CRAZY TOWN WAITING ROOM - TESTS coming up? All Stages Welcome.
Comments
-
Octo.. Sorry you've had the nausea.. and taste buds.. I hope after a relaxing weekend you are feeling much, much better (Hugs)
Katy.. HaHa.. I love Jack the beach bullet train.. :-) As we were leaving the beach yesterday there was a lady and her Maltese just arriving.. The little dog looked so excited that I even said to the lady I could see the smile on his face.. I really could!!
Notagain.. Great news about your scans :-)
Rainny.. Glad to hear you finally have some good news.!! Yay!! :-)
Rose.. So glad the troll will soon be out on his ass.!! Tell him you had a dream.. and in it he was homeless.!! :-) 😱
Marie. Thinking of you!
Sula.. Wow.. Congrats.. I am amazed at what you manage to achieve.. all the time.!!
Cubbie.. Hope you are having a lovely weekend, enjoying your beautiful garden.. I would love to see it.
Slow..Thanks for dropping in.. Sounds as if you're having a very busy time.. So lovely to have the family around.. Funny.. my BIL always says that fish and visitors both go off after 3 days..Which is sort of true.. But not the case with our kids.. They can come stay forever and I'd be happy. :-)
PTS.. I love ice-cream too..I remember my mum making it when I was little.. Nothing tasted better!
Poppy. It is just awful what has happened in Paris.. What has happened to the world? 😞
Hi to everyone else.!
Now ladies.. I know you'll all think I'm crazy ( I obviously am seeing I live in down town Crazy Town) .. but it was a pouring rain / storming all day here yesterday.. So.. I put the Christmas decorations up.!!! It all looks so "purty "..We're not going to put the out side lights up for another week or so.. We dont want our new neighbours knowing knowing we are nutters.!! I just LOVE Christmas 🎄
0 -
CHI ?........doesn't Sound like melanoma.......Google and you will see that......shit like this always happens on the weekend right........
I just found a spot on my face that was not there last week.......I have had several spots removed...some basal......some squamous......never on the face........
More shit to deal with and my excellent Derm moved to Florida....... So you know how long a wait that will be for a new one....and most suck.....not thorough at all....she was.....
0 -
Chi.. Sorry.. I missed your post before. It certainly doesn't sound like melanoma.. ( every time I get any spot I google it's appearance) I'm sure your hubby is right. .. and I agree.. It's so annoying how this chit always manages to show up on the weekend.. ( Hugs)
Ducky..Hubby has had a small squamous removed from his face before.. just the same as anywhere else.. except here they send you to a plastic surgeon to remove it..
0 -
hey Lucy........I know my son has had a couple removed from his face....they did MOHs and it looks really good......then of course he had melanoma on his leg........huge surgery....big hole........they say they got it all...s...my God I hope so........they did get it early, but only time will tell........
0 -
All I can think about is my grandson who was in Paris 2 weeks ago.......stayed right near where the shootings were........the fright of it all.....I told him.......you dare try to go out of the country I personally will beat the shit out of you...u less your mother does it first.....
we were against him going in The first place, but of course it was booked before he told us he was going...
God help us all........I have seen many wars in my lifetime, but this is not war....its mass murder..........so sad....
0 -
duck, fortunately your family is home and safe now. Lordie but I remember my neice being in Haiti when they blew up. My bp hit 200 and my gym ordered me not to work out! dang was glad when she got home and also glad the rest of family is sticking close to home these days
or at least they have not told me anything~~
0 -
hello Crazies- having a quietly crazy day here today, but reading all and sending my love and my somewhat diluted strength (at the moment) mojo.
Lucy- I have always had a love hate thing with Christmas, due to something I saw my dad do on Christmas Eve when I was very young and the general hijacking of your emotions, when you least expect it, for a couple of months out of every year. Last year I got my tree early and planned to change the conversation. Planned a party, got all of my ornaments and special plates out and invited a couple of friends for a tree trimming. Got my BC dx the day before. I went through with it, but it was a tearful affair.
Had my BMX a week later. So I enjoyed my tree less than I might have. But I think it was a good idea, and I'm going to try again and get my tree at Thankgsgiving and my niece and her BF will be here and hopefully will be into trimming the tree. I think they will. At least get the lights up. I'm going to try to change the conversation again.
