All of the Above

Yikes, has it been almost a week since I added to the blog. Shame on me. You must be so worried about me! I’ll try not to make this too long.

Well, lots going on – in a manner of speaking – since chemo last Thursday. We were back at Johns Hopkins on Friday for more blood work. I sure hope they are doing something useful with all this blood they are collecting! We went directly to the Eastern Shore from there. On Saturday we went to a yummy potluck with some neighbors on our wonderful Goose Neck Road. Our little Neck is about 2 miles long and about ½ mile wide with about 20 houses on both sides of the road that goes right down the middle of the neck. It’s a beautiful spot (and plenty of geese honking and squawking at various times of the year so the Neck is properly named!)

At Chemo on Thursday they told me some folks experience some side effects:

nausea, rash, constipation or otherwise J, certain foods taste metallic, chills and other flu-like symptoms, or none-or-the-above.

I was voting for the last one.

Unfortunately I have had All Of The Above! (I didn’t think that was an option, but I got the full experience, the E Ticket ride!) So this week as been a little up and down in the activity department with the need to say close to the “facilities” as they say. Each day had a bright times though, so that’s good. We are still working through finding the sweet spot on the pain meds. I’m looking forward to settling in. This was a bit of a tough week. If this is it, I’m not crazy about my “new normal.” (I think we are already at the point where you have to say, “but remember Carol, you told us to remind you that you WANTED to jump in and get going with this!”)

This morning, our long time carpenter Carlos, who is like a Brazilian son to us…we love Carlos and Vanesa!....sent me this verse. I was up early, not feeling so hot, and I really needed this one: ISAIAH 41:13 "FOR I, JEHOVAH YOUR GOD, AM GRASPING YOUR RIGHT HAND, THE ONE SAYING TO YOU 'DO NOT BE AFRAID. I MYSELF WILL HELP YOU.'"

Here is the best news…the JH “Pain Management Team” put me on a long acting pain med that is such a God send b/c it means that I take one at about 11 at night and I am sleeping like baby all the night through! How wonderful that is J They also gave me some anti-nausea medicine. So, although I feel like a bit of my own chemistry experiment! I’m confident that this is all a period of adjustment and soon it will be nicely balanced out. I’m looking forward to that. (It’s that Romans 12:12 “patience” thing again!! I am obviously still in process.) Frank has been an angel! The soft boiled eggs keep coming, and although I am happy to subsist on soft cooked eggs and cottage cheese, Frank is expanding his repertoire daily! We have also has some yummy dinners by friends and neighbors dropped off. So Frank is gaining weight and I am working hard not to lose any more weight so I don’t get in trouble with the doctors at Johns Hopkins!

Tomorrow we are back up to Johns Hopkins for chemo, blood draws beginning at 7:30am and into the evening again. Sally is going to meet us up there first thing in the morning. Friday will be blood draws again and One More Liver biopsy on Friday. Ugh. (Christine and Mary Anne will be there for Friday! Yay…)

Here’s what I was thinking about this morning…somedays I feel a bit overwhelmed and this song kept coming into my head:

Who am I that You are mindful of me
That You hear me when I call
Is it true that You are thinking of me
How You love me ---- it's amazing

(Chorus)
I am a friend of God
I am a friend of God
I am a friend of God
He calls me friend

God Almighty, Lord of Glory
You have called me friend….

I guess if I have a song on my mind, that’s a good one!!

Love you.

Carol