Life does not end with a stage IV diagnosis (really!)
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sunnidays,
You've nailed the essence of this thread! Crazy that life goes on in the most mundane and ordinary ways even when we have stage IV cancer! After 10 years, I am still blown away by this idea.
Anacapa Island, Channel Islands National Park- guaranteed to bring me peace and serenity 🧘🏻♀️
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It is with great sadness that I have to tell you that kayrnic, the person who inspired me to start this thread, passed away on 9/2/21. She had not been active on bco for a while but we were Facebook friends. She lived her life with joy and enthusiasm. May her memory be a blessing to all who knew and loved her.
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Sosorry to hear this exbrnxgrl, condolences on the loss of a friend
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I'm so sorry to hear of her passing, exbrnxgirl. Sending love and comfort.
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Thank you ladies. I am really shaken up over her passing given that she was the inspiration for this thread. She had not been active on bco in a while but if you search under her username, kayrnic, you can read some of her posts. She squeezed as much happiness out of life as she could and even though she met the end that is inevitable for all of us she and carried on until she couldn’t.
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May she Rest In Peace.
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I'm pretty crushed to hear the news about kayrnic. I did not know her end was near. I remember her well and once mentioned to her that when I read her screen name, I always pronounced it “Carnac" in my mind; Carnac the Magnificent being a famous role of a mystic played by Johnny Carson on his talk show. She and I got a good laugh out of that.
Yes, the news is so sad. I re-read her bio page and saw she was first dx with stage ii bc in 2001 at age 28. She had all the big treatments and her onc told her if she reached 10 years her onc said she'd be considered cured. All was good for 11 years and then she learned she was metastatic at the age of 39. She would have been about 48 at her passing. No refined way to say it except that sucks big time.
She was able to raise her son from toddler to young adult and she was married to a good man and had a supportive family. In that respect, she was fortunate. She is gone too soon, tho.
I did not know she was your inspiration for this thread, exbrnxgrl, so I can understand how the news affects you and I am sorry, too, for the loss of one you admired.
May kayrnic rest in peace.
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exbrnxgirl- have I told you how much I love this thread? If kayrnic was the inspiration, then she must have been a great lady. So sorry for the loss of your friend.
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Hi all, I know many of you from other threads and I’ve popped in here a time or two but I decided to jump in since I am so lucky and grateful to live a pretty great life with MBC. Sure, lots of it sucks but so much more in my life doesn’t.
Currently, DH and I are finishing packing to sell our house and move permanently to our mountain cabin. I’m stable in the brain and NEAD in body (single bone met), I recently celebrated my 46 1/2 birthday and I’m ready to see a band on my bucket list play this weekend, it’s virtual but I’ll take it 😁
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illimae,
Although I'm a die hard urban gal, the cabin sounds lovely. All the best with your move and happy half birthday!
Still processing Kay's passing. Despite the fact that this is a stage IV thread and the passing of a member shouldn't be a shock, it still is. I hope it remains that way as I never want to become hardened to it.
On a “what are you kidding?" note, I was reading reviews of the Legoland Discovery Center that opened nearby recently. Here is what one person wrote:
"ummmm.... so parents, this place is VERY REDUNDANT! ...and i mean hella leggo overload ...in a circle!"
Imagine that! Lego overload in a Legoland Center 🤣. My grandson is 5 1/2 and like many his age is crazy about Legos. He wanted to do something with me this weekend rather than being dragged along to a birthday party for a three year old friend of his sisters. He dubbed that a “baby party”. I am picking him up from school today and will surprise him with tickets so he won’t have to go to the baby party 😊.
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Sorry to hear about kayrninic and the loss to her friends.
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Yes, kayrnic is still in my thoughts.
I have scans coming up soon and I'm a bit nervous as I can never really tell if any aches and pains I have are mbc related.
