June 17, 2006 - Summer Time
(and the living is easy….)
Starbucks coffee, without pastry. Somehow, have lost the pastry connection now that the chemo is well behind me and it seems like a distant dream. Coffee, however, continues to please and the venti Starbucks mild is fine.
Have lost a few other things post-treatment. For one, straight hair – hair is now grown in and curly, as in ringlets. Have to colour now too, as is completely white/gray. There was a real slowing down of life and temperament that the treatment necessitated. Although I try to cling to some of that, at least in terms of meditation and focus and inner peace, the pace really is fast again and the days slip by like streams of water running down towards the sea. The fast is fun. There’s so much to see, do and learn, and not nearly enough time.
Work busy, crazy and great. Have had a chance to do more neuro, which is so interesting. Transfer out to one of the satellite sites next week, the busiest one, so anticipate an even faster pace. But only for a week and then it’s time for the annual, wonderful vacation at the cottage.
We opened the cottage the May long weekend and it was so cold that it snowed. We froze. The cottage, built in the 1930s, is wood, not winterized, not even insulated. There is a huge fireplace, plus a wood stove and we have a propane heater (sadly, we had no propane….). Was fun, but awfully chilly. Ron and I have been up with the kids since. We’ve also had my best friend Barb and her family up. My sister Sally and I were up last weekend, just the two of us. It managed to go down to 2 degrees Celsius at night last weekend, so we were doing the fireplace/stove/heater thing again. Am completely convinced that Summer time has now arrived – all future cottage trips will be warm and balmy. Mosquitoes and black flies will ignore us, the lake will be warm, the stars will be incredible and the universe will be in harmony. It’s all arranged!
Pictures this month, therefore, are of the cottage and surrounding area. Taken from the May long weekend on, with updates posted until the next month’s blog. These are possibly the last group of photos from my HP, as I plan to purchase a new Canon digital next month (am extremely excited).
Had flare of the ankylosing spondylitis which lasted a couple of weeks = very painful. Had to really cut back on a lot of physical activity – most frustrating. Didn’t take any pain medication and am quite determined to stay away from nsaids. Sally recommended O24, a natural product that contains camphor, which really helped with the muscle pain. Used a lot of ice, stretched out where possible and went for some extra shiatsu. Doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason for the flare. The previous one that occurred was right after stopping the interferon/ribavirin, which I thought might have set it off. Can find nothing notable to attribute this last flare to. Ah well, feeling great now and planning to take full advantage of it! It’s warm enough to do morning yoga on our deck, so much nicer than inside. Another week and it’ll be yoga on the dock.
James finished up his first term at the University of Toronto and did very well. He’s got the summer off school, but continues to work at the Hospital. Phil’s in the midst of final exams and has completed grade 10. He’s taking one course this summer and will also be working with a friend doing some heavy-duty physical labour for a summer job. He’s going to contribute some of his earnings towards his school’s Europe trip next year, so he’ll be traveling again, this time to France and Spain.
Ron bought a moped. Is incredibly cute. Ron on the moped is incredibly cute! Makes total sense for getting around the city. I continue to walk everywhere, camera in hand. Is endlessly amazing how even the same route can have new and wonderful things each day. That being said, I vary the route, lately with a preference for Dundas and Chinatown. Summer in the city… even though I’m looking forward to our cottage time, this is the city at its best. Little Italy festival in our neighbourhood this weekend, all craziness in the streets with world cup soccer games, pride week coming up, harbourfront, jazz festival, fireworks, warmth, activity, hustle and bustle – Toronto is fabulous in the Summer!
Sue
Starbucks coffee, without pastry. Somehow, have lost the pastry connection now that the chemo is well behind me and it seems like a distant dream. Coffee, however, continues to please and the venti Starbucks mild is fine.
Have lost a few other things post-treatment. For one, straight hair – hair is now grown in and curly, as in ringlets. Have to colour now too, as is completely white/gray. There was a real slowing down of life and temperament that the treatment necessitated. Although I try to cling to some of that, at least in terms of meditation and focus and inner peace, the pace really is fast again and the days slip by like streams of water running down towards the sea. The fast is fun. There’s so much to see, do and learn, and not nearly enough time.
Work busy, crazy and great. Have had a chance to do more neuro, which is so interesting. Transfer out to one of the satellite sites next week, the busiest one, so anticipate an even faster pace. But only for a week and then it’s time for the annual, wonderful vacation at the cottage.
We opened the cottage the May long weekend and it was so cold that it snowed. We froze. The cottage, built in the 1930s, is wood, not winterized, not even insulated. There is a huge fireplace, plus a wood stove and we have a propane heater (sadly, we had no propane….). Was fun, but awfully chilly. Ron and I have been up with the kids since. We’ve also had my best friend Barb and her family up. My sister Sally and I were up last weekend, just the two of us. It managed to go down to 2 degrees Celsius at night last weekend, so we were doing the fireplace/stove/heater thing again. Am completely convinced that Summer time has now arrived – all future cottage trips will be warm and balmy. Mosquitoes and black flies will ignore us, the lake will be warm, the stars will be incredible and the universe will be in harmony. It’s all arranged!
Pictures this month, therefore, are of the cottage and surrounding area. Taken from the May long weekend on, with updates posted until the next month’s blog. These are possibly the last group of photos from my HP, as I plan to purchase a new Canon digital next month (am extremely excited).
Had flare of the ankylosing spondylitis which lasted a couple of weeks = very painful. Had to really cut back on a lot of physical activity – most frustrating. Didn’t take any pain medication and am quite determined to stay away from nsaids. Sally recommended O24, a natural product that contains camphor, which really helped with the muscle pain. Used a lot of ice, stretched out where possible and went for some extra shiatsu. Doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason for the flare. The previous one that occurred was right after stopping the interferon/ribavirin, which I thought might have set it off. Can find nothing notable to attribute this last flare to. Ah well, feeling great now and planning to take full advantage of it! It’s warm enough to do morning yoga on our deck, so much nicer than inside. Another week and it’ll be yoga on the dock.
James finished up his first term at the University of Toronto and did very well. He’s got the summer off school, but continues to work at the Hospital. Phil’s in the midst of final exams and has completed grade 10. He’s taking one course this summer and will also be working with a friend doing some heavy-duty physical labour for a summer job. He’s going to contribute some of his earnings towards his school’s Europe trip next year, so he’ll be traveling again, this time to France and Spain.
Ron bought a moped. Is incredibly cute. Ron on the moped is incredibly cute! Makes total sense for getting around the city. I continue to walk everywhere, camera in hand. Is endlessly amazing how even the same route can have new and wonderful things each day. That being said, I vary the route, lately with a preference for Dundas and Chinatown. Summer in the city… even though I’m looking forward to our cottage time, this is the city at its best. Little Italy festival in our neighbourhood this weekend, all craziness in the streets with world cup soccer games, pride week coming up, harbourfront, jazz festival, fireworks, warmth, activity, hustle and bustle – Toronto is fabulous in the Summer!
Sue
posted by Sue, Toronto at 7:33 AM
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