November 9^th, 2012                                                                                        105 Days Post Treatment

 

Hey Now Everyone,

I had my appointment yesterday at 3:00 PM. Aside from a couple of punch list items concerning how to better increase my salivary production et al, the results of the PET Scan were available and they show NO Cancer Cell activity whatsoever. I am currently cancer free. I will re-scan in 6 mos, and 6 mos after, this puppy will string out 5 years, out as far as responding to treatment, my body did just that!

Though my journey isn’t over, my place in time is so very positive. Of the 6 or 7 others who were in my bullpen and who’s advice I sought throughout this process, none of them have had a recurrence, so I’m planning on joining that group. As we used to tell the security guards as we went backstage at a show, “I’m with THOSE guys!” In this case, I am with the survivors!

It is a HUGE load off my back, and though I was certain I would hear that, I wanted to erase all doubt. It’s the same feeling when you’re up 3-0 in games in the World Series and you have a lead in the 8^th…..it still ain’t  over, and you still have to push forward.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of you, who’s prayers and support got me through this. I don’t know if the story is over, do I continue to BLOG here, how does this end, or continue?……I don’t know, but it has been a dandy way to communicate to everyone, more than 12,000 hits to the blog, can you believe?

Again, I am humbled by all of it. Tell me what to do…keep on chatting, let it drift, transition over to a Real Estate Blog……? I’m stumped, but that will be a concern for another day. Till then, ya-freaking-hoo!

Across the Lazy River,

TS

November 4^th, 2012                                       

 Well Hey Freaking Now, if that wasn’t the wildest 3 weeks of up and downs, mostly ups…..psychedelic baseball if I might, the kind that has perfection and guile and fantasy and amazement and the pure and simple notion of breaking on through to the other side…….superstitions coming and going, lifetime memories being crafted, joy, excitement, community, bliss and satisfaction, maybe even a dash of redemption just for good measure…..so many people seeking the same result, the same outcome, the same goal, and then coming together exponentially upon the shared and calamitous moment…..throw in a pretty much private Jimmy Buffet show at The Fillmore on 10-18, where 800 of us Parrotheads had that same notion in mind, fins to the left, fins to the right in full Fillmore Pink lighting, oh my!

The family was able to attend many games during “the run.” We used to call a pack of three or six in any one town a “run” in the ol’ GD days, why not now? The only difference is that the baseball run just dangles out in front of you, always in danger of ending, drastically and sadly, at any moment……living on the brink….the Grateful Dead simply packed up and moved on, where they ever here at all?

 

There were a lot of tears shed in the Bay Area in October, mostly of joy. The Giants were my constant when I was down and dirty this year. Day games and off days were the shits, nothing to do at night, nothing to pass the time so that I could go to bed at a legitimate hour and get my much needed rest. The baseball season takes on its own personality, and we are so good, our announcers so stellar, the park so fun, that it is hard to take your eyes off the passing of the games for fear off missing something….sound familiar?

 My tears came after final out, when the joyousness of the moment, sharing it with Kiki and Sam and some very close friends and BIG fans here in Lafayette (no driving) I knew that the year didn’t have to be known as the year I battled cancer and the ensuing treatments but perhaps more the year could be remembered more for the Giants…..it took a lot of the sting out of it. They flowed when Larry Baer, Giant’s President and CEO, when interviewed in the hallway in his still dry suit and orange tie, spoke of the life lessons that this team had to offer such as and primarily, never giving up, fighting through adversity, keeping your goals out in front of you, that quitting or throwing in the towel was just NOT in the equation. My red wristband, on since Matt Chaney gave it to me when I got diagnosed, says “Never Give Up,” on it.  I haven’t taken it off since the beginning of February, which ironically parallels the first days of Spring Training…….my cancer has done the same with the 2012 season, and if the Giants can come out on top, why not me?

 We’ll all soon find out as I have a PET Scan scheduled for Tuesday the 6^th, with results known at my Oncologist appointment on November 8^th in the afternoon. I have had two prior scans. The first was the one that determined the cancer was only situated in my throat and neck……that was a good news day back in February. The second was after my 2^nd of 3 rounds of chemo sometime in late April….those results showed that the tumor in my throat, shaped oddly like the island of St. Croix, about 1 CM long (almost an inch) had been reduced to nothingness, invisible to the unaided eye, and the two bumps in my neck were down 85%-90%.......that, too, was a good news day……I’m looking to go 3 for 3….just for kicks, let’s call them home runs, so if Pablo Sandoval can blast 3 in a game in the presence of Sam and Tom Stack, then why can’t I hit three home runs, albeit over an 8 month period. Easier still, I reckon.

