What is next? 6 weeks to go!

Happy Tuesday everyone. 

Fish Joke:  One fish says to the other, “You drink like a fish.”       The other fish responds, “So do you.”







I would like congratulate Rick Stockhorst of Regina on winning his fight against Colorectal Cancer.  Ricks has been an inspiration to Teresa and I over the past few months.  We have been able to follow his Blog, and connect with his wife  Shelly on occasion to share information and tips.  Thank you to both of you for your courage and sharing your journey with us. Rick's Blog  (http://web.me.com/stockhorst/Home_Sweet_Home/Our_Blog/Entries/2011/7/24_Cycle_5%2C_Day_5.html)


Pet updates:
So we have not found a dog for our home as of yet.  We have checked out a few and just not found the 1 for us.  We are really looking at Shih-Tzu or a dog wtih hair as Teresa has her allergies to contend with.  And with my newly developed allergies we are not sure what my reaction will be.  So no dog yet - though still looking.  When we find a mid sized just right for us we will be happy.   In the mean time I am reviving my aquarium as all but 1 fish has gone down the toilet.  3 Angels, 2 Gourami's and 1 pleco = plop plop flush flush.  The Angels were the last ones added to the tank and believe they may have been ill to begin with - so 3 weeks they were gone and the others followed.    Well onto Gold fish I think - they seem to be hardy and never go away.  LOL or guppies again as the only problem there is what to do with all of them after a while.  Open to suggestions as my lonely Pleco is bored.




What is happening with Jay?
Just completed treatment number 10 - now just going through the 2 weeks cycle.  Feeling alittle tired the past few days.  Slept alot, though I have learned sleeping to much during the day can lead to a 330 am wake up.  Which is never pleasant unless you are getting up to go fishing.  I am really looking forward to the upcoming energy days of the cycle - the weekend was rough.  Had some troubles with the take home bottle again, it stopped dripping for some reason on Saturday.  Which means on Monday when I went in for disconnect they had to flush the port multiple times.  Now flushing involves a nasty tasting fluid to be injected to clean the port.  I really do not like that part, nor the part of removing the IV needle and inserting the LARGER needle to compete the flush. A small complication though it all worked out in the end. 

I am getting antsy though  as we are not sure where we go from here?
What is to follow after this initial round of treatments?
Can we do surgery?  Is it another round of Chemo?
or will it be the undesired maintenance treatments? 



The next review is Aug 4th, which will be a great day as it is also Teresa's Birthday.  Hopefully we can get a more direct answer to what the next step is.  Currently the only answer we have is the current treatment is working.  Though they are only administering 12 treatments.  So the end of this treatment cycle is 6 weeks away.   This time frame has me sitting with a lot of mixed feelings and questions, as you can tell.  I am trying to keep myself occupied as to not think about it to much.    I know 1 thing for certain I am getting better, yet the battle is not over.    In the mean time I will be here - ready for what ever is next.




Still sminlin and kinda waiting patiently.

Jtee

Dragonflies are back!

Good Day

Fish Joke

 

Hope everyone is staying cool during these blistering days.  (not that I am complaining this beats -40 any day)   Here in Regina the Dragonflies have returned.  Last year, being my first summer in the prairies, I was amazed at the number of Dragonflies which suddenly inhabit the city.  They are everywhere.  Over the past few days we have been watching them fly around seeing a few big guys in the back yard and couple of smaller ones.  But today walking through the back yard today I was engulfed by dozens of Dragonflies hovering around.    I was able to snap a couple of shots of what the little ones look like when they stop flying.  In motion pics did not turn out so good.  The bigger ones, measuring 6 inches or so, where camera shy.    I am not really sure where they have come from or why they will appear now for a couple of weeks and then be gone. Having the Dragonflies around is a pleasant occurance and I enjoy watching them while lounging in our backyard sanctuary.   (that is for a few minutes in the morning before the mercury breaches the 30's.)

Small Dragonfly ready for take off.

Small Dragonfly

Here are some additional photos of our backyard patio. 

The chiminea lets us have a fire while hanging out and chatting.  The outdoor furniture is great for a lay down and a nap on a cooler afternoon.  Have had the pleasure recently.   And the bar in the background is handy for mixing some refreshing and cooling cocktails. 

Just coasting through this week waiting for Friday's treatment.  Had some really bad mouth sores after the last treatment which are finally clearing up.  Mad it difficult to eat for a few days.  Hoping this after this session they are not as bad as last week.  I have had a couple in the past, the tip of the tongue is the worst, which have always cleared up in a day or two when I use a Baking Soda rinse or apply as a paste.  This time almost a week and was cheek and tongue.  Otherwise - all is good.   

