Can we have a forum for "older" people with bc?
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Love you sisters
Just ordered "This Might Surprise You: A Breast Cancer Story", hope it's gonna make me feel good!
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I notified DB late on Wednesday night that driveway was passable, but he didn't see it until yesterday morning. His response was he would see us after the thaw. Given the way the weather is and that we are anticipating a huge storm on Sunday into Monday with a prediction of at least 12 inches of snow, it may be May before he gets here.
I forgot that I will need to dump the guest room in preparation for him painting the ceiling, so that buys me some time. I'd like to finish DD's room clear out first. I just have the long hanging side of the closet to finish today. I forgot that the lower side of the left hand side of the closet has a hanging rack that extends into the blind corner so there is no floor or corner storage there. There is a shelf above it and I am storing my Penn scarf and pop-pom hat there under the hanging bar which holds my Penn fleeces and sweatshirts. I use them on Homecoming Weekends and they share this space with light weight jackets purchased on our travels which I need to start using more.
I tried on all the summer weight clothing yesterday and there were only a few items that ended up being donated. I did move the slacks to heavier weight pants hangers because I now have the room for them. I found slacks in the primary closet that could be donated because they are too big now. Nice to be able to pass them on to someone who can use them. They were ones I wore to work, so they have seen only limited use since then.
I do have some bins of jewelry to go through from when I culled my old jewelry armoire and I have to decide what I will donate and what I might try to sell. I had this collection of seasonal pins, like Christmas, Easter, Halloween, etc that I would wear on my lab coat and will donate them. Someone may find them cute. There are some pieces I will ask DGD if she would like them.
I threw a pumpkin out for the deer yesterday and it is mostly gone. I still have a few left and may reserve them for next week when finding food will be a real challenge for them. Since we have fenced in the plants they were most likely to try to feed on, they have limited sources in the yard now. There's two evergreens they started to go after so that may be the next area we fence in this summer.
It is only 36 today after being nearly 50 yesterday. It's gray though so not an encouraging day for outdoor activity. Warmer than Chicago and Wisconsin, but still too cold for me.
Chris, glad you were able to find a work around so you can knit. Do you also crochet? I know you are quite the expert seamstress.
My mother was an accomplished seamstress, knitter and crocheter, but lacked the patience to teach me any of her skill set. I tried, but soon tired of the criticism. I did take sewing in school and have been more successful with those endeavors. I used to make my clothing and things for my children, could do basic alterations (like converting regular slacks into maternity pants when that was the style), have made valences and basic drapes (nothing with pleats), used a serger to make sweat shirts, placemats and table cloths, etc. I have not done much of this lately though.
Once I finish my closet and drawer clear outs, maybe I'll find time to go back to sewing. I bought some patterns to make doll clothes for my old (ancient) Saucy Walker. She needs restringing and new eyes, but I am having a hard time finding doll hospitals in this area. She needs a good refresh because DGD thinks she is spooky because her eyes went wonky from being stored face down. Otherwise she is in good shape and is still wearing her original dress (it is starting to disintegrate due to age). Her hair could use a fix as well, but like most 10 year old's (when I got her) I just needed to be a hairdresser, meaning she has what looks like braided bed hair.
I hope everyone has a great day and waving "hi" to everyone. Stay warm and safe if you are in the path of this storm or if you are also in a very cold area. If you are in a warm area, I'd like to get an invite to visit, lol.
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I can crochet, but it demands more from the left hand, so I will let it be. I am utilitarian in many things. Crochet is too holey to provide warmth.
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I started knitting again. I’d given it up last year because it made my shoulders tense 😄 but now I’m back at it. There’s a chance that after this treatment I won’t be the old me, so I can’t stop. I’m knitting like I’ve had ten coffees. Gotta live xD
Also, love your post
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@justforher I crochet all the time. It is my therapy. This year for Christmas I made a couple of dog sweaters for my DH's family dogs—much needed in this Colorado climate. Yesterday I crocheted a cap for my new look. I have several but none seemed just right. This one is light but holds the warmth while sitting at home. I have made scores of dolls, dragons, and animals (amigurumi), etc., for my grandkids. I think at some point their parents were glad I stopped. Each close family member has a special blanket and hats and scarves, etc. The list goes on. @mcbaker Right now I am making my DH a chair cover. He spends a lot of time in his office on his HAM radio leather chair and he says he feels the cold so asked me for one. There are lots of types of crochet stitches that are thick enough to provide warmth. I am always looking for the next project. Those of you who crochet or knit "get it."
