3-18-2007 till 3-25-2007

             The last two weeks has been eventful. The first trip was to Dr. Babcock’s for blood work to make sure the blood was thin enough to stop the shots.  Great news, it is and the blood clots are dissolved. 

            We started Chemotherapy on Wednesday 3-21-2007.  Now this is an experience. It’s like a large lounge with everyone sitting in recliners hooked up to their machines.   All the nurses are very nice and the atmosphere is not as intimidating as one might think.  The nurses are great and really have a lot of personality.

            My nurse is Donna Harvey and she tells you everything to expect in each step of the process. The first Chemotherapy treatment last for about 6 hours.  We will repeat the treatments each three weeks and they will last about 6 hours each. 

            The first step is to start fluids into your body to make sure it is not dehydrated followed by each course of medicine for the cancer.  They start with steroids then move to two different types of cancer killing medicines.  As each medicine is administrated Donna will tell you what you may feel and if you have any reaction she is there to stop the process immediately.  It’s really quite a methodical process. I was blessed with no adverse reactions and even as I write these notes 4 days later I have had none other than a slight sore throat and a sense of not having my total balance.  However that may be because of my age. 

            I hold steadily to the fact that positive thinking, lots of positive expectations and prayer is the winning combination for beating cancer.  Some of my observations as I notice cancer victims coming in are they look as if they have lost their best friend and seem to have no hope. Hope is the key to recovery.  When one loses hope we lose the battle. 

            By Friday 3-23-07 I was back to the juice machine to receive more fluids to make sure I did not get sick from the medicine.  This took 2 and ½ hours and was not bad. 

            The next thing I did was sign up for a cancer support group that I am hoping I can help with.  There are so many people that need encouragement and many have no encouragement from anyone.  That’s why support groups are so important.  Many do not have families and they feel along and helpless.  If you know someone suffering from cancer or a horrible situation, write them a note, send a card or an email with some encouraging words. Believe me they need it.  I never thought cards could mean so much until I started going through my situation. Our mission in life according to God is to try and make this world a little better.  We can all do this through reaching out and helping others in need and it takes so little effort. 

            Monday 3-26-2007 was one of my better days in the last few weeks.  Had a school board meeting Monday night and for the first time in 8 years the board was unanimous in our decision to support the budget.  Thanks to Dr. Andersen for leading our district in a positive direction. Tuesday was a tiring day. The school board meeting lasted until 12 midnight and that is not good when you are a little under the weather.  By Wednesday morning I was having a lot of leg pains in both legs.  I visited the doctor that morning and we discovered that I have blood clots in both legs this time.   

            Blood clots are a by-product of cancer.  Since this is the second time I have had blood clots which can be very dangerous, even death I was concerned as to why I seem to be having so much trouble. Dr. Babcock told me that we were hoping that the cancer was shrinking and when this happens we have more blood clots since the body is trying to rid itself of the excess waste.  Now that was positive and good news to me.  He went on to say that I must learn to pace myself, a feat that is very difficult for me to do.  So for most of this last week I have been off my feet with legs elevated to try and rid myself of the blood clots.  However this means that I now much give myself 2 shots per day and double my pills to thin the blood.  We have monitored this for the past week and hopeful this Monday we will have the blood back to normal.   

            I still have never had a negative thought about what I am going through or a depressed thought, nor have I felt sorry for myself.  This is a journey that will open my eyes to things I have never seen before.  So far I feel very fortunate to have met some of the people I have met and been exposed to as a result of my sickness.    

            I just read the Lance Armstrong Story, a book brought to me by my good friend Cliff Corley and after reading his story, I realized, I am not sick in any measure of what Lance experienced.  If he can overcome his previous problems I can certainly overcome my situation. I am blessed with a great wife Judy who makes me feel wonderful and gives me encouragement as well as a great staff so my business continues to run smoother than ever.