 

I set myself up for a mini-fall when I counted down the chemo days in memory of famous sports heroes, only to find that the 3-6 weeks post radiation stood to be the roughest of the lot, surprising and uncomfortable, painful and limiting, burning outwardly after so many weeks of being burned from the outside in. It had nowhere else to go, so it just simply reverses field and re-cooks you. My neck peeled for weeks, my feet peeled at 6 weeks, and my neck/throat is swollen even now, making swallowing hard in the AM until I’m up long enough for my lymph nodes to drain some…..so, I don’t want to get ahead of myself, I have immense fucking respect for the cancer that took life in me, so I wait to fully exhale till after I hear the good news….no champagne till you close escrow, know what I’m sayin,?

 

I want to share one story with you before I close. It was at Game One of the World Series, and I was in our Field Club seats with Sam. Earlier in the day, I had a phone conversation with my old boss from the bar in the Virgin Islands back in ‘84-‘85. He lives in Charlotte and was a receiver on the undefeated Miami Dolphins 1972 team with Warfield, Griese (his roomie), Kiick, Csonka, Jake Scott and the rest. His name is Karl Noonan, and “tree” (VI patois) years ago he went through a bout with cancer that ravaged his back. He says the scars look like he got bit by a shark on a surfboard……I had never before heard him out, got the real deets of what he went through, even though we keep in touch and communicate…..that day I took the time to really find out, to listen…….well, after the 5^th inning of the game, everyone in the stadium including players, coaches and the umps, more than 42,000 strong stood up and held aloft a sign on which they had filled in a name. It was a MasterCard promotion with MLB that whose slogan is Stand Up to Cancer……….I looked down with tears welling in my eyes at my 8^th grader’s sign that said “My Dad.”

 

Mine said Karl Noonan.

 

And That’s What’s Up,

 

TS

 

 

October 12^th, 2012                                                                           77 Days Post Treatment

 

Bless me people, for I have faltered, it has been more than 3 weeks since my last epistle, and these are my stories…..wow, what a run! I left you off at Kiki and I attending Crosby, Stills & Nash. They were better than perhaps I have ever seen them. The Fillmore is so magical, because we get to within 20 feet of the stage and just drink it in. They opened with Carry On, and the energy and thrust of the music lifted me…..it was like back in the days with Jerry and the Boys….you could hear a song like “Playin’ in the Band”  a hundred times, but then something happens in your life that affects it dramatically, and the words take on a completely different meaning.

Such is the case, as you can imagine for me, with Carry On…..cause that is exactly what I’m doing, every day…..I’m getting better folks, and a magical night with those Hall of Famers did a lot for me. They played everything except the predicted and awaited Suite Judy Blue Eyes. Next time they come, I’m buying tickets for BOTH nights, then I won’t miss a thing. Like buying tickets for 17 Grateful Dead shows on a tour. We were certain not to miss a thing! I get goose bumps just thinking of that time.

 So, at about 40 days post treatment, my feet peeled, mostly the heels and all around the toes…layer by layer. Took that in stride. Swallowing had been difficult up to about 60 days, but we are getting through that now too.

On the upside, we have weaned me off the morphine….I was at 3-4 pills (don’t ask about the MG’s, don’t know) a day during treatment, and hello, will that make you foggy? We knocked those down quite a bit, evolving to a 25 MG patch that I placed on my chest for 3 days at a time, then to a 12 MG for 2 weeks, then, POOF. DONE. My doctor said if I had pain, hit the Aleve or Tylenol, let’s put the heavy stuff behind me, and it is. I had my feeding tube removed 10 days ago too, simply didn’t need it. Donated all the equipment (drip systems, larger syringes, the balance of my canned food) to families who don’t have insurance, and that feels good.

So, I am eating just about everything. Had my first burger the other day, that went down nicely. A blessing has been that I am eating more slowly, cause I must masticate everything or it won’t fit down my swollen neck/throat. Recently, the gland areas and throat, the areas that had been attacked and under siege for the past 5 months, have rebelled after the fact and swelled up, making pills hard to put down first thing in the AM. It gets better during the day, I can get through a lunch. Mexican food is back without salsa, Chinese, my good veggies…….though I am eating much like a horse, I have only put on about 5…..call it 8. I went from 197 to a low of 167 (that was a bad day) and am hovering around 175 now, which is good. My friend Kelly told me now is the time to “re-sculpt” my body. Who knows if I will ever see 197 again? Good riddance. My target weight could be in the 180’s, and that would be sweet.

