I learned my lesson, actually I’ve learned many lessons recently. The one I am speaking of here was pointed out to me by Lisa D. She said, and rightly so, that her mother would have made me bite my tongue and take back the words I wrote here over a month ago after we got the results of the scan…I said, “I laugh at the side effects! Bring ‘em on!!” 

I officially take those words back… Side effects are not funny and I do not want them to be brought on!! There, I hope that takes care of that! Please take that as my official stance on side effects.

Last week was a lovely oasis and very much a vacation in the midst of my time with cancer. I did get a little exercise (more than none), we ran some errands and even had a little play time in the Junction, but mostly we sat around and talked and read and watched Moone Boy and movies. 

Missa, thank you for Moone Boy. I started watching it in the hospital with Michael and Maggie and then watched those a second time when Kathy arrived. It’s very helpful to watch it twice as the Irish accent is a little tricky to pick up. We just finished the second season the day before she left. So enjoyable!!

Kathy, to say the least, is a lover of movies, we watched many movies in between episodes of Moone Boy. My favorite, I think, was The Station Agent. I just loved the Big Idea or the Lesson of the movie. Two thumbs up, for that one.

While I was in the hospital Maggie was drawn to the puzzles in the “family room” on the 12th floor. That might be putting it lightly…some where between drawn to and slightly obsessed might be where her interest fell. Anyway, we’ve started doing puzzles at home. So my vacation included a bit of puzzling as well.

No vacation is complete without good novels. I finished up Boys in the Boat (thank you Kathleen and Simon). I loved how that book was written. It is the true story of the UW crew team who went to the 1936 Olympics in Germany during the rise of Hitler. I highly recommend it! Now I’m reading in record time another WW2 related book. This one is set in France and Germany in the early 1940’s; All the Light We Cannot See. I am enjoying this book equally. I’m staying up too late reading it as I cannot put it down! I know I already thanked Peggy for this, but now that I know how good it is I have to thank you again, Peggy!

With Kathy here that gave Mike an opportunity for a little break. He spent the weekend up in the San Juan Islands fishing with our friends Mike and Conor and their family. They had a highly successful weekend of fishing and he came home with his limit of crab and salmon! Yum…going to eat some of that before I loose my appetite!

All in all, a very good week! Thank you Kathy for coming up, leaving all those cute babies in Boulder, to stay with me. I hope I don’t NEED you to come back soon, but I hope you do!

I am feeling quite good today. Over a month of no chemo and I’m gaining stamina and energy every day. I’m getting a few things done around here that I usually get done in the summer and it feels like quite an accomplishment and a relief. Tomorrow I head in to Swedish and I’m going to tell Dr. Kaplan that I am ready for chemo. I imagine he’ll agree and we’ll get back to fighting cancer.

No more talk of poo here (you’ll have to find another website for that kind of thing!). All is well in that department. The focus and obsession now is on food. I’m trying to broaden my diet a little bit every day or so. I’m still low fiber/low residue and trying to eat a variety of foods in that category. Tomorrow I’ll ask the doctor about adding a bit of fiber a little at a time. I’m dreaming of the day that I can enjoy eating a salad! 

I’m thinking of you and thanking you all. 

Lots of Love

Janet