In the meantime, I wanted to mention that in June I began something I've wanted to do ever since I was a young girl and that is learn to play an instrument. Dh plays guitar, ds plays guitar, piano and trumpet. I chose harmonica. May I just say how. much. fun. I am having! A good beginner's harmonica only costs about $45. There's a number system for notes called tabs, so I don't need to read music. The internet has a wealth of beginner lessons and easy tunes to play. My purchased harmonica even came with free access to lessons for 30 days. I practice for an hour several days a week. When the weather turns cold and I'm indoors more, I plan to buy a year's worth of online lessons which only cost about $200.
On Labor Day, I surprised dh and ds with a "concert" on the back porch, complete with a poster of the "event" taped to the kitchen cabinet and a couple programs to pass out. I played 10 patriotic songs including The Star Spangled Banner and America the Beautiful. So I had my very first "recital" after age 60!
One reason I never picked up an instrument before is due to always being overwhelmed with life's responsibilities. Why I did not start the harmonica at the beginning of the pandemic, I don't know. Or maybe I do. Last year was spent eliminating unnecessary interference in my life from my siblings which finally carved out space for what I truly want to do.
I'm not even that good of a harmonica player, but I'm learning and enjoying it and that's all that matters.This really lifted my spirits like nothing else in a long long time. I'm actually looking at the world in different ways, seeing things from a different perspective. I plan to branch out, too. Since I have a piano, there's a year's worth of piano lessons via an app for about $200 that I want to try. And I'm asking for a set of bongo drums for Christmas. I found some very simple rhythms you can learn to play right off the bat.
I’ve had a vacant plot of fallow ground in my heart my entire life just sitting there, waiting for me to learn an instrument. Finally, I'm taking time to cultivate it!
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Divine-I am really impressed! Good for you for taking up the harmonica and practicing so faithfully. I played instruments (organ, clarinet and bassoon) growing up but haven't played in a long time. I've had a desire to learn the marimba but they are kind of expensive and I don't know where I would put it in my house. But you've inspired me-maybe I'll get more serious about finding one.
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DD earned her Bachelor’s degree in music performance She can play any wind instrument including bagpipes. Maybe a string or two. But piano, oh my. Her flute professor was also an accomplished pianist, who was pulling her hair out trying to teach DD piano. It almost got her washed out of college. GOOD LUCK.
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Divine, very cool! I tried to play the trumpet just after high school (big ska fan) but the sounds were awful and I just don’t have talent for it.
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Divine, I love your love of life! You are divine, indeed.
Tina
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Feeling a little silly at the moment but thinking about fooling with one of those temporary pastel hair colors on my white, curly,very short taxol regrowth. Perhaps a streak. Anybody ever try one? I saw them while searching for a hair product to get a little texture.
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Divine, good for you!!!
Teedoff, DO IT!!!
Carol
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That's so great, Divine. I've always loved the violin and string instruments in general. I've never played beyond elementary school recorder. You've inspired me to look into violin lessons when I'm on break.
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I want to give credit to Piggy, who at the end of May posted that she'd graduated from Harvard Law School three years after getting an mbc diagnosis! Shortly after reading her inspirational story, I looked up some beginner harmonica lessons online then found one of ds's old plastic harmonicas in the music room. I piddled around playing it for a week then thought, yeah, this is doable, and I ordered a Hoehner harmonica from Amazon. The first thing I learned when I got it and read the directions was that I had been holding the plastic harmonica backwards, also holding it in the wrong hand plus playing the numbered holes from right to left when it is left to right! A total mess! Hahahaha! I immediately made corrections and proceeded from there.
I love hearing how many of you also have musical inclinations! Spookie, I've heard numerous stories of how some people are quite gifted with certain instruments but not others, including well known musicians! I admire your daughter's ability to play those wind instruments. I always thought the flute was a hauntingly beautiful instrument and wish I'd learned to play. As well as the sax. And trumpet….
Chicagoan, the marimba is a glorious instrument, and I hope you follow your inclinations to get one and learn to play. Same to you, star, with the violin!
Teedoff, as one who's colored my hair for 45 years, I say go for it! How can you go wrong especially with a temporary dye?