Kiki has been amazing. Her ability to understand the medical process, the understanding of what drugs do what, her advocacy when I needed to speak up and about my treatment….the why’s and how’s of what we were going through. She always had a blended morning drink awaiting me, the fridge was stocked with what I could eat at any one time, and we worked foods in as we got better. I love her for her tenacity and ability to juggle and handle the house, Sammy, the shopping, starting the day each day. She has been so special. I got cranky here and there, prone in bed often when she took off for work, but her strength helped me immensely and got me back on my feet in what the doctors are saying is WAY ahead of schedule.  And all of you, the same…..I’ve been getting jabbed recently for not blogging by folks who have my link always open on their desktop……you all humble me.

I only have one more year of coaching Sam in basketball, and thank God, I have been given the chance. It was February 2^nd when I was diagnosed, and I went to his game after the appt. He scored, defended, rebounded, dove for loose balls…..I sat in the top row, away from the rest of the Dads, and a tear went down my cheek. I simply was not ready for this to be the end, not by a mile! How could I leave an 8^th grade boy and his beautiful Mom, just poof? It didn’t work for me then, and it doesn’t work for me now. I have so much more to do, not the least of which is getting these young men ready for a full season. My voice is strong, please, someone, warn the refs!

Kiki just returned from a well-deserved chataqua to Sedona, AZ with Carla. There they simply got off on the rocks, formations, petroglyphs, arches, oh my, makes me yearn for another trip to Zion. She needed the break, I haven’t been a social animal, along with my quirks and errors, so I’m glad she got away to refresh. All you care-givers out there, make sure to do the same, keep yourself fresh for the battle at hand.

As many of you know, I had a few friends back in the day on the Boston Celtics of the mid-80’s, the champions. From that era I have maintained friendships, deep ones with Bill Walton, shooting guard and current Wizards asst coach Jerry Sichting, KevinMcHale, and Bird if I ever see him….he’ll just call ya rookie. Anyway, from that group was the equipment manager, who has morphed from that great job to a job as Springsteen’s Road Manager. Instead of washing dirty socks, he’s telling Bruce what time soundcheck is…..can you dig that? And I thought I was blessed. Well, Wayne has a pair for my sister and I on November 30^th in Oakland, I’m working on a 4 pack for Sam and Kelleher. As I type, Bruce is singing about the “Land of Hope and Dreams,” with the E Street Band keeping up…..”this train, full of saints and sinners, losers and winners, this train faith will be rewarded, dreams will not be thwarted,…..tomorrow there will be sunshine and all this darkness fades.” He is my hope, my sole single voice, my leader, my poet laurete, the voice of my heart, and I will be close and rewarded myself in a mere 6 weeks.

We find our inspiration where we find it folks……from my man Matt Chaney 3 doors down, with 11 years of ALS and yet still having the ability to bound off the couch as he and I shared Buster Posey’s Grand Slam for the ages……my sister, who went through so much with me as we grew up with two eventual cancer victim parents…we worked so hard together…..Kiki for riding this out with me, Sammy for just being a 13 year old boy and trying to find his way, for a spell this year, without his Dad. But men stepped up….Bob Enright & Bill Walton taking him on the field before the Jerry Garcia Night at AT & T, The Chaney Family for showing absolute true grit…….

I am awake, I am alive, I want to give, I want to serve, I want to help the next guy going through this nightmare…….the Jesuits teach you to be a man for others, and it stuck.  Think about it as you make your way through your day.

Faith and Good Work will be Rewarded.

TS

September 19^th, 2012                                                                                     54 Days Outta Treatment

 

Hey Now Everyone,

Sorry for not checking in, been super busy trying to get better…..things are coming along, I guess they are. Went to the Doctor on the 10^th, he doesn’t have the best tableside manner, so I gotta tell ya, he didn’t necessarily lift the spirits of Kiki or me……the end goal is to ramp down the meds, notably the morphine, which though it is being received in small doses, CANNOT be quickly ceased due to serious withdrawals….so we are scaling down, and making great progress there.

