14: Treatment #3 is done so I'm halfway home!

April 8, 2004

Shame on me! Mom took me to my 3rd treatment yesterday and I didn't take any pictures! Sorry Mom!

The treatment went fine but I still have this darn cold so it's hitting me a little harder than last time. Hopefully the next few days will prove to be OK. I am on an antibiotic (again) and I'm sure that will help. The good news is I'm half way home!!! Three more to go and then I'm all done that phase. Yeeha!

Emotionally I've been doing OK, but a bit more down than usual. I just really don't want to do this anymore - I want to be normal again (well, OK, I've never been "normal" but you know what I mean). I don't want people to worry about me anymore, or feel sad for me. I know that's impossible - even I feel sad for me some days - and I am so blessed to have so much love being sent my way! But I just don't feel like me right now and I miss me!

My dear friend Cheryl called me Tuesday night to see if I wanted to go out to karaoke with her and Jetta - an invitation I would have snapped up in a heartbeat under any other circumstances! But because I have a cold and it was the day before my next treatment, I had to say no. I cried (thanks for the shoulder Cheryl). And I'm putting on weight - what's up with that! A big part of that is the lack of exercise because I had a cold all the time, but I know I'll be able to fix that once it (stays) warm long enough to get the bike out.

OK - so not the most positive chapter but an honest one (as usual). Once I get rid of this awful case of the fuck-its ... it'll be smooth sailing! ;>)

13: Seem to have caught another bug ...

April 1, 2004

Well, I seem to have caught some sort of bug that doesn't want to go away. Yesterday was the 3rd day of not feeling well and I was pretty miserable. Had hot and cold sweats (mostly cold), a major headache and was exhausted all day. Kevin took me to the doctor's in the afternoon to make sure I was OK. My temperature was actually low, they took some blood and my counts were fine - I've just got a virus of some sort. Tis the season I suppose!

I woke up this morning with a headache and a scratchy throat so will rest as much as possible today as well. No better day for it with all this rain!

12: More Music Therapy (you can't get too much)!

March 28, 2004

What an incredible weekend! Kevin and I went up Montréal to visit the Wheaton's. I was invited to coach Jennifer's quartet, Four the Fun of It, and it was just wonderful working with such a responsive and great group of ladies! Later in the day Lori and Andy came over and we all sang and ate and talked and ate and drank and ate and laughed until it hurt ... and ate! Needless to say we were treated like royalty! What else would you expect from the Wheaton's, eh?

11: Thank you to Boston Accent!

March 21, 2004

I wanted to take the time to publicly thank Boston Accent for being so understanding of my need to step down from the quartet. It was a difficult decision to make but with everything that is going on, I had to stop and truly prioritize my life, and right now I need to focus my energy on family and getting well.

Cheryl, Tricia and Karen have been very supportive of my decision, which is wonderful (thank you ladies!). I offered to stay with them through the two spring contests (HI and SAI) but knowing that the pressure might be taxing on me, and because they were ready to move on to the next phase (understandably), they recently held auditions and have found a wonderful new baritone – a woman named Julie from Sweet Adelines. The quartet still plans on being dual members of both organizations which I think is great! You can never get too much barbershop!

And a thank you to Adele Penkul, original bass of Boston Accent, for inviting me to come play with them in the first place! :>)

Thank you all for your continued support and thank you Boston Accent for the great times (and friendships)! I wish you continued success in the future and will be the one in the front row screaming for you to kick some you-know-what at contest! :>)

10: Feeling Well and Excited About Some Things!

March 20, 2004

OK. Four things I am VERY excited about!

1. I'm feeling really well! I felt horrible last week from a cold and had no energy at all. My blood counts were probably low so Dr. Poulin prescribed me an antibiotic and bam ... it helped tremendously! So I'm "just me" right now and that's wonderful!

2. My daughter, Brittany, came home for a few days over spring break and we hung out today shopping in downtown Portsmouth. Bought incense and candles. Fun!

3. I signed up for Relay for Life put on by the American Cancer Society. I'm putting together a team that will camp out at Portsmouth High School in late May and between all of us we'll be walking the track for 18 hours, raising money before hand, and having an amazing time.

4. I purchased the web address, www.breastcancerstories.com and will be building a community for people to share their breast cancer stories! Each person (for free) will receive an area where they can post journal entries and photos and whatever they want. It will be such a great outlet for them to share their stories, and for others to get better educated. There will also be a complete resource section with information on support groups, cancer facilities, cancer websites, hat companies, etc. Over the next few weeks I'll be asking local hospitals/cancer centers to help offset the costs of the site. If you have an interest or an "in" let me know!

Spring is in the air (despite all this weather crap).!

9: Feeling Pretty Good After Treatment #2!

March 15, 2004

I'm going to make this short and sweet. The 2nd treatment didn't hit me nearly as hard as the first one ... THANK GOD! The day after the treatment (Thursday) I felt completely normal and the 2 days after that I mostly just felt tired.

If this is a sign of things to come (in the words of D Dyer) bring it on! But hurry up because I really don't feel like playing this game anymore. ;>)

8: Treatment #2

March 10, 2004

My second chemo treatment was SO much easier than the first in that the anxiety was no longer there. I'm sure I'll still feel pretty crappy over the next couple of days but that's OK ... I now know what to expect. The whole process takes about 4 hours, between meeting with the good doctor, getting weighed in (I HATE that part), connecting your IV, giving you the pre-pain meds and then zapping you with the chemo meds. As you'll see they try to make you very comfortable while you're there, including a wonderful woman who gives you Reiki. I slept for a solid hour after she finished her session with me. Very low stress this time around and I have to think it will play a part in how I feel over the next couple of days.