Sunshine, lobster rolls, and better days

Robert took the day off from work and drove me to Kaiser for my blood draw (I passed - no more neupogen shots until next round). After that, we drove down to Half Moon Bay to Sam's Chowder House for lunch. We both had Maine lobster rolls and sat at a sunny window table looking out on the bay. It was simply perfect, and simply what I needed as I start to emerge from the chemo ugh fog.

When I got home from lunch, it was still too delicious outside to stay in. My neuropathy is better, so walking isn't as much of a problem as it has been. I went to the bank and then to my newly re-opened library branch to pick up the latest EL Doctorow novel, and then just walked randomly around the Castro. I even found the energy (and foot power) to kick-start the scooter and blow out the carbon a little in a neighborhood drive.

We're supposed to have a few more days at least of this kind of late Indian Summer weather. Yay. Hold the chemo, bring on the sunshine.

Looking for the bright spots

Today I decided to keep forging ahead on my little art projects. Junie was not willing to abandon her sunny nap spot, so I had to wait awhile before setting to work. I'm really glad to have this hobby as a diversion. I might be going crazy otherwise. I'm also very grateful to have an apartment so filled with light. Being stuck inside so much could be very depressing in a darker place.

Feel about the same as yesterday. Still have the neuropathy and the bloating continues. Energy level is better each day. Tonight I'm doing the last (I hope) neupogen injection before getting my white count measured tomorrow.

René, his mother Julie, and delightful Della stopped by in the afternoon on their way to Matty's apartment to tend to Turbo the rabbit. Dells has a little bit of a cold, so I kept my distance, but we put her on the floor and let her terrorize Junie for awhile. It was very amusing. I walked part of the way to Matty's with them. As we walked, Della was in the backpack carrier on René. She kept smiling at me and finally extended her hand toward me, and we walked that way in the sunshine - her little hand curled around my finger. I was very happy.


FYI - The jumper from last evening eventually came down off the roof...after 7 hours.

If you wanna sing out, sing out

I felt well for most of the day. That toxic feeling is subsiding. The only remaining symptoms that bother me are the neuropathy in my feet, and a slow bloating in my gut that sets in over the course of the day, and is pretty uncomfortable by bedtime. The bloating is less bothersome as I get further away from the last chemo treatment. I expect it to be gone by tomorrow.

I was fairly productive and finished an art project. When I had cleaned up from that, it was after 5, and I was craving a burrito. I hadn't walked yet today, so I decided to go down 16th Street to Pancho Villa. When I got to Valencia, there were several police cars blocking thru-traffic. A jumper. Sure enough when I crossed Valencia and looked back, I could see him: a young man, standing on the very edge of the roof of a four-story Victorian. I tried not to pay too much attention to the onlookers. (I don't understand people who want to watch something like that.) I closed my eyes and tried to send a message to him that whatever it was that had brought him to the edge, it wouldn't seem very important in a few years. I hope it got through.

Life is full of odd parallels. When I got home and had finished eating and had visited with Robert a bit, one of my favorite films of all time came on TCM: Harold and Maude. There are many reasons I love this movie.

• It came out when I was 14 and I was just starting to develop cultural awareness. (i.e., I read the theater and film columns in Time and Newsweek and I went to midnight movies) I loved its "indie" film sensibility, and its cool art direction and costumes. Looking around my apartment, I think perhaps Maude's railroad car influenced my own interior design sense. Gah!
  
• The Cat Stevens score.
  
• It was filmed in and around San Francisco, including Santa Cruz, where my family spent vacations when I was very young.
• Ruth Gordon and Bud Corbett give radiant performances.
• VIVIAN PICKLES as Harold's mother. Why didn't this woman get more work in this country? Her character and performance pre-date the self-obsessed, over-privileged British bitch that Jennifer Saunders would get such currency with in "Absolutely Fabulous" 2 decades later. She alone is reason to watch this film.
• Movies about eccentric people appealed to me especially back then because I was trying to figure out how to live life as someone who didn't fit Fresno's cookie cutter of what a young man was.
  
• I first saw it with Meg and she and I still parrot phrases from it to each other regularly.
  
• And of course nowadays, its message resonates in a new way with me. The contrast between Harold, young and afraid of life, and Maude, sucking every last savory bite out if it. "L-I-V-E! LIVE!" Maude tells Harold when they first meet. "Otherwise, you got nothin' to talk about in the locker room."
  