 

I’m looking for signs….little more beard/goatee/moustache growing back, weight gain, energy…..it’s coming. Believe it or not, the right side of my moustache came out of this thing horizontally sliced in half, top to bottom. So, if desired (NOT) I could grow a little “frenchy,” real thin and straight….well, in the past two weeks, that growth is working its way back down to my lip, and I am ecstatic. Just show me a sign, Jesus, just show me a sign……all I am sporting now is a little soul patch beneath my lower lip. That’s going to have to do it for now.

 

It has been a weird couple weeks since last I scribed…..still trouble getting outta bed, getting going, eating lots…..I had to cancel my Stage MC’ing at Lafayette’s Art & Wine Festival cause I was way worried about that much time in the sun, and heat…..imagine, I had to give up a mic that I’d have on stage all day intro and outro’ing bands in front of 1,000-2,000 people. I hate it when that happens. But I did go down for a spell on Sunday to see this HOT Santana copy cat band called Zebop. They are special, but I got tired in an hour and Kiki and I split to eat.

 

Sunday was a different day. Hung at home all day till about 2:00 PM then went down to see Kiki’s band, Dream Posse play. TONS of people came from far and wide to support her (and me) and we were touched. It got me fired up. Judy, Katherine, Rita, Joan, The Georges, The Carellas, Alison & Greg Vicas, Ilene Leibowitz, the Cliftons,Sue Cost and Dani Robinson, Mike and Shanon, Evie and Eric, the Pooles.  I could and should keep going. We are made our way down the street to see the Sun Kings after that. They do the best damn Beatles covers you’ll ever see, and my dear friend Drew Harrison who does the John part---(funny that a Harrison does the Lennon, huh?) worked me into the lyrics during HELP. Help is the song he played for me at the Lafayette Community Music Festival back in May and I joined him onstage to dance and sway and cry…..cause I need Help and I’m not afraid to ask for it. Net net, he got 1,000 people to cheer for me and support me in my fight against this freakin’ disease and it was beautiful. It gave me hope, energy, fire, legs, love, and spine tingling happiness…….I was with my tribe, I was saluted, I was hugged, I was loved….

That launched me into a solid Monday, which moved to a solid Tuesday and now today, Wednesday….I am getting up, getting dressed, hit the office meeting Monday, going to Crosby, Stills and Nash tonight. Perhaps I’ve turned a corner, I do know I’ll continue to need naps here and there (took one today) but the energy you have all given me throughout this process manifested itself into wind beneath my wings. I am determined to continue to battle, get out with my people, my clients, my family, my friends. EVERYONE tells me I look so much younger….that’s probably cause I don’t have a white goatee anymore.

I’m excited, people….I won’t get a scan till mid October or later, so I am still in limbo there, but we all know we killed this thing, and it is time for your TomCat to get it on and continue on my life quest to live with love, light, energy and be surrounded by my tribe at various junctures here and there.

 Kiki continues to be wonderful and supportive, trying to put weight on these bones (I’m up to 174 or so) and I am gorging on Chow Mein. Had my first burrito Monday, that stuck pretty good, even though it had no hot sauce and less flavor. And it went down with water, beer continues to be cerveza non grata right now.

 

Got a $1.4M listing this week…..I am humbled by the work of my angels. This one is conveniently located right around the corner, a family I moved in here 4 years ago. Job transfer, and they are leaving behind a beautiful, updated home with a new roof, pool, master suite, HVAC and more. In this market, it will be gone in a week!

I want to give a shout out to my college roomie and Best Man (and Best Guy) in my wedding, Dan “Harmon” Kelleher. He had his nagging hip replaced on the 11^th, and for the first time, we were both taking morphine at the same time. We were always more the beer and tequila shots guys, anyway…..hang in there, Harm, you’ll be better than ever, and you won’t have to do radiation and chemo to get better! Such a deal!

 

I’m coming around people, I’m coming around. Continue to stick with me, keep the cards coming, they are stacked 8 inches high now, you are an amazing batch of people. Don’t feel bad if you haven’t sent one yet, send one tomorrow, I’ll read it and cherish it. I have the best friends in the world, and I don’t want to say goodbye to any of them yet!