Stay warm everyone. (The other Chris)
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Brrr weather a lot of you are having. We have had a mild mild winter. So mild the buds are out. This week though it’s snapped down to zero out there at night. Sunny ++. I’m walking to work today but will be bundled up! Here’s a photo from a recent walk.
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Just got my Mamo results back. 2 spots that look benign. Well, hopefully they are benign. Doctor appointment on Tuesday.
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@petite1 Sending you my hugs! Let's hope for the best.
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Does it also not make sense why you got cancer? It’s not in my family except that my mother had it when she was 80, and hers was stage 1 and an easier type. The genetic test was negative. I exercise daily, swim every day, walk a lot. I eat well and not too much. I don’t drink or smoke. I don’t get it. What went wrong? It seems like pure chance, then. I don’t know. Sometimes I wish there were a reason.
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Hi from temporarily mild NOLA. Yesterday & today the weather was delightful—no jacket necessary. It is forecast to pour this weekend, with temps in the low 60s/high 50s. (Glad I brought my windproof umbrella). I had a long travel day Thursday (2 hr layover in KC), but got to the hotel in time to register for the FAI conference, unpack (for both of us), walk to dinner (Luke’s), and hit one song circle before turning in—or attempting to turn in, as my room key card stopped working. Had to contact Guest Svces (on hold for 10 min). Took another 20 minutes for the janitor to come and body-slam the door open—when we got inside we found that the extra-secure deadbolt had deployed automatically. Only way to avoid the problem is to not use the security deadbolt knob. (In a hotel full of folksingers, I think we’re safe overnight without that second lock deployed).
Bob flew down this morning, leaving the house at 5 am in -35F wind chill. He wisely called for a taxi. After the general membership meeting, I went up to the room to wait for him and we walked into the Quarter for brunch at Tujaugue’s. Walked back, caught a panel and then a nap…or so I thought. Bob informed me that his keycard stopped working and i would need to go to the front desk to have mine re-keyed too. Sounds fine, right?
Not so much. See, the elevators are computer-controlled: punch in a floor# and the readout tells you which car to take. Half the time we get “System is busy<“ so we need to use the service elevators. Now, multiply that by 2500 people, most of them carrying instruments. We’re on the 33d floor—and there are two sets of elevators (fl 9-29 and 30 & above).Takes >10 minutes to get anywhere in the hotel. Finally got the keys re-programmed and into the room…and the same problem that always does whenever we vacation cropped up: Bob couldn’t log into his hospital portal to read EKGs (I keep trying to explain to him the concept of “vacation”). He normally spurns the unsecured guest network and buys the premium secure service—but this time his 2014 Windows laptop wouldn’t let him connect to the network; in fact, the unsecured network didn’t even show up in his :”Available networks” list. Oddly, I was able to get on just fine on my iPad Pro, As always, we wasted 2 hours we could have spent resting talking to tech support in the Philippines or India. And there was no solution—once home he’s going to have to go in person to meet with the hospital’s IT person. (I turned off all the firewalls in Windows Security, to no avail, so tech support says it must be a hidden firewall installed by the hospital because it’s a “work computer” even though he owns it). Maybe this time he’ll see the light and buy a Mac?
Went to Commander’s Palace for dinner. I’m discovering what being a foodie is like on a GLP-1 drug. I still get night cravings for inappropriate foods (though not true “food noise”) and eat stuff that nutritionists frown on, but in much smaller quantities. I also get early satiety, which means either wasting food or lots of leftovers (the room’s fridge is full-to-groaning). After we got back, I did another song circle, watched TV (on my iPad, as the hotel has no premium channels) and am about to turn in so we can sleep late tomorrow morning. There’s a Cafe Beignet in the hotel (bigger beignets than Cafe du Monde) and they sell king cakes too. Gonna bring home a couple (one for the clinic at Union Health). The city (especially the Garden District) is all lit up in Mardi Gras colors for the parades, which start tomorrow.
