Latest News for the Month of
May 2007
By now you Northerners have to be getting into some decent weather ( a little rain as well ) so spring is surely here and summer just around the corner. Ya'll probably didn't think winter would ever come did ya ?
Hey Gang thought I would take this morning and do an update.
I forgot just how hot it gets down here. Florida is now entering its full blown baking stage. It has been extremely hot and in some ways almost miserable. I just cannot stand this much heat as its tough dealing with the fevers of this disease not to mention getting heated up from the sun at the same time. But that's humans for you. When we are freezing cold we want hot weather, when its hot outside we want cold temperatures. We seem to never be happy. :)
On the news front, Lindy, Kim and Ella made it home with their new coach and are out on the their first camping trip as I write this. Lindy is like his Daddy, give me a luxury coach and I will go camping, but I wont pitch a tent and camp and neither will he. ( I did all the camping I ever want to do in the Marine Corp ). They are really enjoying their coach and having a ball with it. Its great to see my Granddaughter experiencing the sites, sounds and smells of camp fires, camp grounds, woods and nature. There is nothing more important then family and camping can really bring the family unit together.
More good medical news...... My most recent blood tests were once again spot on ( except the platelets ). Everything was perfect so I was obviously happy and elated to find how well this chemo worked this time. I still cannot understand why my bone marrow reacted so well to the chemo this time but its the best response I have ever had using this drug. My platelets are elevated at the moment and causing some cluster headaches, but I am not going to complain. Overall the blood cell lines are behaving very well. And even more good news, I have exhausted my supply of chemo drugs and am ready for a long nice summer and fall without injections and sickness. Give me approximately one months time and my stamina will be back and I will be chasing Hooters girls once more. What's even nicer is that I haven't had a phlebotomy since last year ( I think ) . The massive doses of Interferon really worked this time. I did have an episode about two weeks ago and think that I threw a small blood clot to the brain ( imagine that 13 TIA's, 3 CVA's and still counting :). I lost some more of my cognitive ability and am really struggling trying to read. I am hoping it was a simple TIA ( mini stroke ) as I seem to recover from these. But its frustrating as I have not been able to finish off my new Marketing CD that I want to publish and I am getting really backed up on magazines and articles I wanted to read. I was once a voracious reader but find it nearly impossible to read at all anymore. I cannot explain it but somehow or another the brain just goes into a static mode and after a few sentences things do not make sense anymore. After two more sentences I have forgotten the previous two, and on and on it goes. By the time I get to the end of an article I have no idea what the hell I just read. :) The neuro surgeon once explained to me that when the brain becomes over stimulated it goes into a defense mode and starts shutting down. The strokes amplify this and some day's it takes very little stimulation to make it retreat into a protective mode. At times these updates are hell to write as it takes so much brain power but they are also great therapy for the brain by keeping it working. The brain is a very complicated thing and I have yet to figure out what makes it do certain things sometimes. Still, I am not about to complain as things could be much worse for me.
The resort down here looks like a ghost town. Nearly all the snowbirds are gone so its very quiet here. I miss a couple of the folks and really miss my next door neighbor Jim. Old Doc kept me in stitches all winter long and it was a daily ritual of sharing some laughs with each other. Isn't it strange how others can have such an effect on your daily life yet you never realize it ? Bruce is still around and harassing Ally daily. We are still sneaking in some rides on our motorcycles and making our famous lunch stops. :) During the day while Ally is working I have the time to do these things and it makes life grand. Bruce has been a Godsend this winter doing allot of the maintenance on my cars and bikes. He is a helluva great guy and really knows what the meaning of friendship is all about. Bruce seems to put everyone's needs before his own and is there in a drop of a hat when you need him. He is one of those gems that doesn't come around to often and he has become another member of our family. Actually I have had a blessed winter with Jim, Bruce and the gang looking after me and keeping my spirits up. Anytime I needed help, Jim or Bruce was right there. I also felt the effects psychologically as I fought very little depression from the chemo this winter and I am convinced the laughter these clowns provided made the difference. I keep telling everyone, laugh damn it. Its great for the soul and is one of the greatest medicines around. :)
I have been busy getting things ready to pack up before our departure at the end of this month. Its going to be a very busy summer as we have a couple trips planned plus alot of other items that need to be taken care of. We are planning on being in Michigan for a week or so near the end of June and also are taking a few side trips as well to places in NC, VA and TN. The summer I am sure will blow by fast. I had some work to do on the house but am putting that off till maybe fall or possibly next year. We also are going to scout around for some property in TN ( further south this time ) as an investment and will then probably sell our property in VA.
We finally finished off the landscaping at our site here in the resort and it came out nice. I have included photos of the changes. ( click here for photos ) I cannot even begin to tell you how nice it is to have laundry facilities in our own shed versus loading things up and going to the resorts laundry room. It's also nice to have storage facilities right here too so we do not have to haul things back and forth from TN. I installed some carpet in the shed and put in two work tables for Ally. It's her sewing room now and also her craft place. She is just getting started on learning airbrush work so it will come in handy for her.