 

By the time you read this, I will have danced and cried at the harmonies of the American Beatles, CSN, playing The Fillmore tonight, and I promise you I will sing and sob during Suite Judy Blue Eyes, the anthem for my long ago fallen comrade, Bert Kirby Haverly, my Cassidy, a spirit gone way too soon, but the guy who took the time to scour the Grateful Dead Parking Lot in Ventura CA, July of 1983 and bring me Kiki (and Carla). Yes, it was Bert, and that was his song, and this will be Kiki and my night. I am yours, you are mine, you are what you are…..don’t let the past remind us of what we are not now.

I love you all.

 TomCat

 

 

September 4^th                                                                                   40 Days Outta Treatment

 

Sometimes I’m up, sometimes I’m down…..damn this thing. Let’s start with some good news. I sold a $1,575,000 house last Friday, that’ll close early October, so YAY! I brought the buyer in, an old friend from Grateful Dead Tour back in 1984/85…..he’s doing pretty well for himself, eh? He’s a lawyer in SF and really on top of his game. The home is here in Lafayette. So, that’s exciting, and important, for sure. Puts me on pace for my biggest year EVER! Hello, go figure. It’s those angels I’ve been talking about. I know I am blessed, and they show up from time to time. And guess what we found in the garage amidst all their crap…..a tray of cassettes with labels like “Ventura County Fairgrounds, July 21/22 1984,” and “Utica, NY 3-11-73.” A DeadHead lived here. I noted it on my Agent Inspection form…….just can’t figure if it’s the kids or the parents.

 

I am getting tremendous support here at home. Kiki has been stocking the fridge with items for me to eat, as I eat in stages……things for the juicer, things that I can get down for dinner, lunch. Right now it is fruits and protein shakes in the juicer, along with lots of pastas with white sauce. Chickens, potatoes, all sorts of veggies like broccoli and string beans and squash. Those are easy. Those don’t go in the blender, btw. Sam has stayed on top of his chores and that has been a big help.

The docs say my eating is way ahead of other patients. My big prob is the taste buds and the salivary glands. They aren’t producing, so it takes a lot of liquid to get things down. That can be frustrating. I have not necessarily been throwing the weight on. I still have the feeding tube which augments my diet. So, after a meal, I will ingest a can via the tube, and that is good for almost 500 extra calories. Still at about 172 and stable, so bummed a bit I can’t get up to 175 and keep it there. Maybe when burritos start tasting good…..understand that it is a challenge to keep weight on. Weird, huh? Huge kudos to Kiki for helping me on my quest to pack on a few. We have yet to run out of ice cream……

Kiki and me and some friends saw John Hiatt up at the Uptown Theatre in Napa on Sunday night over Labor Day. He was fantastic, played ALL his great songs. Honestly, I don’t know what else I would have wanted him to play. What a set list. Had musicians from Lake Charles, LA, Birmingham, and Nashville, so figure out the angles and approaches they took. Great show, great to hear some live music.

 

I want to get back to being me, get back to hiking hills and telling stories and seeing groups of friends and having the energy to get through it all….but that is not here yet, and patient I must remain. Thanks to my phone buddies who allow me to bounce stuff off them, and thanks to you for reading this…..the journey is hard, make no mistake, and I am not done yet, by a long stretch.

Next Doctor appt. is Sept 10^th. The next scan is in October, and everything rides on that. Kiki and I both visualize a clean body, just one that took a helluva beating……I want you to visualize the same thing….a cancer-free, non hot-spot scan result……..it’s powerful, and I want you to do it….just a mono-chromed scan paper with no colors!

 Love to all you all for coming back and staying behind me….send me an email, it’s cool, or post up a comment. I want to hear from you……

 

Keep On Keepin’ On,

TS

 

 

August 26^th, 2012                                                                                   31 Days Outta Treatment

 

I’m getting fired up a bit lately and warmly supported by friends who say, “You look a lot better, than when I saw you a couple of weeks ago! Your color is great and you look super.” You know how it is, that’s the nature. I’m seeing myself on a daily basis, and in all rites should be saying the same thing to myself. There is still the guy with the polluted system that aches for feeling better emotionally and physically. Give folks a couple weeks and I bet I do look a lot better…..I’ll take it, trust me.

So, I shifted the internal message the other day. Since I’m not necessarily in the forest fire at this time and I am in the defined “Recovery program,” then the message has to be altered.  I had Tracey down at the office print out some new language for the walls of my room and my other spaces.

 

“You Are Healing Every Day”

“Won’t you try just a little bit harder?”

“Get Outside and Exercise!”

“Lively Up Yourself!”