I'm with her.

Sometimes all you can do is organize

I slept well last night, thanks to pharmaceuticals, but I woke up feeling rather cruddy, and have been moving slowly all day. I finally just gave up and took a nap around mid-day, and it did me a lot of good.

After I got up and ate something, I really wanted to finish framing the shrinkydinks piece I completed on Saturday, but I have no mental focus for that kind of thing right now. So instead, I organized my art supplies, including sorting the 132 colored pencils into color spectrum ranges again (I started that chore on Sunday, and Kathy W -- I found four pencils that belong to the set I gave you. Remind me next time you visit to give them to you). I had everything sort of dumped in a couple of boxes, so this organized mess you see is somewhat better than what I started with.

Once I finished sorting and organizing, I dozed again, then took a very short walk around the block, mainly just so I could keep to my routine of taking a walk every day. Then I vacuumed and dustied the apartment and now I'm exhausted, but in a less sickly, toxic way. I'm definitely on the up-swing again, but it took longer this time. I guess it might take a little longer to recover each time. But I'm Scarletting that for now. I don't have to deal with it again for 2 weeks.

Hoping to feel well enough tomorrow to get myself a little Della therapy. :)

May I please introduce...my upper lip

The chemo was making my facial hair fall out too, and that was gross when I was trying to eat, so this morning, I shaved it all off. I think it's been about 5 years since I had no facial hair, and then it was only for a few months.

I woke up feeling much better than yesterday and was able to take a neighborhood walk to Flax Art Supply to buy a frame for a piece I finished making on Saturday. I still have all the ugh stuff from yesterday, but to a lesser degree.

With the new state-issued card I now possess, I was able to obtain some home remedies that are helping me nap and are easing some of the discomfort of the bag-of-toxins feeling. I have to go pick up my laundry in an hour or so, and then I'll be free to give in to the fatigue.

I still have some frizzle on my head, but less each day.

Ugh...

As I predicted, the fatigue hit full-force today. I slept badly and woke up early, and took advantage of my morning energy to change the sheets on my bed and go grocery shopping for staples. By the time I got home, I was ready to collapse.

These are the days I bless my friends who have filled my freezer. I really can't focus to cook, though I force myself to wash up the dishes after every little meal, just to stay a little active.

I hate these days after chemo. It's not just fatigue, or the fact that the lymph tumor seems to get inflamed and sore. It's a sour taste in my mouth, neuropathy in my feet, I'm bloated, I'm spacey, I drop things easily, and generally, I just feel like a big sack of poison, which, I guess, is what I am, until this works it's way out over the next few days.

Meanwhile, I endure with the help of my lovely friends and all the soups and goodies they've given me. Thank you everyone.

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

Well, the chemo baldness is starting. I pulled out clumps while washing my hair today and found more in the drain strainer in the shower. No biggy. If it's the price I pay for escaping nausea, I don't mind. Plus, my tumor has shrunk, so again, a small price to pay.

Be prepared to see me in lots of caps.

Checkmark by Chemo Round 2

All done with this round. Hooray. Laura was my chemo buddy today (we drove, so no cab drama) and despite her protestations, she's not that bad at crossword puzzles, so we actually finished a hard one today.

Still no nausea, and today, my lymph node is perhaps even smaller than when I first noticed it back in July. I have to start the neupogen injections again tomorrow. Oh joy. Based on last time, I'm expecting the fatigue to hit on Sunday, but who knows, since Dr Liu said the fatigue would probably intensify with each round. That might mean it will hit sooner too.

Before my chemo, Holly and Della came to visit and we had lunch at Starbelly. We were quite the attention-getters once the gorgeous baby woke up and came out of her stroller. I had only half of my pizza (mini-meals!) and it was a simple margherita....DUH-licious. I'm so happy to have real woodfired pizza 2 blocks away. I'm about to have the second half as another mini-meal. I thought Holly was going to have a Harry and Sally type orgasm scene in the restaurant over her pizza (goat cheese, squash, sage, and bacon). I'm loving this new neighborhood spot. I think that was the fifth or sixth time I've eaten there, and the first time I've had their pizza.

Have a Little Tea With Junie

Colleen and I forgot to take a picture at chemo today (I blame "chemo brain", of course), so we took one after we got home while we were having tea and Junie insisted on being on my lap.