Hope everyone is having a nice weekend, crazy-free, with loved ones, furry ones, and heating pads.
Katy
🎪🎪🎪🎪🎪
0 -
Rainny, potato and leek soup sounds good. Not sure about the garlic, but something italian is always a good idea to me.
Iris, how do you prepare your brussels sprouts? I've never liked them because they have sort of a bitter taste to me. I've heard they are better grilled, but everything is better grilled! They look cute, even though they taste bad.
Octo, sorry about the nausea and tastebuds. Hopefully it will wear off soon.
Pennsy, that does sound like a stitch. I think there'd be no harm in leaving it for the weekend, and calling on Monday. Just make sure you don't catch it on anything (ouch!).
Sandy, I'd have the RO look at that spot, and possibly a dermatologist depending on what the RO says. It doesn't sound like a melanoma, but it's always a good idea to have a knowledgable pair of eyes look at anything new on your skin.
Lucy, some of my neighbors are already getting their Christmas decorations up, so you are not too early. They even have the blow up Grinch out in front of the house.
Ducky, sounds like your grandson was there about the same time my nephew was. Thank goodness they are both back home. Paris is a place I never thought of as being dangerous, or at least not any more so than any large city in the US.
Katy, I never noticed before how close your diagnosis was the Christmas. What a way to spend the holiday. I hope this Christmas is a time of healing for you, and you and your niece can enjoy this holiday season together.
0 -
Pennsygal, I did not have Chemo and therefore no port, but I seems to remember the incision that was closed after my lumpectomy, had thread with with knots dangling here and there after the strips wore off, incision was rather long, since the cancer tumor was way up the side of my breast, and the surgeon did the 4 lymph node removal via that same incision. When I saw the surgeon again, she pulled them out as it had healed by then. I would leave them alone for now. Sorry you have to wait until Monday for answers.
dsgirl
0 -
Katy, I can see why you would have mixed feelings about Xmas, consider this year a celebration of dang getting past the past year! That first year to me was so exhausting. I was flunked my mamo in June and it was the Fri before Xmas when I ended my rads. Gee, I have no idea what I did that year for Xmas and only remember the sheer exhaustion.
Gee potato and leek soup sounds good to me, needs to be on the soon to make list.
Cubbie, I make brussel sprouts the same way I make most of my veggies, roasted with tons of garlic, onions and OO. If bacon is in the house, then that is good but I do try to stay away from bacon (especially with the latest reports in the news). I am a huge fan of rosemary and have a HUGE bush in my front yard so some of that is added. Last night I cleaned my sprouts but elected to eat some fresh spinach with my chicken. I eat so simple....piece of protein plus veggies is my routine. Course I confess that since my sinus surgery in 2013, my taste buds and sense of smell sort of come and go but the above is still my go to. Oh, if the sprouts seem bitter to you, add some balsamic vinegar to them and I have seen brown sugar added by someone on the old Food Network.
Taking it easy today for no good reason other than that I can!
0 -
Taking it easy sounds good. Just back from my first visit to Costco, with a friend who's a member. Wow. Absolutely overwhelming. Good prices if you can keep your head. Treated myself to a beautiful boneless leg of lamb, will roast tonight and have leftovers later in the week. And make the leek and potato soup to have around the house, maybe for dinner on Tuesday.
Katy, Christmas is something I'm ambivalent about at the best of times. It must have been very hard for you last year. Your plan for this year sounds very good. Is your niece your brother's daughter?
Lucy, it's always been hard for me to imagine Christmas in Australia, in the summer. You don't get all of the wintry stuff that we do.
Anyway, as a Jew married to a presbyterian, I've mostly think of the holiday as a grand opportunity to bake and cook and bake and cook and drink wine. And did I say bake?
Cubbie, I always used to think of Brussels sprouts as those round things that rolled off the cutting board and under the kitchen cabinets. Then a couple of years ago I discovered Mark Bittman's recipe. Heat the oven to 400 or so. Heat a cast-iron skillet on the stove and throw in some olive oil. Cut the Brussels sprouts in half, place them face down in the skillet and season with your choice of salt, pepper, whatever. Cook on the stovetop for about four minutes, then roast in the oven for about 20 minutes (depending on their size). Add whole cloves of garlic if you like before roasting. I could eat them every night this time of year.
