The Arkansas Travelers

The Arkansas Travelers
Hi Family & Friends,
A few people have mentioned that there hasn’t been a blog entry in months and I realized I have been remiss in keeping folks updated. In this case no news has been good news.
Things have progressed well over and I am gradually getting back to normal (hold the smart assed comments). With the exception of mild anemia, all blood counts are good. The doc has me on iron with vitamin B12 & folic acid to help restore those red blood cells. The energy and stamina have really improved over the past couple months – I was beginning to wonder if I’d ever get back to baseline. I began going back to the gym about a month ago to do cardio work like stationery bicycle, treadmill & elliptical trainer with some light free weights & resistance machines. My trainer, Jesse, has been so upbeat and positive as always and is such a wonderful motivator even for big lard asses like me. The goofy thing was I had been working out for about 3 weeks when I went for the November appt in LR and found I gained 8 more lbs – of course that was right after Halloween. With the 1st transplant I lost 30 lbs and gained 20 back then with the 2nd I lost 20 lbs and gained 40 back. Nonetheless to say I have some “heavy” work to do but I’m not going to hammer myself too hard since all I’ve been doing for the past 6 months is lying around and eating. I’ve always been a talented eater.
Next week is the last vaccination, #12, and then I return in early January for 3 days of final testing. From then on we will send monthly blood work and then most likely visit LR every 3 months for testing. It’s hard to believe I’m at the end of the study – it all began on December 9th last year. Mary Jo and I had a long talk with Dr. Van Rhee last month about what to expect from here on out and the outlook was different and better than we expected. The possibility of relapse will always be there but there is no way to predict the type (there are many ways one can relapse) or when it could happen. The bottom line is that I can now proceed with my life like some other brave, determined and inspirational friends have done after fighting cancer. One cannot help but notice that there always many people who are much worse off yet live on with incredible strength and courage. I now have time that did not appear to be there a year ago. Who could not consider that fortunate? A year ago at this time I did not know what to expect with the so called “terminal” disease diagnosis, but now I expect to resume life where I left off which includes being a “terminal” wise ass. It has not been that bad compared to many others.
I spent the last 2 ½ weeks up in Ohio visiting family. I was so nice because there was plenty of time to do what I wanted. I spent hours driving all about the state and around Mansfield where I was born and raised. The first week was based out of Westerville just north of Columbus with MJ’s mom. I could not have picked a better time because it was the week before the Michigan game. Columbus lives and dies with Ohio State so there was massive hype. I did not get to go to the game (tickets were scarce and going for about $1,500 each) but was on campus the morning of the game and never saw such a mass of scarlet and gray clad humanity in my life. They had hot dog stands and clothing stands up on the sidewalks, bars were open at 0800, and there were signs every where – it was a carnival atmosphere. The following Saturday morning (Thanksgiving break) I was on campus for 2 ½ hours taking pictures and didn’t see 10 people – what a contrast. I know all you UT/OU fans can appreciate the hate and disdain for cross state rivals, and the same is so true for Ohio State (the real OSU) and Michigan. I don’t hate Michigan fans; they can’t help it that they are Cro-Magnon, knuckle draggers! You know what the average Michigan student gets on their SAT’s? Drool!! And you know what you call a good looking woman on the Michigan campus? A visitor!!
We then spent Thanksgiving week at my sister’s in Cincinnati and had a great time even though they’re Michigan fans after living close to Ann Arbor most of their lives. A few years ago they wised up and moved to Cinci. I actually think they felt out of place there with having IQ’s > 70, and no genetic deficiencies and all. We’ve obviously had a lot of fun with the rivalry through the years. I also got to visit most of the family left in the state. It was really neat to see everyone again.
On the home front, MJ started a new job with the pain management team at Harris Methodist FTW a few weeks ago. She is now is sharing a position with another APN then in the New Year will transition to full-time. This type of stuff is right up her alley with end of life issues, etc. She is still teaching her on-line course on palliative care for the UT system 2-3 times/year. She could conceivably work out her career with the position at Harris so that is good for her plus there are the benefits of working in the big system. Our kids are all doing fine with school, work, etc.
The great news is I am returning to work with PECA next week at about 20 hours/week initially until we see what I can do but I expect to eventually go full-time. I am really excited and am so appreciative of my dear friends Bob and Kasey for keeping a spot for me even if I couldn’t do clinical work – something they promised since I was first diagnosed. Think about it. How many employers would do that? It is difficult to explain how comforting it is to know you will have a job waiting when you and they don’t know if you will ever be able to return or in what capacity. These are special people.
So anyway that’s the current scoop and I promise to enter blog entries more regularly. We hope you all have wonderful holidays and Happy New Year. I will post this on the blog with some pictures from Ohio at bigdlehman.blogspot.com.
Love you all,
Don