GI Janerella ventures out with the new do

Hello all and to my Canadian friends and family, hoping you all had a glorious Canada Day yesterday (and good weather)! Hubby and I were celebrating with you in spirit and wore our favourite Canuck t-shirts to the Nuke-Fest yesterday to display our maple leaf pride. By the way, I looked up "Canuck" and turns out, when the term is used by Canadians, it is considered affectionate, friendly and patriotic, but when used by others, it is considered a slur. Who knew, right? I just always thought it was a friendly term, period. Hmmm. There is your use(ful/less) piece of trivia for the day!

So, This Gal is getting used to the new do and I tell you, it is very low maintenance, which is very cool, both psychologically and physically. It is almost at the point where it "wipes clean with a damp cloth", and as I'm borderline obsessed with cleaning, it's all good. A dear friend took me out for brunch on Sunday and I actually took my hat off in the restaurant (GASP!). I had a couple of looks and you know? I don't give a shit. First of all, I don't know these people and thus don't care what they think; secondly, if they judge me, that's their issue, not mine. I have become much more at ease with that whole thing in the past few years; the whole "if people judge me, then it's a reflection of themselves, not me." And moreover, who gives anyone the right to judge anyone else? In fact, I read a fabulous quote that another dear friend posted on Facebook today and the timing was perfect:

• "Don't take anything personally. Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality....when you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering." 

And that's all she wrote on that. :-)

I didn't post the past couple of days because frankly, I have just been wiped out. I had a treatment on Sunday which is not the norm, and so I only had a one-day break, and that was Saturday. Again, this is not the norm, but because of the four-day Fourth of July weekend, the center will be closed and the Doc didn't want me to only have three treatments this week (radiation is Monday through Friday). So the good news is that I will have a four-day break this weekend, which will be nice, because it's been a struggle to just stay upright these past few days. Add to that, the side effects from the chemo just seem to keep multiplying - YEAH! - and the latest is joint pain. As a side bar, thank GOD for the internet, blogs and the plethora of information available online these days. I cannot even imagine what it must have been like for my poor parents who went through this shit 35+ years ago and not having easy access to information, and their having to call the doctor to ask "what the f**k is this all about now? Should I be concerned?"

So, I read up on all the side effects of The Big Blue Pill (again - there are a few) and in addition to the tinny taste thing (check), the bionic smell effects (check), some hair loss (check - evidently, that IS a side effect - mixed information on that one), fatigue (more the radiation though), the (ahem) not (ahem) going thing (check), one of the other side effects is joint pain. So I've been waking up with a sore right shoulder and the pain radiates down to my right elbow and hand and all the way down my right leg, knee and foot. So much for staying active, which is what the doctors recommend. Really? I was out for two hours on Sunday - brunch and then a mini-excursion at Tarjaaay - and I came home and slept for four hours - and I'm supposed to stay active? I digress ... in any event, that is the latest fun reaction. The good news is that it dissipates by early afternoon; again, a normal reaction. And after all, it could be a lot worse, so I do have much for which to be thankful. All that to say, I'm now halfway through Week Four, with the bulk of the Nuke-Chemo-Fest behind me, and the home stretch of Phase One is within sight. Woo hoo!!! Then, the fun of Phase Two begins after a four-week respite, with bigger doses of The Big Blue Pill! Dr. Ferragamo did not get into too much detail on this past visit other than to say "Everyone reacts differently" (the boilerplate response) but I have been doing some research and will pester him (nicely, of course; after all, the man wears Ferragamo loafers) on our visit next week. (Oh, and I can't WAIT to see what he will be wearing next week!)

That's all the excitement for now, dear friends and family, other than it's been mucho humid and rainy here. We even had a tornado watch here yesterday, which is very rare and mildly scary. It bypassed us, mercifully, but the rain has been rather relentless, so sadly, the hammock has once again had to take a brief sabbatical - bummer; I love that thing - it is soooo delightfully relaxing. On a super positive note, the fireflies are out in full force; I will have hubby take a little viddy of them floating about tonight with their butts all lit up, and I will upload it in the next day or so. They are so incredibly awesome and absolutely magical to watch. Magical. Oh, and here is an arrangement of some of the flowers in our garden - two types of lilies, Russian sage (smells unbelievably fragrant), and my favourite/favorite -- daisies. Seriously, are they not just the happiest flowers on the planet? They always make me smile. Such simple beauty.

Wishing you all a great day, my dear friends and family and sending much love and many hugs your way. Thanks as always for your love and support, and especially your sweet, rah-rah comments about the new do's! And now that my hair is gone, the scar from my biopsy is visible (cool, right? It's like a mini-tat. Seriously) and the access to my brain is that much closer, I thought the sign-off today was that much more apropos. Love you all, and especially my darling, sweet amazing hubby, who has been at my side through thick and thin and is also my nursemaid, my chauffeur, my never-ending support - I could not do any of this without him ... he is an absolute Godsend ....!!

Kiss my astrocytoma (which is hopefully shrinking with all the shit I'm going through!)

Cancerella (aka GI Janerella), Balderello, and the Two-Ever-Oblivious-Yet-Ever-Affectionate-Felines
xoxoxoxo