Forecast here for Monday will be temps in the 30s with wind chill in the low teens. Guess I’ll be pulling my down coat out of the suitcase here, instead of when we get to Midway.
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@wren44 I haven't seen you posting here for a while, but good that you are still active in the threads. I was wondering if you ever did chemo or surgery when you were first diagnosed?
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Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for a kindness.
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justforher, I lactated for five years. FIVE! I still got BC.
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just for her, I had a lumpectomy with poor margins. When she went back for better margins a separate tumor was discovered with different markers. One was pr+ and the surprise was pr- At that point I wanted a mastectomy which I got. No radiation or chemo. Five yrs anastrozole. I think it was the pr minus that metastasized. I had two rounds of Xeloda and stopped because I was so dizzy I couldn’t walk. Ibrance gave me 3 yrs along with Letrozole. When it went to my liver we switched to Doxil and Faslodex. I had a trip planned so that was taken into account. I went to Luang Prabang with my son, daughter and son in law. We had a day in Bangkok each way because of schedules. It was absolutely magical and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I was 71 at first dx and 81 when it metastised
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Chris, your BC was ER-, so lactating or lack thereof had no bearing on your risk.
Not a very productive day. Bob let me sleep till noon. He came back up about 1pm after brunching at Cafe Beignet (didn’t bring back beignets, as he had a crawfish omelette with grits). I had the leftover shrimp (peeled off the batter coating), lettuce & tomato from yesterday’s shrimp po-boy as my brunch. He went to take a walk down Bourbon, had a couple of Hurricanes at Pat O’Brien’s and wisely decided to forgo the casino due to that. He is searching for a set of scrubs he saw yesterday in Mardi Gras colors. I never got to the panels or exhibit hall, as I had to deal with a bazillion texts from our helper back home, and preregistration (including 3 annoying surveys) for my Medicare Wellness visit Tues. Also spent some time writing a song for tonight’s circle—not easy without an instrument. (And memorizing it is harder still—have to keep repeating it). Went downstairs for a cafe au lait and beignets (got through only one of three, and wisely deployed lots of napkins to protect against the powdered sugar). Came back up to drop off the leftovers—and found the Exhibit Hall closed. No big loss—this year there were no instrument or accessory vendors and certainly no swag as in years past (former conferences were my main sources of free strings, capos, picks, etc.).
Now it’s pouring & thundering. Trying to reach Bob to tell him to come back to the room—not answering my texts and his phone goes to voicemail (bet he forgot to charge it). He wants to go to Redfish Grill tonight, but I don’t know when to make the reservation.
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chrisandy, sounds like N O is not treating you very special this year. Hopefully things will improve. My one and only time there was just about the same timing. We arrived during the pre-parade and our hotel was on the other side of the street where we couldn't cross, but the taxi wouldn't drive around. So we ran around on foot until we finally found a break in the street where we could cross dragging our suitcases behond us. I was struggling from my cancer med and kept having to sit down so it was not fun. My DG had a conference and I was on my own for the next two days fully expecting to take it easy. I had fun touring, listening to the music, walking the quarters, and we did enjoy all the food. Ah, memories!
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It's dark outside and I hear distant thunder. A good day to stay inside. Later, I'll bring in my little collection of succulents. Tonight's temperature is forecast to be high teens or 20 degrees. I'm grateful that the ice storm weather is supposed to stay north of us. We will get more rain after rain yesterday.
DH and I were "talked out" by yesterday morning when our houseguests departed. We had lunch on Friday with a neighbor we seldom see and a former neighbor who has remained a friend. We enjoyed catching up with them. When we arrived home, our houseguests soon drove up. Unlike previous years, they did not depart early the next morning. So there was more conversation. LOL.
DH has a new health complaint. With some internet research, he has diagnosed himself with sciatica. We're figuring out what kind of doctor he should see. Betrayal, any suggestion? Last night we got out the heating pad. I have to credit him with being willing to go to a doctor and seek a remedy. He also searched online for exercises that might help.
Today will be football. Or maybe the games are tonight. I will also cook a pot of chicken and sausage gumbo, good comfort food for this weather.
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There are two good things in life - freedom of thought and freedom of action.
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I'm freaking out today. Port tomorrow. I hope it is put properly!