Proud: rosemary, yes, herb of the gods!
Enjoy the day, crazies!
0 -
Rainny- my niece is my bestie's daughter. We've been friends since before her two daughters were born. They both consider me an aunt, which is quite an honor. The older of the two moved to Oregon this year, about two hours away from me, so now I see the daughter more than the mother. I am very conflicted about the "religion of Christmas", the "politics" of Christmas, and the marketing of it all. But I was thinking yesterday about how the times we are together as families, and makeshift families, are fewer and fewer these days. So I am just grateful for the times we are together, to enjoy a special meal or some wonderful baking or a glass of wine. I try to keep it simple in my head that way. I think I will have more success with this approach now with this past year as a background canvas.
As far as today, it's been raining steadily all night, and is now. It's not super cold, so I've had the windows and doors open, with lots of blankets piled on the bed, just listening. The furries are here too. It's nice.
0 -
I saw a pal who lives in your neck of the woods and she posted that you were set for one nasty storm so hoping the roof don't leak and the sun shines soon~
0 -
Iris- thanks! I like exciting weather, so long as I'm safe inside! The rain has stopped for now, but I see the weather forecast is showing rain for a couple more days. It was windy at times last night and the cable was knocked out. But all is fixed now and the new roof that was just put on will be getting a good tryout. Watching football and wishing there was a service you could call to have someone build you a fire.
0 -
Katy, I made it through old Sandy who hit my town dead on. Realized after it was over (and I had been with no heat or electric for 8 days) that the town opened up the Senior Center for all folks. They even had free pizza from the local pizza guy!
I do think the new business of having someone start a fire for you sounds good~~~wonder if Angies list will do that? they promise to do all sorts of silly little things
stay warm lady
0 -
Katy.. Sorry about your Christmas Eve experience with your Dad..We are so effected by what happens in our childhood aren't we.. and last year you're mind certainly would not of been geared to celebrating.. We always host Christmas, for our family and extended family.. So we end up with about 20 adults plus kids.. Even though my mascetomy was the end of August I didn't feel I could cope with organizing it last year so thankfully one of my daughters stood up and took it over for me. It's only just dawned on me writing this how fragile I was feeling this time last year. Breast Cancer was totally occupying my every thought..Whereas this year it's just my every second thought 😱Enjoy your wild weather with your fur babies :-)
Rainny..Yes.. I guess our Christmas 's are very different weather wise .. No snow here!! Santa 🎅 comes in the night, then Christmas morning everyone brings their gifts around and puts them under our tree.. Then we all open them together.. Followed by traditional ( in our family) lunch.. hot Turkey , stuffing, cranberry sauce, pork and ham, usually served with potato bake and salads.. Then everyone spends the rest of the day in the pool, and playing back yard cricket... Do you usually have snow Christmas Day? I would love to experience a White Christmas.. Funny how here in Australia we still have and love all the Christmas Carols relating to the snow.!! You'd think we'd have our own Carols about sweltering on a stinking hot day..! 😃
PTS.. Glad you made it through Sandy.. But what a bugger missing out on the pizza !! :-)
Cubbie.. Sounds like your neighbours must be Christmas Crazies like me, having their houses all done up already.. I like to do it early so I have time to enjoy them.. Seems like too much work if they are only up for a couple of weeks!
Dsgirl.. Hi.!! and Hi to everyone else !!
0 -
Another Jew married to a Presbyterian here (actually, he used to be one, more of a Buddhist now..) and I have the same conflicted and ambivalent feelings about Christmas. With you Katy, it is mostly the shopping, the marketing and some of the politics I don't like either: actually I secretly love Christmas music, Christmas services in whatever church, and christmas ornaments. (as long as I don't have to see them before Thanksgiving).
Hubby loves it all. And he knows better than to admit this, but I think he is secretly thrilled that because I will be doing rads we will be here at home this year for the holiday, first year in a few that has been the case, and he can decorate and bake, and all the rest. He just spent an hour going over his plans for holiday prep with me. I tried to smile.
