Almost done with chemo and then...a treat

One more infusion for round 5 tomorrow and then round 6 three weeks from now and I'll be done. The ughs were really severe last time, but I bounced back very quickly, so I can't complain too much. (Just a little bit.) The mass has shrunk down to the size of a pea, and I'm hopeful that it will shrink away to nothing once round 6 is done. During the two weeks I have off from chemo between rounds, I try to be as social as I can and move around a lot. We've had really gorgeous weather here lately, so it doesn't seem like a chore to take a long walk.

Since I last posted, I've spent a day in Healdsburg with practically my whole gang of friends for Robert's birthday. I didn't feel up to spending the night there (he rented a gorgeous property there for five nights), and I regret that I didn't feel up to it, but I think i made the right decision. I don't sleep that well even in my own bed, and I get up several times a night, so I'm not a great roommate just now. Aside from that, I have also been to a couple of evening parties. I didn't stay late at either of them, but it's nice to see people and have them tell me how great I look. :-)

My big news is that I felt I really needed something to look forward to after chemo and the detox from chemo, so I got on a waiting list for a short cruise from Miami to Cozumel in early December. I'm not particularly interested in either of those places, and if I were simply interested in a cruise, I'd do it on this coast. The drawing card for this particular cruise is that it's a Turner Classic Movies cruise. The two hosts of TCM, Robert Osborne and Ben Mankiewicz, will be on board, along with Ernest Borgnine, Tippi Hedren, Eva Marie Saint and Norman Jewison (he directed "Moonstruck'). It will be four days of film screenings and onstage interviews with the stars, and of course, the usual blandishments of a cruise. (pools, casino, bars, gyms, endless food)

My friend Donald in NY is flying down to Miami to do the cruise with me. I was on the waiting list, but they contacted me today to let me know a suite became available, so I snagged it. We have a large suite with a sitting room and a private veranda. I'm flying first class to Miami, both coming and going, so I don't think it's a trip that will wear me out too much, and the activities are tailor-made for me. TCM is the default channel in my house and the four guest stars are associated with some of my favorite films. Plus, I worship Bob Osborne - all the behind the scenes info he imparts when he introduces the films, his gentle interviewing style when he does the "Private Screenings" episodes and even just his resonant voice. I'm so stoked about meeting him, even more than I am about meeting the stars.

So even though it's my third time undergoing treatment for this damn disease, between doing my artwork and now, having this trip planned, I think I spend most of my time in a place of hope and cheer rather than one of dread and despair.

No news on my art show. The cafe's "curator" (that term sounds pretty highfalutin' for a cafe, doesn't it?) whom I spoke to originally is no longer associated with the cafe, and the new one isn't responding to my emails, so I don't know if it will really happen, but I've sold a few framed prints to friends, and given a few away as birthday presents, so I feel semi-professional. It's great having my own mat cutter and being able to do my own framing. Custom framing is so expensive. I'm not currently enrolled in a linoleum printing class, so I haven't been printing lately. Given the location of the studio, I"ll really want to get a new scooter before I return to printing. I just threw the pig print in at the top because he's one of my faves, and I like my posts to have a picture.