Colleen took BART over from Albany and we called for a cab 45 minutes before my appointment (it's a 15-minute ride to the medical building), and didn't get in a cab until 5 minutes before my appointment. San Francisco is simply a horrible taxi town, unless you're downtown or at the wharf, and even then...

Fortunately, he made good time and I was only five minutes late. HOWEVER, the stress had raised my blood pressure to much higher than normal. I'm usually around 115/60. Today it was 148/80 when I sat down, and I had a temperature of 99.5. By the time I finished my infusion, both the bp and temp were normal, so I guess it was the taxi stress. Colleen and I have the same birthday and she says Aries do not like to be late. I know it's true about me.

Ellie was my nurse today and she was great. She's the nurse who ran the chemo class Robert, Kevin and I went to before my treatment began. I haven't met a bad one on the oncology staff yet.

Got the usual wooziness, vague headache, minor aches and pains, and I'm a little fatigued already. But I had enough energy this morning to ride my scooter to Kaiser's medical records office and file for my long-term disability insurance. The weather's gorgeous right now, so it was a pleasant outing. So far, I've had 4 of my six small meals today. No nausea.

Chemo Brain and Crickets

Holly and I forgot about taking a photo during chemo today, but we remembered afterward when we were on Clement Street buying crickets for the lizard in Renecito's classroom, so here I am holding a cage of 30 very large crickets.

Nothing much to report. I'm woozy from the megadose of zofran and decadron they always start me with on day 1. David was my nurse again, and we found out he's a sock knitter. Knitters, knitters, everywhere knitters. Mike Wade will have to include him in future Sock Summits, etc. Nice guy and very gentle with a needle.

For the first time, I talked to one of the other chemo patients during my infusion. She overheard the conversation Holly and I were having about which public school would be good for Renecito, and she offered some suggestions because she'd raised two sons that went to SF public schools. She kept saying she had "chemo brain", when she couldn't remember a name or a word, and I definitely relate to that, plus, who couldn't use another excuse for their middle-aged forgetfulness? From now on, any memory problems I have are due to "chemo brain". It got a little weird when we started comparing cancers. I was more comfortable discussing public schools. Fortunately, the nurses came in and started dismantling our IVs around that time, so we were distracted from the topic.

I plan to eat my several small meals and do all the things I did last time, since it all worked out well then. So, with that, I'm retiring to my armchair and ottoman and Ken Burns' "The Civil War" documentary and a small portion of chicken pie.

The Best Medicine

I dare you to try to be sad or hopeless with these two in your life. Impossible.

Robert and the Garcias came over for dinner last night. We baked the chicken pie Laura brought on Sunday and everyone agreed that there is no need to make your own chicken pie if you have access to Bake Sale Betty. Della, who just started crawling last week, now appears ready to walk. She pulls herself up to standing position at every opportunity. Cito continues to be a joy (and continues being obsessed with "Star Wars").

I really think spending time with them is worth at least two chemo rounds in healing power.

Today is a "free day". No medical appointments. The sun is out and I think I'm going to run some errands on my motor scooter. Tomorrow, the poison drip resumes.

Cold and wet. Tired? You bet.

It's raining here again. In fact, as Robert drove me home from my oncology appointment today, the skies opened up and we drove home with the wipers on high through many flooded intersections. I came home to find the girls huddled together, as usual. Sorry for all the cat pics, but this view is what I look at for a great portion of the day, so you might as well too, Gentle Reader.

Dr. Liu could tell that my lymph node swelling was smaller. He was very encouraged, and said given my good blood test results and the fact that I hadn't lost any weight during the first round, we would keep the chemo regimen the same. Robert asked him about the cumulative effect of the chemo in terms of fatigue and nausea. Dr. Liu said I could expect the fatigue to get a little worse each round, but that if I managed to escape nausea and vomiting with the first round, I was likely to be nausea-free throughout my entire cycle, which was very good news indeed.

Yesterday was a nice day. Laura visited in the afternoon, bringing food from Carmella, and a Bake Sale Betty chicken pie, which I've been craving. We took a walk through the Castro and I did some shopping at Cliff's Hardware and Walgreens. Tonight the Garcias and Robert are coming over to share the chicken pie with me. Oh, and today Laura sent some homemade caramels along to me via Robert that she forgot to bring yesterday. I know my teeth are delicate, but I can't resist....

Heeeeeere's Evan!

