I went for my bi-weekly triathlon at the City of Hope this afternoon - blood draw, chest x-ray and consultation. I even added a little distance to the event by parking my car in the regular patient parking lot instead of using the valet service.
Today's trek from the parking lot to the check-in center was the sweetest little walk I've taken in weeks. And wanna' know the best part? I saved the $5.00 valet fee.
Since my brother and niece, both Strothers, were visiting this last week, I've been reflecting a lot about what defines our family. The first thing on my list is that it will practically kill a Strother to spend more money than is necessary. For example, I broke down and bought a lemon a couple of weeks ago, and I'm still in recovery mode. (I'm hoping that the lemons in our back yard will be ripe soon.) Thank God that $5.00 valet charge is no longer on the "necessary" list.
Dr. Forman and I looked at today's chest x-ray and compared it to the one from two weeks ago. At that point, we concluded that the left lung was not improving. Today we decided that my left lung is "clearing," but still has some work to do. And my miserable, raspy cough is still going strong. But, hey, I walked from the parking lot, so we're definitely moving in the right direction.
The thing that's moving in the wrong direction again is my weight. I'm down three pounds from two weeks ago. How can this be? You should see the way that I shamelessly pack away food. You should have seen the way I got up the morning after the wedding and polished off a huge 8" wedge of left-over butter cream frostinged cake. Well, maybe you shouldn't have seen it - definitely not a pretty picture. I was smashing it into my mouth like a bride and groom at a wedding.
I could go on and on with stories of my gluttony. I'm consuming the same hefty amount of daily calories that I was when I was packing on pounds, but since my activity level has gone from zero to 60, I must be in fast burning mode.
During my wait at CoH, I got to catch up with another patient who I hadn't seen for several months. She had a donor stem cell transplant in January and bounced back almost immediately, but it turns out that her aggressive acute myeloid leukemia (AML) returned ten weeks after the transplant. She had another transplant in April (same perfect-match donor), is now in remission and looks fabulous. She was complaining about the bags under her eyes, which I couldn't see at all. And I'm sure those have more to do with life with a sleepless two-year-old daughter than chemo or cancer. She was beautiful and energetic and planning her daughter's second birthday party with 75 guests.
All I can say is, "Wow!" And did I mention that I saved $5.00 today?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
11 comments:
Glad to hear you doing good. Exercise is always good. I sure believe in it.
I just wish I could lose 3 pounds. It seems no matter how hard I exercise, I can't seem to lose any weight.
It's probably because I eat too much. :)
$5? sounds like chip and dip money to me!
Congratulations on the savings and the sweet walk. I have to say I've been shamelessly using the valet service ever since I discovered it. Maybe if I go back to regular parking I can justify my Starbucks for the ride home! Hey I was just wondering about your weight loss. I'm sure they know what they're doing, but have they checked your thyroid? Maybe it's pumping away too quickly, or whatever it is that thyroids do, and you just need a simple fix like a pill.
My thyroid is good (I had that checked at my annual physical).
It's just the 'roids that make me lose weight. Thank God I'm starting to taper off!
I love to save money too. I cannot imagine having a 2 year old's birthday party so close to a transplant, that mom must be doing fantastic.
Suzie, I ran into a spam recipe you might like. http://mangotomato.blogspot.com/. It's maybe three days ago.
Marc, you want to lose 3 pounds? Gee, I consider that paltry amount the "margin of error," kind of like the political polls.
I am totally going to take my $5.00 savings and buy more chips, dip and SPAM.
Thanks for stopping by, I'm glad you're starting to get better.
Hmmmm.....what defines our family? Has to be our work ethic. We work like we're fighting snakes. Emily was a state champion in track, she out worked everyone. Big Will has the most serious look on his face when he's in work mode. Of course, you, Dad and Grandma are the benchmark for work ethic.
While on the subject of Spam, I found it interesting, it's so popular on Maui. I had Spam with French Toast for breakfast. Spam sushi. I like mine more toward the well done, slightly crispy side, just like Grandma fixed.
Again, thanks for everything.
Love ya!!!
Oh, yes. We Strothers are famous for our work ethic. As Daddy used to say, "I never had to step backward to pick up my paycheck." Doesn't quite make sense, but I get the drift.
Post a Comment