I will be posting more in a week or so and give you another update. Until then be safe and get out there and enjoy the sunny days. Do not forget to laugh and smile allot too.
My very best to you all,
Chris
Hey Ya'll. Just wanted to give a quick update on life here in Florida.
If any of you have watched the news you will have seen that Florida is getting hit with wildfires. Its been terribly dry here with little to no rain for a while so everything is dried up and is a tinder box. Because of the massive forest fire in Georgia and the fire's around Florida we have been getting hit with clouds of smoke here on the Gulf coast. It is really something to see the first time as it can be sunny outside and bright and then all of a sudden you see this huge tan cloud start moving in. The other day it stretched from Tamp all the way up the coast 60 miles or more. You can barely see the sun and the air is thick with smoke and ashes. Our cars and coach got covered with the ash that is in the air. We seen a few people wandering around town with masks on it was so bad. Bruce and I had to make a trip up the coast towards Ocala and you couldn't see the traffic lights until you were close to them. What is strange is that the air doesn't smell real heavy of smoke, there is just a faint hint of smoke smell in the air. Still its been messy as the ash has covered everything sitting around. You can imagine what Ally's black car looks like with grey ash flecks all over it. :)
I do have some news to report. There is a new addition to our family here in FL. I picked up a 2002 Kawasaki Nomad the other day and its home now tucked away in the trailer. I cannot begin to explain what a nice bike this is and the power from the V-90 ci ( 1,500 CC ) engine is smooth and amazing. It's a heavy cruiser ( 750 lbs ) and handles much better then my Honda ACE 750. I thought it would be harder to ride but it turns out its much easier due to the increased weight. At highway speeds this bike is really a dream to ride. Comfortable and plenty of power, you just sit back and take it easy and relax and enjoy the sites. I am going to be installing cruise control soon so on long rides I can rest my throttle hand more.
On the home front there is little to report except that Ally has been extremely busy with school. Its near the end of the year so final exams need to be written, test graded and of course being head of the Math Dept she has to attend several evening functions for graduation. She is really looking forward to summer vacation. :)
On the health front there is not a lot to report. My bone marrow has been giving me fits as well as my spleen. The pain gets to you after while so I take a couple pain pills and have a pain free day. The rest of the time I simply live with it and try like hell to ignore the pain. My last set of labs showed a slight increase in platelets and I could feel them with increased headaches. My hemoglobin level came up as well but that could be attributed to dehydration as that can effect those readings. I will be keeping a closer eye on everything when I get back to Bristol. Its so much easier getting my labs done there as I get instant results. That and Jennifer and Sarah always look after me and make the trip to the lab fun.
I will be writing more later and will try and make one more update before we pack up and head for home. Plans are for us to leave early in the AM on June 1st.
Another day, another dollar and another update.
Just wanted to let everyone know I haven't been kidnapped by terrorists and hauled to the middle east. Life in Florida lately can be described in one way....H O T. It's been hot lately and is getting hotter as 90 degree days are on their way. There still hasn't been any rain in sight here. It has hit everywhere around us but here in Hudson. The grass actually crunches under your feet as you walk across it and is completely dried up, burnt and brown. The sun has been a killer too so I have been spending most of my days inside the air conditioned coach. To add to all the fun down here, its once again love bug season. Twice a year these pain in the neck bugs hit and when they do they hit in waves. The worst part is that when you do hit a love bug, you actually hit two as they are always attached to each other ( hence - love bugs ). They seem to be worse in less populated areas but you still have them everywhere down here. They are really bad on out on the freeways and there have been reports of lines of cars at the gas station waiting to get their windshields cleaned up so they can see out them again. In case you may have forgotten, here is a great reminder of what they look like after riding through a nice swarm of them. Just a reminder, Ally's car was spotless before this picture and she drove approximately 45 minutes to collect this mess. ( click here for photo ) It is real fun hitting them on motorcycles down here. Makes life interesting I guess with all the other creatures they have running around.