 Keep smilin and stay cool. 

Jtee

Odds and ends

Good Day

This round of treatment went well, very routine at this point.  

Fish joke:  Why are dolphins cleverer than humans?
Within 3 hours they can train a man to stand at the side of a pool and feed them fish! 

This fish joke brings me to think of dogs, they also train people to feed them, pick up after them, bath them and do pretty much anything else the dog needs.  And people are the masters - ha.    Now that we are considering getting a small to mid-size dog this thought makes me laugh.    To walk the dog or not that is the question right now?  Pug, Jack Russell perhaps a misc mutt?  In the end it will be a rescued dog or a dog in need of a new home due to the owners situation.  The search shall go on and I will let you know future progress of the Dog addition.  The daily exercise will be good for me and the care will be good as well. 

The yard and house are looking good.  Leaving me some time to chill and enjoy - some time to train a dog perhaps?   Here are some pics to check out.

 Here is a pic of the front of the house before we did some basic landscaping.   The left hand side was torn up earlier this year to fix the leaking water main - which entailed updating the sewer and water main.  The rest is just weeds - no lawn.

 So we put in some flower beds along the front porch, updated the steps and the mulched the front yard.  Took about a week - though we got it all done.  Earlier today some wonderful friends stopped in to add some plants to either side of the walk way, 3 hostas and some rocks.  The gesture is wonderful and greatly appreciated - I was not allowed to help and advised to stay inside.   Thank you Shelly and Donnie.  Looks great. 

Outdoor bar I built for the backyard.

  


This kept me busy for a day.  Thinking of some other basic wood projects.  Look forward to some updated washer sets to be part of the next Relay for Life fundraising initiatives.  Practicing some wood burning techniques for this. 

. 
That is it for now.  Keep in touch all and as always.

Keep smilin rain or shine, hot or cold.

Jason

All looking good.

Happy Thursday everyone, it is a good day.

I am  really happy younger bro Dan finally went to the doctor for screening.  All came back clear yeah.  Was alittle disappointed though that it will be another 5 years before the next screening.  Hopefully  in the mean time one of the new blood screening process's becomes part of standard testing for those considered high risk, or for everyone. (as discussed in previous posts)   The tumor biopsy taken will be tested in the near future to determine if my situation could be considered genetics or not.  Hopefully this will help to have a better screening regiment if he are other family members are considered high risk.  5 years in my opinion is to long, I went with out symptoms for a suspected doctor opinion of 2 or more years while the Cancer grew to in inoperable stage 4. During this time I even went for a routine physical.  Economical, simple and routine screening - hurry up and become the standard - it is possible.  That is my rant and preaching for today.  Onto other news............

Started the day off with a visit to the doctor for an overall review.  Since my regular Oncologist was not available we met with a temporary attending Oncologist so there was no discussion of the next step after these 12 treatments.  We did review the CT results and he confirmed they are good, the Cancer is responding in a positive manner and we will keep on this path of treatments.  As for the daily shot of Fragmin  to prevent further blood clots from forming, the doc has recommended to stay with the injections as long as possible since they are better then the oral medication.   The oral medication apparently is not as consistent with thinning the blood, sometimes to much and other times not enough. As for a time frame with the blood thinners it will take several months for the body to break down the minor clots, so the injections or medication will have to be taken as long as I am taking treatments and the clots are present.    Which is all good - just another part of the process to getting better.   My cheeks are actually kinda sore from smiling so much the past few days.  I have been feeling back to somewhat normal and positive progress being made.  And I cannot forget to mention my wonderful wife Teresa who puts up with my mood swings, worries about my health and sucks it up to poke me with the needle on a daily basis.  She is terrific and a super star to me.

Keep smilin and have a great weekend - cheers. (my rum and something to you)

Jason

Happy Canada Day Everyone

Good Day

Hope everyone has a great long weekend.  And if you are traveling or out on the water - stay safe and take care.   

So far our Friday was a blast.  We were lucky enough to share the day with a group of good friends, whom I think also had a good time.   The outdoor bar has now officially been broken in.   Rum was mixing, beer cans collecting and wine corks popping. The kids played some games and ran around on the grass in the backyard.  That included Scott and I being undefeated at washers 3W  0L  - ooooohhhhhh yeah.    Anytime people we are ready.
Food was abundant as we BBQ'd sliders and mini sausage.  Everyone's contributions to the spread meant, in typical J&T fashion - alot of food.   All very delicious.
 The fireworks put on at the park were great.  Has been a long since I went to an actual fireworks event. All good.

Cheers everyone - have a great weekend.

Keep smilin

Jason