Saturday, November 14, 2009

Saturday, November 14th, 2009

Long time no read, blogmates!! I'm not even going to look at the last date I did a blog entry because I know it's a long, long time ago . And every time I say I'm going to be better and put up more consistent, regular entries... something always happens and then weeks go by with no new entry. I'm beginning to think I would be lousy at keeping a diary!! LOL!

So, rather than come up with the various events that I've been involved in, I think I'll just ramble here. I think that's part of my problem is that I keep telling myself, "Oh, you should blog about this event" or "that particular production" or what I'm currently involved in... well, the list goes on and on and before you know it, I have way too many things to mention in one blog entry, so I don't blog anything . Hahaha... so I'm going to try a new concept... I'm just going to babble about whatever on the day I blog. Some entries will have very little to talk about and other entries may be talking about something that will be happening in the future. Who knows.. I'd say this will be a potpourri of things!

Well, obviously, there will be lots to talk about as we get closer to the Olympics. I'm of two minds about the Olympics. On the one hand, like everyone else, I have grown up watching the Olympics on tv because they were always happening in some city far away from Vancouver. The coverage of the sports themselves was always great, but I also loved the coverage of the host city... the different climates, environment, and cultures. Well, now they are going to be happening here in Vancouver... a city I know very well since I was born and raised here... and still live here! My "out of town" friends have heard for years about this city... some of you have visited here in the past and others have said they'd love to come here to visit. I have to admit, without a word of exaggeration, Vancouver is one very beautiful city that is sitting in a very beautiful province. BUT, (there's always a but), I can't say I'm as enthusiastic with the political scene here in BC... I just can't agree with decisions our politicians make on behalf of the people living in this gorgeous province. Yes, I know... with the recession and global financial crisis hitting everywhere, BC is not immune. And since we have committed to the Olympics, of course we have to go through and put on the best show we possibly can... along with security and everything that comes along with an event this size. BUT, can anyone really justify the billions of dollars that is being spent on a 2-week event, while the same hands that are pumping money into this event, are devastating sectors in BC by cutting funding that is going to destroy jobs and dreams for a lot longer than 2 weeks?

Now, having said that, I certainly don't want to rain on the parade and excitement that the Olympics brings to a city. Hahahaha... there is the excitement on the one hand, that same excitement that we all have grown up watching from afar on TV when it happens in other cities... and then there's the reality, how does one get tickets when there are no tickets to be had? Hmmm... I'm suspicious of that. The tickets are very expensive, so us average folk can't afford the majority of them, yet, even when they go on sale, there are very few to be had. WHO is buying all these tickets??? When the events actually happen, we better see full audiences because that would really make me mad if there actually are tickets to be had and no one was able to get them.

Hahaha... mind you, I will be perfectly content to be watching the events from the comfort of home and tv. I like the fact that on tv one has a commentator(s) who can tell me what's going on and where one athlete stands compared to the others. As for the outdoor events, like the skiing, snowboarding, etc.... no thanks! I would FREEZE up on the mountains!!! Not only that, I don't think it would be a good idea to wear flip flops up to watch one of the skiing events... standing in the snow in flip flops :D Shoes/boots won't work with my feet, since the skin is waaaaaaay to sensitive because of the nerve damage. Sometimes even just wearing a pair of socks in the apartment is a challenge and I can't wear them for long, that's how sensitive the feet are ;)

But, I am hoping to get downtown at some of the Olympic partying and free events that will be happening all over the core area of downtown. I just have to figure out how I will get down there... or better yet, get back home. I won't be able to drive since the area will be shut down to traffic, so there's always public transit. Mind you, everyone will be using public transit, so we shall just have to see how mobile I can be :)

Well, on Thursday, I had my quarterly CAT scan and blood work. This time, I drank copious amounts of water Wednesday night and Thurs morning, before the scan. I'm not sure if that was what worked but the technician had no problem finding a vein this time for the IV for the contrast dye. YAYAYA! Then I had to go to the lab across the hall and give blood for my CEA and Creatinine tests and the "student" technician had no problem getting a different vein... and here we are, two days later and not a bruise to be found!! The last time I went, they all had a heck of a time, and I ended up having a very black and blue arm for weeks!!

So, although I am planning on just having a relaxing weekend at home, I have to admit it's a bit nerve-wracking while I wait until Monday afternoon when I go to see Dr. Sharlene Gill, my oncologist, to get the results from the scan and blood work. I know it's going to be even more nerve-wracking while I wait in the waiting room and then wait for Dr. Gill to come in and let me know how they went. Of course, the whole reason for doing these is to see how the nodules on my lungs are doing... whether they are remaining stable, or if they are starting to grow... or if new growths have shown up. The blood work is just to back up whatever they find. So, if the scan shows no new growth and no growth in the existing nodules AND the blood work confirms this finding by no elevation in my CEA level, then this is grounds for them saying I'm still stable.

Hahaha... so once again, I'm asking everyone to give me a few seconds/minutes of your thoughts and just send some happy, positive, healing thoughts out to the universe that say, "Cheryl is fine! Cheryl is healthy! Cheryl's health is totally stable!" It's worked for almost 3 years now... let's take it for a few decades :) :)

Ok, that's about it for now. Bridget is doing fine... she is just a bundle of love and terrier :D On Nov 11th, she turned 12 years old. On the one hand, yes, she certainly does enjoy her sleep and she sleeps through the night snuggled up to me... and then sleeps all day long. But, when she goes out for her walkies, she is a bundle of energy and loves to go for long walks with Toby. Likewise, if she decides she wants something, she will get up and come tell me off until she gets what she wants (usually in the form of a treat or raw veggie). If we are at home, it's not unusual for her to wake up at some point in the afternoon and come out to the living room and sit on the back of her Squirrel Watch chair to monitor the neighbourhood :)

Soooooo... I will be happy once Monday afternoon is over and I have the results that say I'm stable!! Then, I will come home, feed the little four-legged diva, and then head downtown to help with Fighting Chance Productions' auditions for "The Wedding Singer" :)

Ciao for now!!

Cheryl