Health update: I'm now pretty convinced that my lymph node swelling is smaller since chemo. My energy level still fluctuates, but I have a good period of a few hours at least once a day, and I'm still walking at least once a day. My fridge and freezer are full to bursting, and I'm eating well.

Today I had visits from my former coworker Susan at the same time as my niece Stephanie and her almost-two-year-old son, Evan who live in Sacramento. I haven't seen Evan since he started talking so I was very excited to visit with him. He had a lot to say, mostly about "Mommy" and "bubbles" and "pumpkins", which was a word Steph didn't know he knew, but he said it clear as a bell when we passed a big bin of pumpkins outside of Bi-Rite.

The weather is summery still, and we walked along Dolores to 18th Street and had lunch at Delfina Pizzeria. Then we walked back through Dolores Park, stopping to watch some Mexican singers and dancers. Evan and I were both pretty sleepy at that point, so we packed them up for home when we got back to the apartment. What a great day. It's still gorgeous outside.

Here's a video of Evan engaging in his enthusiasm for bubbles:

Oh wait, the weather outside's delightful!

My eyes were a little too big for my stomach yesterday, energy-level-wise. When it came time to go to the Salomé dress rehearsal, I was so fatigued I couldn't get it together enough to put on shoes and had to beg off. I napped and dozed instead.

In the evening, Robert and Kevin arrived and Ingrid brought over all the fixins for her swedish-meatball, mashed potatoes, and marinated cucumber dinner (complete with lingonberry jam for garnish/condimento) and she and Robert sweated it out in my muggy kitchen making it all from scratch, while Kevin and I relaxed in the living room. It was a delicious dinner and I don't think I've eaten so much at one sitting since I started chemo. I used the remainder of Carrie's loaf of challah to make a summer pudding for dessert. You cook down berries with sugar and a little water, then add some uncooked berries to it, and then layer slices of bread with the crusts removed and the fruit slop inside a dish, then cover it with plastic and weight it down. The fruit juice gets absorbed into the bread and it ends up like a moist fruity cake. Delightful. And as always, I was relieved of KP completely, so the three of them left me with a clean kitchen. Delightfuler still.

Today, it's like summer again, in the high 70's. Kathy drove down from Petaluma this morning and we took a little walk so I could buy a chicken breast to tempt Junie's appetite (she's been off her feed lately), then we settled into some serious shrinkydinks making, sitting in my bay window. She's the only other artist I know who's expressed an interest in learning the process and the tricks I've developed, so it was deeply satisfying to me. I can't show a picture of what I'm working on, because it's a gift for someone, so here's the view we saw as we worked. I really love my apartment in all kinds of weather.

Oh, and guess which celebrity sent me a handwritten note in response to the thank you letter I sent her after meeting her at the Paramount. Yeah, her. I *knew* she was as nice as she seemed.

Eunice the Aeonium

Yesterday was delightfully social. Mike Wade came over, bringing lunch from Bake Sale Betty, along with a lot of homemade Indian food from my coworker Swetta. I haven't been able to try her lentils yet, but they look great. After we ate, we went shopping at a yarn store nearby, ImagiKnit, so that Michael could buy some yarn to make socks for me. :)

A couple weeks ago, when we saw Carol Burnett, Matty brought an elaborate gift bouquet for her in the car. After the show, we found this little bit of succulent next to the car, that must have broken off when he was getting out. Robert said it could be planted and would take root, so I saved it. Yesterday Michael brought over the proper soil mix and a little pot and planted it. I named it Eunice, after my favorite Carol Burnett character.

Later in the afternoon, my goddaughter Lizzie stopped by. She and Mike are both avid knitters, so they both sat there knitting away while we chatted in my living room. We all went to the farmers market together, then came home and chatted (and knit) some more. Then we had an early dinner at Starbelly down the street. I was tired but pleasantly so.

Today I am attending the dress rehearsal of "Salomé" at the SF Opera. It's one of the operas I really like, and it's only 1 hour and 45 minutes long which will keep me from getting fatigued. After that, Ingrid is showing up at my house with a swedish meatball dinner for me and Robert and Kevin. I haven't really had a chance to talk to Ingrid about her recent trip on the trans-Siberian railroad so I'm really looking forward to seeing her ( in addition to eating meatballs made by a real Swede!)