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@justforher I understand your fear but it will be alright. I have had mine for three years now and it has worked well. I prefer techs use my port instead of my arm even though they can usually find a vein. I don't feel it as I go about my usual daily routine at all. Once they access it (a needle prick) you won't feel whatever they need to do. They will prescribe you lidocaine to put on the spot before you go in and most of the time you won't even feel the needle, so use it. I will be thinking about you and praying for you tomorrow.
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@intolight , thank you for calming me.
It's only my first chemo but I'm having side effects of burning pee sensation even if I don't have to go. Keeps me up at night.
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carole, I would say talk to your PCP first about going to PT for sciatica treatment. If that doesn't provide relief, then see pain management for a consultation. Fingers crossed, it will resolve with PT. You need professional help with this because it can become a long standing issue, so I would advise DH not to self-treat.
We are being bombarded with snow at present as promised and it has been steady for the past few hours. The direction, shape of the snow (small vs large flakes) and velocity keep changing though. This is to persist into tomorrow and they keep changing the depth we will receive. In March 1993, during the storm of the century, we received over 39 inches of snow. We had to exit the garage to create a path from it to the back door. We could not open the storm door on the back door and we needed to create a path so the puppy we got in February could go out to be potty trained. So we had this huge trail in the backyard for her to walk in. Both she, and the next dog we got, were potty trained within 7 weeks after joining us.
Misty is driving me crazy because she wants to sit in the bay window to track the many birds our feeder has attracted. So far she has knocked a major branch off my one large jade plant, broke the flowering branch off my one orchid and then upset another orchid plant spewing bark all over the floor. I will have to repot that plant since some of the bark is small and irretrievable. The birds are mostly starlings with some juncos and sparrows thrown in. I haven't seen any cardinals yet nor blue jays. DH will have to refill the feeder because this seed helps keep them alive during these conditions. They need more food to keep warm since their metabolism increases during these low temps. It is currently 15 degrees with a feels like probably zero.
DD and DSIL supposedly went home to get their pets and return here, but then had a change of heart. Their house is electric heat, so if the power goes out, they have no alternative. We have oil heat, but also have a whole house generator that uses propane. So we will not lose power if the electric goes out and can support heat, and electricity for several days if we are careful. The garage refrigerator and freezer will keep food cold with no loss as we experienced in the past. Biggest concern is if we get an ice storm which will wipe out cable and electric to the area. Access to cellphone towers can also be handicapped if we get trees down, poor road conditions and for those totally dependent on them, it is an issue to maintain communication. We still have a house phone, knock on wood, it will continue to work. Otherwise, DH will get on his HAM radio (like your DH intolight) and get a message out if need be.
I checked the weather for this week and we will have sun, but no temps above 20 degrees for the entire week. Some days we will be lucky if it gets above 10 degrees. Chris, I do understand it is colder where you are, but this is unusual for our area and that's why I never moved north of this area. As a kid, we loved these days because we had no school and when I worked, this was a reason for the college to close, but now as a retired person, I am not as enthralled, even though I do not have to leave my house unless I so desire. DSIL just texted they will be back to help clear the driveway since DH has a bad cold and is feeling bad. I'm concerned about the roads in their area as well as here being passable. We have not need to leave the house at present, no appointments this week and the only concern is if we get an ice storm which will make us virtual prisoners.
I must push to get this laptop replaced because I am tired of keys failing to work as I type, which means I have to do a lot of proofing and editing of any emails. The key failure is not consistent either. some days it is certain keys and the next they are different.
It is a very gray day, so I think I'll clean the drawers in the guest room and in DD's old room and see what needs to be stored elsewhere and what is being donated. Funny how a clear out for one project means a re-evaluation of what will be returned to the room once the work has been done. Great opportunity to redecorate with only the necessities. So chaos can lead to beauty or at least that's my mantra for now, living with 2 stripped rooms and another that looks like a zone of doom. I might see my cleaned drapes by March at this rate, lol.
If you are in an area impacted by the storm, please stay safe and warm. Now it is sleeting! Small pellets, but still sleet. I'd rather have the snow. Hope everyone can have a great day and waving "hi" to everyone.
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One of my jobs was on the 15th floor of an office building. Watching snow fall from above is fascinating
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Aah wren, the image is beautiful, and I must've seen it sometime or other.