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It is enormously gratifying to read about everyone’s learning. Languages, musical instruments, law school, etc., what it is learning is life. It keeps you moving forward, keeps your brain nimble and is fun as well. It also helps you from becoming stuck in the past, i.e. you look forward to the future and new things rather than lamenting things that have changed and evolved since your youth. Long live learning!
PS: I played clarinet for many years!
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This sounds wonderful, so glad you’re enjoying it Divine! The recital sounds cool! I’ve always loved blues and folk harmonica, was quite trendy with rock musicians in the 60s and 70s. Love the idea of picking up old interests or exploring new ones. There is no time like the present!
I decided to study guitar again back in 2018-19, I had learned a little as a child but hadn’t touched it since then. I was using the Yousician app. I eventually had to cut back on my guitar practice due to time constraints, but I do hope to pick it up again soon. It was so very relaxing and gave me a lot of pleasure...and I could see the progress I was making with each lesson, which is gratifying,
I have also started practicing Italian and Spanish again, to fuel my dreams of travel and relocating. I have kept up with my language study on Duolingo and I am now on a 743 day streak - 743 consecutive days of practice. I am way more comfortable speaking Spanish in public now. and I can read news and social media in three languages. 😂
Teedoff, I experimented with the pastel hair color too - the L’Oréal temporary colors from the drugstore did not take on my white hair at all. No deposit of color at all. I would suggest trying Manic Panic which is also temporary but might give a better result. Or try the spray on color first to see if you like it and if you do then get a permanent dye. If it speaks to you - go for it! I’m over 60 and I have fun with wigs, hairpieces, makeup, and even my post-chemo bio hair now
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You are all so inspiring, the only interesting thing that happened to me lately is that I nearly sliced my thumb off with a kitchen knife, in fact, I think it is a surgical instrument disguised as a kitchen knife, They glued the wound together at the minor injury clinic and told me to keep it dry.
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Divine - cool!!! Can you post an audio?
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sunnidays,
This thread is not just for inspiration i.e. Yesterday I taught myself how to decorate wedding cakes, but for the every day normal things that happen despite being stage IV. I definitely think your thumb slicing incident falls under that umbrella! Take good care because we need our thumbs😊 .
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Chicagoan- how funny a fellow bassoonist! I played in high school, the farting bedpost as we called it! Couldn’t march with it though so usually played the xylophone or did color guard.
Divine- such inspiration for picking up hobbies! Currently I’m using my Cricut machine to make small cardboard Halloween themed houses that can be shipped flat, put together, painted and glittered. I think I need my thumbs for this.
Olma and Teedoff- I have a dusty rose wig for days when I’m feeling fiesty.it’s Raquel Welch as they have been very comfy,not hot or itchy.
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Kikomoon-it is so unusual to run into a sister bassoonist! I played the Xylophone too in marching band. It was so much easier than the bassoon. I finally quit after my sophmore year because I got sick of dragging it around and always having to fuss with the reeds. How long did you play? I do love the sound of the bassoon though-to me it is haunting-not "farting bedposts."
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Fellow hair experimenters, I think I’ll start with some spray on streaks for my new growth. Not too many wigs are large enough for my 23” circumference so I don’t have many choices and no fun colors. Appreciate your ideas and may go from streaks to full head. Purple is calling!
Old with a fat head and Stage 4. I hit the wrong Trifecta. As they said back in the 60’s, “Let’s keep on keepin’ on.”
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Chicagoan I played 2 years junior high and 3 years high school till marching band started interfering with Dance Team and had to choose. How funny, I actually like the sound too, but we sure ha fun with it! I wanted to play the flute but they said I had the wrong lips. I think they just needed bassoon players 😂 but it was a fun instrument.
Teedoff you got me beat by an inch, 22 here. You must be really smart with all that brain. Go for it!
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Teed off, I will be playing right along with you in the hair department. Just got my first wig in preparation for chemo and it makes me look like Bob Marley!
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