The weather outside is frightful

This would have been the perfect day to stay swaddled in my mother's crocheted afghan, watching "Fall of Eagles" (just finished all 68 episodes of "Upstairs, Downstairs" last night), but alas, it was the day of my dentist appointment. So I had to venture out into the monsoon.

Mercifully, he was able to patch my broken tooth with some composite, and didn't even have to numb me. I was in and out in 30 minutes. I love my dentist. It's a temporary fix, so no more butter toffee for me for the time being. I got a little choked up telling him my news, but it's only natural; he's been my dentist for 23 years. I think he got a little choked up too, but he's so stoic and manly, it's hard to tell for sure.

I've hesitated to mention this, because I'm afraid it might be wishful thinking, but I think the lymph node swelling is a bit smaller, and it's not bothering me as much. *FINGERS CROSSED*

Holla! (and Roses!)

Yesterday was a particularly lovely day. Colleen arrived at my apartment at around 10, and we took a long walk through the neighborhood (I decided to treat the hip pain with more movement rather than less, and it's barely noticeable today, so I think I made the right choice). Then Robert came and picked us up and drove us to the Presidio where we brunched at The Presidio Social Club. Really good eggs benedict and french fries. :) After Robert dropped us off, we walked some more and Colleen bought me these bodacious roses before taking BART back to Albany.

Today my former coworker, Carrie, brought over a beautifully composed salade niçoise, and this gorgeous homemade loaf of challah. Along with a chocolate chip challah, and numerous biscotti, and some chocolate energy bars (Carrie makes the best biscotti of any I have ever tasted). I didn't think to take a snap of the salad before we destroyed it, but here is the rest of the challah. What beauteous bread. Delicious and perfectly crumbed as well.

I'm so lucky in my friends! Really feeling well these days and I'm going to try to make the most of this week, since chemo infusions start again next Wednesday.

Renecito and Della Visit

Health: Feel ok, though a little tired. Eating fine. Still going out for at least a walk around the block once a day. Hips are hurting - from the neupogen? Dunno. Only hurts when I walk.

Holly brought the kids over for a visit today. I showed Cito how to make a shrinkydink and he chose the AT-AT (camel robot things) from Star Wars. We turned his finished product into a pin:



Della crawled for the first time (at home) today, and continued practicing it at my place. This new skill allows her to terrorize Junie in many new ways, which left Junie hissing at the air all alone in the kitchen an hour after they'd gone. Sorry the video is sideways, I forgot I don't have the option to rotate it when I'm doing a movie.



Ooh, and on her way in, Holly snagged a brand new Cuisinart Pro for me for only 60 bucks at the sidewalk sale in front of my apartment building. SCORE!

Della!

Cheryl and Laura brought dinner over last night (pot roast and polenta, yum), and Robert joined us. We had a lovely evening, though I started to fade once I'd eaten. I must say, I could get very used to this treatment. At the end of the evening, I had a nice full belly, some nice leftovers in the fridge and a spotless kitchen.

This morning I rode my scooter up to Kaiser to have my blood drawn to see if I need to continue the neupogen injections. Afterward, I stopped by to visit my best medicine: Della. Even though she hadn't had her morning nap, she was very cheery and fun, as you can see. I didn't stay long. I'd been at Kaiser a long time (busy day in both the lab and member services, plus they were doing flu shots so the lobby looked like Penn Station), and I think I might have overextended myself yesterday. So, it's back to the chair and my blanket and Junie with some DVDs and occasional dozing off for the rest of the day.

Oncology just called and confirmed that my white count is sufficient to discontinue the neupogen until next time. Yay! I won't miss stabbing my thigh.

Well, here I am...

Here's how I spend most of the day, in my brown chair, with Junie on my lap. Occasionally, she moves over to the couch to spend time in Violet's embrace.

Nothing new to report really. I'm feeling pretty good. I got through all of yesterday without taking a nap. Wrote some letters, took a walk to mail them mid-day, and went shopping at the neighborhood farmer's market in the late afternoon. I'm weary of stabbing myself in the thigh with neupogen every night, so I hope tomorrow's blood test shows that my white count is elevated enough to stop them after tonight. Otherwise, I have to do it for three more days.

In other news, I managed to pull out a filling while eating a butter toffee almond last night. Can't get into the dentist until Tuesday, but it isn't painful, so I should be fine. I'd been told I couldn't have dental cleanings until I was all done with chemo, because my platelet count is affected and I bleed easily, so this will be a big deal. The dentist has to assess what needs to be done, then call and consult with the oncology department before he proceeds. Oy! It's not like I need these teeth to last THAT much longer. Damn butter toffee!