Meanwhile, I am just barely past the crashed-flat-out-on-the-couch stage. I feel a bit better than yesterday, but I am definitely not yet up to anything that involves, oh, getting dressed and going anywhere.... Hoping to turn the corner on the chemo crap tomorrow. Is that unrealistic?
The rain we had this morning didn't stick around nearly long enough to make me happy. I hope it comes back. Meanwhile, back to napping and resting. I hope all are having a good weekend!
xoxo
Octogirl
0 -
Octo- (((hugs))) hope tomorrow is that turnaround day you hope for and deserve.
Managed to run two sticks together. Aahhhhhh
0 -
I used to drive from Central NJ all the way to Boston burbs for my holidays. Then used to go to Jersey City for a few years and in the last few years have walked across the street to my neighbors for dinner. Can you say much less stressful and really nice folks!
I just need to take a dish and this year will do the apple pie, got the apples and the day before will be a cooking!
much easier
0 -
Katy, you are wonder woman. And here I was about to suggest finding a tall, handsome boy scout. Do they have those on Angie's List? But you did it yourself. Hope the weather is just bad enough to feel happy in front of the fire, not so much as to blow down trees and such. Keep us posted, ok?
Proud, are you on the Jersey shore? We were lucky because we were nowhere near the ocean, unlike many other parts of Brooklyn. Gas shortage for a little while, but the biggest thing for us was that DS had been prepping for a high school entrance exam. About 28,000 8th graders take it, and it's a big deal and the only way to get into some of the elite high schools. It was postponed two weeks, during which time he became completely unsettled about which school he wanted. Well, it worked out, but pretty nerve-wracking for all those 13-year-olds. I remember talking with a woman whose son was taking the exam, and they'd lost their home near the shore and were temporarily homeless. And oh, I remember Chris Christie reveling in the publicity!
Octo, feel better! Every day is a step away from chemo, a step towards normal taste buds and all sorts of good things. My DH loves Xmas and I feel badly about not doing so. But I like the way the world stops during that last week of the year, so we can all take a deep breath and spend some time with people we care for, eat, drink, bake...
I had my weekly hair check this morning (I am NOT checking it every day. Not Not Not.). Maybe 3/4 inch on top and a half inch in back. Sides are sort of variable. Color is iron gray. Sigh. Going to try some temporary dye this week to see what happens. This is 9 weeks PFC.
0 -
Mmmmm.....Brussels sprouts! I cut mine in half and prepare them one of three ways:
1) nuke 30 sec., place in preheated nonstick skillet on med., w/a couple tsps. EVOO, pan-roast cut side down & then flip when the cut side is golden, pan-roast another 1 min, add 1 tsp. balsamic vinegar (not the cheapest “industriale" but not the really good stuff for putting on berries or ice cream) and toss. Serve w/ sprinkling of black truffle salt.
2) nuke 30 sec. Chop 2 sl. thick bacon and pan-fry on med.-low till halfway done, add sprouts, 1tsp. finely chopped fresh rosemary & saute till bacon is fully cooked. Serve with 1-2 “twists" of freshly-ground black pepper. No need for salt, because of bacon.
3). Preheat oven to 375. Toss sprouts with mixture of salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary and a (very) little brown sugar. Place cut side down on baking sheet lined with lightly greased (I use Pam) foil (shiny side up). Bake 15 min.
I've seen recipes on “America's Test Kitchen" and “The Chew" for shaved Brussels sprout slaws & salads, but IMHO what a waste of such a yummy veggie!
As to that spot on my left breast, it looks like a uniformly pale freckle (paler than any of my others), less than 5mm, but it does have a bit of irregular border and is slightly raised, so I'll have the RO look at it tomorrow and see if I need a DermOnc consult. My left areola is paler than my right (not surprising, as the right's gotten 10 rad treatments) but seems to have a darker ring. No peeling, itching, redness or anything--though on the opposite side of the areola, about an inch toward the cleavage, toward the underside, is a tiny pinprick-sized red dot (probably a hemangioma). No telling how long it's been there--but before and after my surgery my BS examined both breasts and didn't say anything about the left. I wouldn't be nervous, except that ever since the diagnostic imagining--even before the core-needle biopsy--I've been noticing “sensations" in the left breast. The screening mammo said it has “unremarkable scattered fibroglandular densities, consistent with 2013 & 2014" and classed it as BIRADS 1, or “normal, no further screening necessary." But I've heard too many horror stories, and want to make sure there's nothing in or on there to worry about. I imagine that whatever it is, it can wait till after Christmas to do anything about it.
