Hello Old Friend

So, last Wednesday I go with Patti to a pre-screening of the movie "Julie & Julia," a movie about food and cooking and blogging, and end up in the emergency room the next morning with a gall bladder attack, partially a result of the food I've been eating since radiation. Leave it to Scott to point out the irony of THAT particular sequence of events in my life.

It's the second time I've had to visit the emergency room for this particular problem, so it's time to visit a gastroenterologist to prevent future problems (they did find some gallstones when they did the testing), which I probably should have done last time, but since I was in the middle of radiation treatments at the time I figured I already had enough on my plate. I do find it somewhat amusing that the diet I've had to adopt and the weight I have lost as a result of the radiation are doubtless contributory to the development of this problem. (But...I'm still not going to eat yogurt!)

Of course, it makes me wonder what else is coming down the pike - after all, it is not uncommon for people like me to actually die of complications from cancer treatments rather than the cancer itself. Quite frankly, that's just unfair - "She died after a 5 year battle with gallstones" doesn't sound nearly as impressive as "She died after a 25 year battle with cancer!" (Not that I'm going anywhere soon, mind you).

I did have my regular visit with my oncologist last week (and in a further ironic twist, she did an abdominal exam that revealed nothing remarkable). All is well. I do have to have my follow up PET/CT scan at the beginning of September but there is no indication right now that it will be anything but a routine surveillance study.

Yesterday, I got to have lunch with an old friend that I hadn't seen for a few years (although we have kept in touch via phone calls - he's not very techno-savvy!). George and I have known each other since I was 16 years old - he was a neighbor of my then-boyfriend Tommy. He was at my college graduation (I can still hear his "Wooooo!" from way back in the auditorium); I was at his first son's christening. He was with me when I got my first tattoo ("First?!") - he was getting one and didn't flinch once so I figured, how bad can it be? (Bad! Painful! Ouch!) and he taught me to play a mean game of Liar's Poker (I still carry the lucky dollar I won in some long-closed gin joint he took me to). I remember in particular a 4 day camping trip to Amagansett where we all got drunk and I got sunburned pretty badly, to the point where George and my boyfriend had to keep putting cold, wet towels on my arms and legs because I was practically hallucinating from the pain. He would drive us all around in his van (yes, it had a bed in the back - this was the 70's remember), or we would ride our Harley's together (OK fine, I was just a passenger on my boyfriend's bike) catching sunsets at the beach or going to concerts. He's not someone you would picture as my friend (does smoking, drinking, long-haired, redneck aging hippie give you the picture?), and he hasn't changed a great deal since we were 16 and 19 years old. He's not a rich guy, but he's blessed with a smart, patient wife and 3 sons that he is quietly proud of. We may not speak daily or see each other too often (he and his family live in Virginia now), but the memories of our times together make me smile (and sometimes cringe!) and it is comforting to know that I can always count on his friendship no matter what.

Chris's mom Julie (Taryn's grandma) is really struggling to get her health back, and is right now in the hospital with pneumonia (among other problems). She is frail, but very aware of her surroundings and enjoying the company of her family as she recovers. Please help her with your prayers.

Thankful, as always, for the terrific friends I have, both old and new. Blessings and Love to All.