with the pulse of social networking.

Where Twitscoop depends on one dominant word expanding and diminishing the font size to reflect the traffic, Oursignal highlights a phrase.  When the traffic increases it too increases the font, but it also uses colors to show if the trend is coming or going.

Consider yourself standing in a crowd of people.  There is a buzz of general conversation going on around the room.

If you focus on the people closest to you, you can get the gist of their individual topics. But if suddenly you hear one word our phrase moving like a wave though the mass, it would be the same as the way both these clouds manifest the level of general interest.

It’s cute, but I wouldn’t depend on it to keep you informed.  That’s Jon Stewart’s job.
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LiveJournal Tags: Web Clouds

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