But what has me solidly moored in Crazy Town this weekend is waiting on the radiologist's report for DH's followup lung scan done Fri. morning. We keep checking his “MyChart" inbox, but nothing yet (apparently, nobody works on weekends except cardiologists & ER docs). We were told “probably Monday." He's busying himself by total immersion in his work (he had 40 patients yesterday). I am trying to think of everything else. I wish we could find the report of the initial CT done back in May--not even sure whether the nodule was spotted on the abdominal CT taken to ascertain free air in the abdomen and diagnose perforation. There is NO report of that in his online chart, and he can't find any written evidence on his discharge documents from that first visit. The only reference (besides his appointment reminder to get the 6-month followup scan for “lung nodule") we can find is his 6/14 chest x-ray that says “lung fields are clear, no change from 5/12." But we know that CTs pick up stuff too small to be seen on x-rays. 90% of lung nodules are found by accident, while looking for something else (hence the nickname “incidentaloma"), 80% don't require biopsy (at least not on first followup) and 60% of those biopsied are benign. Given that he's a smoker (albeit light, 1-2 cigarettes per night) and my experience of “beating the odds" (grrrrrrr...), we are hoping for but not necessarily expecting the best. At any rate, unless it's grown appreciably, the next step would be a followup CT; and if there's been growth, there’d be no danger in waiting six weeks before biopsy. We need to take that cruise, especially if it might be our last chance for a European vacation.
0 -
Also checking in as a Jew married to a Christian--DH is Catholic, fairly lapsed but used to accompany his dad to Mass every Sat. evening during the 2 yrs. he lived with us; and now a monthly churchgoer. He had toyed with the idea of joining a more liberal Protestant denomination--either UCC, United Methodist, or the local Episcopalian church which is definitely “modern"--but not while his dad was still alive. But our parish has a very liberal pastor (way to the left of Pope Francis) and a “lifestyle-diverse" congregation, so he's happy there. We may be the only family on the North Side who are dues-paying members of both his parish church and my (Reform, but not Classical Reform) synagogue. We did have our son attend Hebrew school and be Bar Mitzvah. (I had my Bat Mitzvah at 38).
Octo, I also have some conflicted feelings about Christmas (we’ve always had a tree, only with no religious symbols on it). I do love the whole season (except the weather)--and have occasionally done some choral carol-singing. Until this year, I had been in the Chicago Bar Assn.’s annual weeklong “Christmas Spirits” musical satirical revue since 2002--the Bar Show being written by Jews with a cast that’s easily 60% Jewish. (Dropped out this year expecting radiation to have taken more out of me than it has thus far--so instead I wrote a sketch and might do some prop and cuing work instead--and join in the group “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” finale).
Hanukkah seems to have taken on far greater significance in the U.S. since the early 20th century, almost as a “consolation prize” or parallel holiday to Christmas; when traditionally it was always a minor celebration--not even requiring refraining from work, school, travel, etc.--of lesser status than, say, Sukkot, Shavuot (Pentecost, when we celebrate the revelation of the Ten Commandments), or Passover. We do light the menorah when we’re home to do it, and have an electric one in our window. And of course, the heck with low-carb during Hanukkah: I make latkes the first two nights, and do pay at least lip service to the tradition of having at least one oil-fried food per day (when I was in the hospital recovering from surgery to repair a shattered leg, I had to settle for vending-machine potato chips). I suppose as long as I fry my eggs in olive oil (wastes a lot of oil, but insanely delicious) I’m complying--nowhere is it written that the food fried in oil has to be a starch.
0 -
rainy, I am sort of along the Jersey shore, not close enough to a nice ocean or bay view but I can get to the coast in about 30 minutes for a good salt water fix. Unfortunately it is just close enough for the dang Sandy to total a portion of the town, sure do hope it is a once in million storm!
learning how much my dang back will allow and so gave it a day from my old gym time today, will try for tomorrow
0 -
Katy.. Your fire looks so inviting.. I love it.!