“Do a Little More Every Day”

 

I also set up some 3 week goals for myself to help begin the return of momentum, to fill some time, move forward and build up stamina….. little accountability items that keep me visible, interacting, getting the juice from my positive and inspirational friends. That’s the only way for a guy like me to crawl out of a hole. With this said, however, I still give ground and space to rest, recovery, healing, diet, recovering strength. At this time, it’s the mornings where I’m getting my rest.

 

So, today at the Niner’s ½ time I put on some sweats and saddled Jammer up. Kiki and Dream Posse were playing a winery in Castro Valley, beautiful place but an ALL DAY affair, 3 sets, no way I could hang, and  Sam was with friends. I went to my neighbor’s  Pat & George Noceti, and coaxed George (avid biker, tremendous condition) to walk the Lucas Circle Loop in our neighborhood. Accountability partner. We got up and over the hill and a couple more to boot, thus completing the most extensive exercise since treatment ended. Get out and exercise!

So, I will get to the Club this week for the first time since March. Begin training, stretching……….I’ve stabilized and begun to slowly put on some of the 30 pounds I’ve dropped since March 14^th. Maybe put back 20 instead, huh?

 Angel Delivery Service delivered my 2004 Jeep this week, formally, and I am now back on the road again, comfortable in my Jeep, completely serviced, ready to roll. You don’t know how much getting a car back under my butt has helped. Phew…..Thanks to Tracey and Shannon for that!

 I am healing every day…….I am eating lots of different solid foods, just trouble with the taste buds, no spices, toast, peppers. No pizzas or burrito’s yet, no burgers either, but pastas, chicken, Mac & Cheese all works just fine. Let’s just say I have moved up from puree, so yeah, that’s a  win.

 

I am getting stronger every day……

 

TS

 

 

August 22^nd                                                                                                         26 Days out of Treatment

 

 It’s been two weeks since I’ve taken the time to update you all. It may give the impression that this thing is “over,” but that is far from the case. These past couple of weeks have been a real trip. My face and neck continued to cook from within, and the throat is still a bit sore when swallowing etc.

The major issue was and is my head, getting my head around this.

At just about the point I last updated you, emotions took over, chief amongst them was a form of depression that I have never ever experienced. I just flat out got down, and couldn’t shake myself out of it by any measure. It went counter to what I should be feeling, or so I thought……I’m done, the treatment and punishment is done, in my heart I know I have beaten this thing, why am I bumming?

Oh, I know…..I have just finished being beaten to a pulp, taken to death-like places in the efforts to remove a thing that could kill me. In doing so, I have exhausted every ounce of fight and strength in order to beat it, my insides are torn and burnt, my life is upside down, what, I’m supposed to be cheery?

Nope, not true, and this is often the case for someone in my spot, especially in the 3^rd week or so post treatment. It’s common at this stage, the nurses have seen it…….so they prescribe me a pill that goes at this, but the caveat is that it takes a week or so to kick in, and during that week, I will be tired and worn out. I started it and quit it on Day 3, cause it just whacked me. That got me in trouble with my awesome nurse, so back on it I went, and currently am. It does help “pick me up” and the terrible tiredness has dissipated……we are phasing out one of the morphine’s now, with plans to scale down others so that I can clear myself from the clouds and get back to reality. I am off at least 50% of the stuff I started with, put it that way, and we are scaling back, which is cool.

It was anxiety, restlessness, moodiness all in one. I didn’t like it, it isn’t me one bit, but I had to give in to it, to the nurses, and get with the program.

In the midst of all of this, my car flat out died, dropped a rod or piston, and will cost over $5,000 to fix. That didn’t help one bit, cause now I was/am  stranded. I drive a Jeep Grand Cherokee, this one is my second one….so the doorbell rings  the other day and it is our close friend Tracey…..she just had her hair done at Kiki’s, heard the whole story, and drove over her daughter’s 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee that they were currently selling. Can you believe that?! The same year as the one I had. We worked out the price and I will own it by tonight. The angels are at work again. I’m stunned, and that has helped tremendously in turning the tide of emotion. By tomorrow I will be able to get out and about, maybe back to the office for a bit. Get myself back in the mix. Unbelievable.

We won’t have any scans done till October, so that will have to wait as things settle down inside of me.

For now, I’m doing well, still antsy, not getting much done, but planning on adding to my workload bit by bit. I just know that I am healing every day, and that is what counts.

I love you all.

TS