Here are some degrees. When we lived in Sioux City (42 deg lat) I swore I would never live an inch further north. Now I live at 43 deg lat. Aah well. Hoping to move further south some day or another. Thief River Falls (48 deg lat) was once begging me to check out the job they had open there. Just a skip and a hop from here— sort of.
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I live in Colorado Springs. My DH and I interviewed for a church in Denver 35 years ago and it never got above 8 those three days, but we took the church position anyways. When we left Colorado 15 years later, we thought we would never return, but here we are. We moved here from San Diego this time. What a change!
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DD sent me a picture of her backyard in Freeport, ME. Beautiful to look at but I'm happy here. She does have a generator but tries to do as much as possible before a storm comes in. When I talked to her last she was doing laundry, vacuuming etc. Pre-generator, she had charged her phone using her car charger when needed. She spent five days without power over Christmas a few years ago and the generator became a huge priority.
My great niece was married in Miami yesterday. The bride and groom were living in Boston, her uncle and family in Syracuse, and many family and guests were coming from Charlotte. The groom was expecting family from both France and Peru. Everyone got there but my sister was worried about when they would get back to Charlotte.
The other ICE is also in Maine. Somalis moved to Lewiston, an old mill town established by French Catholics as they came down the Androscoggen River. From what I've read, it was a successful integration until recently. So sad. Debbie lives about 1/2 way between Lewiston and Portland, the other hot spot. You may also remember hearing about Lewiston when they had a mass shooting at a bowling alley and the shooter was hard to track.
Justforher - I was really glad I had my port. I don't remember getting it was a problem at all. Holding you close! I also decided I wouldn't do "would have, should have, could have" about my BC. It just was - no family history either.
Stay safe and warm everyone.
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Yesterday we broke the record for high temperatures- it was 86! Today it was 85, but no records broken. The temps are dropping into the 60’s on Tuesday and staying in the low 70’s for about the next 10 days. Yesterday and today were 12-15 degrees higher than normal.
Mind you, I’m watching the NY house like a hawk. Checking cameras it seems like hourly. Double checking on the temperature in the house, just to confirm it’s warm enough inside and all power is on. NY house has about 16” of snow right now and it’s still snowing. Many stores closed early today and many doctor offices sent texts/email today that they’re closed tomorrow. All the schools in the area are closed tomorrow too.
On Saturday I installed the second weatherstrip on the inside of the garage door. It was hot inside the garage, but not actually a hard job. Sitting on the garage floor and working left to right - set it with a clamp, pulled the tape strip to stick it to the door; then use my drill to put in a self tapping screw - the tape really doesn’t hold it there, it assists the screws. Haha!I ran to Lowe’s and bought plumbers tape to fix the master shower and found a nice pair of garden gloves in clearance. A win win, We took off the shower head, retape the pipe and screwed the head back on. Tested it and it was fixed.
Today was a normal Sunday - bed stripped, laundry going. I showed my SO dr son the sliced off skin on my shin and he suggested I take the bandaid off and cover it with gauze instead. I don’t know if I told you all - a snow brush w extension and an ice scraper on the other end fell off the hooks in the garage and sliced a piece of skin off my shin. So gross, I just slapped the flap back on and went in to SO requesting a bandaid.
Why… you’re wondering why I have a snow brush in 86 degree FL weather? Traveling down we always keep it in the trunk of the car. Once here we take it out. I’ll be bandaged up for some time, it’s about the size of a half dollar.Sandy - I hope you enjoyed your birthday despite the rain.
I apologize for not taking notes. I read a lot a day ago and fell asleep before posting. If you’re in the storms path, be safe and stay warm.
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Significant Tippy event: As I told you, the bathroom in subzero weather is the pottyroom. I traced a bad smell to the pottyroom last week. I cleaned it up and flushed both the toilet and the tub. Yesterday Tippy indicated the pottyroom again. It was pee in the tub. I flushed it. then I realized that if flushing the tub is important to him, what about me? Since I live alone, I don't always flush. Maybe that bothers him. OK. I will change my ways.
I am using K-tape on both of my thumbs and my knee, too. Good stuff.
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My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was sixty. She's ninety-seven now, and we don't know where the hell she is.
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