0 -
Hmm, maybe a high tolerance for Crazy seems to be bred into those of us who enter interfaith marriages. I've always thought of the joyous season (for us, at any rate) as falling into three parts: Christmas, Hanukkah, and Santa. The first two are religious holidays, and the third one is where you put all the crazy commercial stuff, including trees (we have one), social obligations, and presents. I decided early on that I didn't want competitive gift giving, so gifts under the tree, and then Hanukkah becomes a nice family celebration with candles, dreidel, and latkes. DH is actually a recovering Baptist, and he's music director for his church (paid gig), so he's crazy busy leading up to the holiday, which helps us all take a deep breath and enjoy the time afterwards.
Passover is the Jewish holiday I love. I have some sort of crazy karmic relationship with Yom Kippur. One year I gave birth during it, and this year I was in the hospital watching the Pope on TV, the day after my bmx.
Lucy, I'd love to experience an Aussie Christmas, just to see how it felt! And maybe to go swimming in December.
ChiSandy, fingers crossed you get the report for DH's lung scan tomorrow, and it's benign.
Time to check on the bread dough....
0 -
It sounds like part of the problem I have with brussels sprouts is the way they were served when I was a kid - boiled and plain.
Katy, I have some of the same feelings about Christmas that you do - the marketing and the politics, and so on. My family is spending less and less time together, as people move away and others want to do their own thing. I remember last year at this time telling my family that doggone it, I was going to cook, and we were going get together and have a good time if it killed us! I sound like somebody's crabby old aunt, which I am.
One thing I have found is surprisingly helpful at the holidays is Skype. We've been able to "host" out of town relatives via Skype, and it's actually quite fun. We've toured new homes by carrying the laptop around, opened presents together, done just about everything except teleport mashed potatoes.
Octo, hope you feel better soon.
Sandy, hoping for good results for your husband. Friday is an awful day to have any test done, you're pretty much guaranteed having to wait all weekend for results. Hopefully he has one of those benign nodules that so many people have.
0 -
cubbie, I never had them in that nasty boiled way as in my family we ate whatever veggies grand mom grew and BSprouts were not on the list
do try them as they are so nice and this is the season!
Ina has a ton of good ways and who can get mad at anything with onions, garlic and bacon?
0 -
Maybe we'll have to give them a try at Thanksgiving. Still trying to figure out who is going to do the cooking. My family is going to end up with a standoff that ends in frozen pizza at this rate.
0 -
Cubbie, I am sure there must be a way to teleport the mashed potatoes!
I've not been to Australia at Christmas, though I have done Christmas in New Zealand.... but we were in Invercargill, which is so far south (it is a jumping off point for Antartica) that it was colder there than in San Francisco, by a good amount. It felt like winter even though of course it wasn't. It didn't snow, though it did hail and sleet! (but then, it doesn't snow in San Francisco either. Or where I live now, though I can see the snow on the nearby mountains...) Anyway, Invercargill: I was there without hubby, and while I didn't think I would be, I was homesick on Christmas Day! Ended up calling him long distance and bawling my eyes out about how much I missed waking up on Christmas morning without him. Go figure. It was a nice, low key celebration, however, once I got over missing hubby.
On a sort of related topic, Lucy, I've been meaning to tell you: a trip to Melbourne might actually be in my future for September. Work related. Fingers crossed. If I am really, really lucky there will also be a bit of a detour to the Great Barrier Reef to dive....
Sandy, thinking of you and hubby and hoping for good results!
Thinking of all of the crazies today: Sula, Gaia, Ducky, Poppy, SDB, PTS, Tomboy, and all of you!
Passover is my favorite holiday too! All of the memories are good ones. And of course I get to serve my world famous matzoh ball soup! Just thinking about it makes me feel better! :-)
I think we should have a Crazy-town themed Sedar this year. Complete with lots of food, and wine and laughter, and Skype for those who can't be there. There is plenty of talent in this group to write the Haggadah....(Next year, a cure?...Surely bc is a form of slavery and we need to get the hell out of it. Who is in?)
xox
Octogirl
0 -
I'm in. Just tell me what to do!
0
