lornagrl

Fifth Round of Chemo (cancer is getting boring)

I have decided to cancel the cancer because it’s beginning to bore me…

But first, I would like to post some good news.  After only three rounds of treatment my breast tumor is markedly smaller.  It seems that I am responding very well to chemotherapy.  I started my fifth round today, a new drug called Taxol.  There isn’t much nausea with this drug, but I will have some fatigue.  My hemoglobin was a little low and if it gets much lower I may need to get a shot.  But I plan to march to the produce market and get me some spinach and radishes.  Those foods are very high in iron.  (I just learned about the radishes today.) The fatigue is cumulative I’ve been told and I kind of took a punch last week.  Still everyone is telling me I look healthy.  And overall I am.

But a note on the first statement, I haven’t posted because this illness seems to have taken over my life a little bit and I am determined to change that. I am working on a photoblog and I just learned I got accepted into the BWAC Narratives show in Red Hook at the end of September.  So stay tuned for an announcement.

George!!!

First, my brother shaved his head in solidarity...

Now one of my flickr friends George did the same thing.  He had to wait until his show closed.  He was playing Sky Masterson in Guys and Dolls. 

I am absolutely touched at all the support I'm getting.

MTA strikes again...

Gothamist has an interesting post on how the New York City subway systems has once again let us down during poor weather.

I have been working from home most of this week but was planning on coming into the office on Wednesday.  I was actually standing on the Q-train platform with my new red wig, and ipod buds in my ear when I noticed that people were leaving the platform. I went to the token booth to ask what was going on and was told that there was no Q service in either directions but if I wanted a transfer to the F-train she would gladly give me one.  I didn't bother because I knew with my compromised immune system I should not be subjecting myself to a commute from hell.  Besides, I have long ago learned never to trust what MTA employees say about what's really going on when there are problems.  When I got home and checked the MTA website, sure enough I learned that the F-train wasn't running either.  This means that an MTA employee sent hundreds of people on a 1/4 of a mile walk on a humid sticky day only to find out the F-train wasn't running either.

My complaint is not that service was disrupted, after all this was an act of God and sh** does happen. What I find inexcusable was the MTA's lack of communication not only towards the general public but within their own staff. 

Needless to say I worked from home again yesterday.

Chemo..round three

Chemotherapy can best be described as a very, very bad bender that takes almost three to four days to recover from.  Thanks to pharmaceuticals, I have not spent my days praying to the porcelain goddess. Instead I have spent them anchored to my bed and begging for the nausea to stop.  The thought of food or anything edible makes me turn green and I am very sensitive to smells.   

I do have moments of energy and thanks to a laptop I am able to work from home, from my bed if necessary which is what I've been doing today.  Last round I had to call in sick the Monday after.  This bout hasn't been as bad as the other two.  My brother has been a saint.  He comes up from TN. for every treatment and I think he's bored to tears.  My treatments are on Friday and sometimes all I can do the few days after is veg in front of cable TV.  This Saturday we did manage to go get a henna tattoo on my bald head after my Neulasta shot.  It didn't come out as dark as I would have liked but I think it's pretty cool.

Wigs are a little uncomfortable in the hot weather and I wanted another option. I am thankful for a good shaped head.   

LG vx8700

I love my new cell phone.  My two year contract was up so I was due for an upgrade (the battery was going on my old phone anyway).  I was thinking of getting a blackberry phone but didn't want to pay the extra $40 a month for access.  I mean, just how hooked up do I need to be anyway?  I usually don't rave about cell pones but this just looks too sleek.