We have taken a number of rides lately, mainly with my buddy Bruce. The riding has been excellent as the traffic has been light as compared to the winter months. But it does get hot riding when your sitting at a stop light and that big engine underneath your butt is cooking away at your legs. Once cruising its fine as the wind cools you right back down again. Some of our rides, OK all of them, normally have a destination that was pre planned. Restaurant, shopping center, ice cream shop, etc. Yesterday we did a ride through the countryside and then stopped at Dairy Queen for some ice cream. What happens to be next door ? Batting cages. And I couldn't resist. I haven't swung a bat and took swings at a baseball in years so it was " batter up " time. Actually, Bruce and Ally were pretty impressed as I hit the majority of them. It brought back a lot of memories of playing baseball and I immediately thought of my Dad. I think I heard him a couple times saying " keep that darn elbow up and square your stance Chris. :) Click here for photos of Babe Ruth
Ally is in hog heaven at the moment as she is done teaching till this fall. She is still at school but her lecture days have ended for this school year. It is finals week so she has half days but we do have to attend a special mass tomorrow night for the graduates and then she has other functions she has to attend in the evening this week as well. We still plan on leaving here the 1st of June and heading for Bristol, TN but our plans for Michigan have changed. I am going to use some frequent flier miles I have been holding and fly up to Michigan to see my Mom and family and friends. It is going to be another one of those whirlwind trips where I fly in, run my fool head off, then fly back home after 4 days of chaos. With fuel prices and the coach getting some new leather put on the coach ( along with a couple other items that need fixed ), it was better to leave the coach behind. Ally is going to start working with her new airbrush system while I am gone and get the house back in order after sitting unoccupied since Christmas. I am beginning to wonder why we even have a house. We spend just a few weeks in it every year and the rest of the time it sits. But then I remember its filled with all of our belongings and without it we would be paying some very high storage fees to a private storage facility. Selling all of this stuff is out of the question as someday in the next couple years we will be settling back down again in a house and would have to go out and buy everything again. So, the house stays, the junk stays and everything is fine until I build a pole barn somewhere to move it all to. :)
On the health front, things are going well. I just got my latest lab results back and they looked good. I have been pretty weak lately and have had no physical strength at all and after reading over my results I see why. My Hemoglobin levels are still dropping and way below my comfort zone. Most women who traditionally have lower HGB levels function well at my levels but men always seem to have higher readings. Mine are quite low for me and I can feel it. Still, its better then being too high which requires phlebotomies. All my other cell lines looked good ( platelets, white cells and crit ). The true test will come when I get back to Bristol and we look at my blood under a microscope at the lab. I am curious to know if the chemo knocked the tear dropped shaped cells out of the picture. If so, then I am good to go for a while, if not, more chemo will be on the way.
I do not have much more to add at this point. I am going to try and get one more update done before heading out of Florida, but in case I don't I will be back soon with a June update. I hope this finds all of you feeling well and enjoying the start of summer in your region. For the Aussies, enjoy your winter months as they are some of the best in Australia. ( I love the temp's in Aus land in winter ).
Please be safe everyone and have a great Memorial Day holiday. Remember, everything in moderation.
This is going to be a quick update as I am busier then a one armed paper hanger. It is packing up and heading home time for us as Ally is done with school Wednesday afternoon. The hard work begins as there are a hundred little things that need to be done to the coach, cars, trailer, etc. not to mention the errands that need to be run. I have finished washing the coach ( dang these things are big when you have to wash them ) and also washed and waxed the trailer. Now its a matter of checking air pressures, setting the tire monitoring system up and give it a good internal cleaning as well. The trailer has to be loaded, bikes secured inside and all our lawn furniture stored in the shed. It seems the list grows every hour of things that have to be don before Wednesday. On the positive side though we cannot wait to hit the road. We both enjoy moving down the highway and seeing the sites in different States and this sitting here parked for long periods of time gets to you. So, as Willie Nelson sings " On the Road Again ". :)
It's been very quiet and peaceful here at the OK Corral. Nearly everyone is gone now and my buddy Bruce pulled out yesterday and is headed for New York. Myself, I cannot wait to leave the State of Florida behind as its getting humid and buggy. We are just getting hit with our first wave of love bugs ( they will be back in September ) and those things are a mess. It has been constant cleaning on our bikes every time we ride and our helmets and goggles get plastered with the little things. They also have am juice that is acidic and if left on paint will discolor and bubble it over time. So they have created a lot of extra work for us. If anyone of you missed the picture I posted of love bugs on a car here is the link. ( Click here ) Simply amazing huh ? And that is after just 45 minutes of driving. :)
On the health front there is little to report. Everything seems to be going well. I have been battling fevers and some type of an infection but did a course of antibiotic's which really didn't seem to help. I will have to discuss this with Dr. Brockmyre to see what he has to say about it. It could very well be bone marrow and spleen related as this seems to crop up sometimes for no reason.
Our rides have been great lately, especially the ones in the evening and I am really enjoying the heck out of my new cruiser. Florida is a year around biking State and it has some great roads to ravel on but we cannot wait to get back to Bristol as we have several trips planned with the coach and bikes. We want to ride different portions of the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Smokey Mountain's on the bikes while staying close to he parkway in our coach. I went through the other day and located resorts and campgrounds near entry points to the famed road so we should be all set.
Sorry this is a short update. I will be updating the site once we are back in Bristol and settled. Until then, do have a great week and be safe out there. My very best to all of you,
Chris
NOTE: I just added more family photos to the website. Click here to view them.