Tonight Cheryl and Laura are bringing dinner over. Robert is joining us. It will be good to see them.

Living like a cat

I feel a little more energetic each morning when I wake up these days. Unfortunately, I still start to fade toward late afternoon. So I'm taking my cue from Junie. In the mornings, we sit in or around the bay window, so as to absorb as much Vitamin D as possible. Then we have a snack. Then we nap. Then we rest from taking a nap, and so on. It really is a nice lifestyle, if you ignore everything else that's going on.

I'm starting to experience some of the bone pain from the neupogen, but it's not a sharp pain; it's more like being sore from a workout, so I don't mind it really.

All other systems seem fine. The hydraulic one, especially, as I am constantly drinking something to help flush all the chemo out of me.

I know most people want to know "how I'm doing", meaning, emotionally, and that's something that changes minute to minute. I try to stay focused on getting through the rest of this week and continuing to feel a little better physically. The emotions run their own rollercoaster and take me hostage as a rider from time to time, but so far, haven't overwhelmed me. I don't imagine this is something I will ever get used to, nor am I sure that anyone could.

Meanwhile, I try to stretch and lounge and soak in some rays and live like a cat.

Baby love and sleep

The post-chemo fatigue has really hit full-force now. I haven't done much the past couple of days, but my friends are taking good care of me. Last night, Kevin and Robert made dinner, and Holly, René and the kids drove me to Robert's. After we ate, I was so tired, I lay on Robert's couch and dozed. Della eventually fell asleep herself and joined me.

The neupagen injections are weird, but so far haven't been a problem, and I haven't had any "bone pain" from them yet. I still have a fairly full fridge, but I'm making my way through the provisions whenever I wake up from a nap.

Babies and cats and sleep and light meals are what I need now.

Oh, and the neuropathy went away (yay).

Pins and Needles

I woke up this morning to give Junie her shot of insulin, and when I opened the fridge to get it, I wondered why my fridge door was covered with crust. Then I realized it wasn't at all. My fingers weren't feeling the entire surface. I say it's like pins and needles, but more precisely, it's like there are tiny little areas scattered about the surfaces of the fingers on my right hand that aren't receiving sensation. So far, just an annoyance, and doesn't interfere with my use of those fingers. I'll just have to be careful about touching hot things for awhile.

I took my last dose of anti-nausea drugs for this cycle at 9 and my morning yogurt seems to have quelled the last bit of gut burn caused by the decadron. I seem to have gotten used to the zofran, because I don't get the headache anymore.

For now, I'm all set to begin my neupagen injections at home each night, and I'm waiting for the fatigue to set in. They say to expect it in 2 to 5 days. So I'm laying low.

Resting a lot today so I can go to Matty's father's birthday party tonight. It's a small gathering and Matty lives just 3 or 4 blocks away. I really like Matty's parents, and Bob, his father is Matty's connection to Carol Burnett, having gone to UCLA with her. Last night Carol told Matty she has his mother Sandy's paintings all over her Santa Barabara home. (HOLLA SANDY!)

Me, Carol Burnett, and my sweet friend Matty

Matty's father, Bob, went to UCLA with Carol and was part of that whole theater department crowd she hung with before the mysterious stranger gave her the money to go to NYC.

Carol Burnett!

What a wonderful way to end my last day of chemo cycle 1. I had great energy all day, we barely made it to the theater on time, but we did make it on time. Her show was great, she's amazing and she was so sweet to us backstage.

I'll have to post the one of the three of us in a separate post. This blogging tool keeps turning the pic sideways.

Chemo Day 3 Report

Karen was my buddy today. We were whisked right in and I had a new nurse today, David. Cute and efficient and as easy with the IV needle as Theresa, who was home sick today.

Love 2nd and 3rd day chemos cuz there's only one bag and it goes quick. So far, Karen is my best crossword helper, which is what I expected. We made a lot of headway.

Still feeling great. Had a good night's sleep, my appetite is good. No nausea. I'm in a great mood. Bring on Carol Burnett!!!!

FYI...I still have my hair and don't need the cap yet, but I wanted to show it off. Mike Wade made it for me and it's perfect. I want socks to match it now.