Sunday, August 30, 2009

Red Sox Game

I've always wanted to go to Fenway and see a game. My brother Ed lives and Boston and just so happened upon 2 tickets to last Wednesday nights game against the White Sox. The drove over and met my brother at his house and we drove into Boston for the game. It was a great night and the weather was cooperative by not raining and staying cool. They had a nice tribute for Ted Kennedy before the game started. The game was really fast paced and Wakefield did a great job on the mound after his long break. The game was tied up and the Sox brought in Danny Bard who proceeded to intimidate the White Sox by throwing 100+ MPH pitches. The bottom of the 9th came up and Youkilis and Big Papi were on deck. I turned to my brother and said Big Papi is going to hit another home run and win the game for us. Youkilis ended up striking out and then Big Papi came up and and blasted one out into right field and just clearing Pesky's pole. Everyone cheered and the game was done. The Red Sox WIN!








What a great night. Thanks Ed!

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Cycle 10 almost over.

Cycle 10 is almost behind me. I have my home infusion pump hooked up until tommorow at noon. The home nure will come and disconnect me. I can't wait. We met with the local onc yesterday and will be meeting with a new doc down at Sloan in 2 weeks. I am hopeful that they will be able to ofer us a more agrressive treatment towards a cure. Work is getting busy and is keeping me occupied. I enjoy it very much. Next week I'm going to Boston to see my brother and catch a Red Sox game. I am really looking forard to that...

A freind of mine from my days at MapInfo is going to China and I have to say that I am jealous. If you read this before you go have a great time K and get in touch when you get back. I'm looking forward to seeing your pics and hearing about your experience.

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Busy Week End

I'm feeling really good and we're have a busy week end. Last night we went to the Altamont fair and had a ball. Olivia loved going on the rides and to tell you the truth so did I. We saw the petting zoo, the rabbits, the chickens (big hit w/ Olivia), horses and ponies. We ate fair food like greasy fries, and batter dipped veggies mmmmm good!
Me and Olivia on the Bumble Bee ride.

Mommy and Oliva on the Cars.

We all had fun at the fair and are looking forward to going for years to come.

On Saturday we went to the local mustang club's Dealer Day Show at Metro Ford. The dealership is right around the corner form our hosuse so it was a no hassle show for us to attend. Olivia and Sandy came over for a little while until the sun got high and hot.
Olivia has a mustang too.

We didn't place this year in our class. There were about 12 other cars in the class and some really nice ones. Congrats to the winners! The show had over 200 cars entered and there was probably another 100 that didn't register. The show was well attended and even my Dad showed up. It was a good time and I saw lots of old and new friends.
Here is a shot of the show and my car.



Tommorow we have church and then another car show. I'm grateful to be feeling good!

Until next time.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Acknowleging what's important

This morning I opened a deck of cards that have inspirational quotes. A dear friend gave them to me to aid in my healing. I shuffled the deck a bit and the card on top told me to “Acknowledge what’s important”. It went on to say that “Deep within, you know that the only thing that’s truly important is being in alignment with Spirit.”
Some of the things that keep me aligned and I consider important are my wife Sandy. She is my rock. She keeps me well with her love. My daughter Olivia whose innocence reminds me how precious life is. She is an inspiration to me and helps me stay focused on being healthy. My mother/mother in-law, who help us out by giving us a respite from Olivia. My brothers, who have been very generous helping me live out some of my wishes. All of my friends, who have supported me by keeping me in their thoughts and prayers. These are the important things.
Things that are not important fear, illness, worry, shame, anger and any other negative emotion. These are not worthy of my attention. I choose to focus on the positive…

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

This just in

Yesterday I had my third CT Scan to measure the progress of my treatment. I wasn't expecting the office to have the results back today since they out source the reading to another facility. My PA told us that she would attempt to get the results back by the time we left for the day. We waited and waited and there is a term that is used by cancer survivors called "Scanxiety" which is the feeling you have waiting for the results. Anyways the results weren't in before we left...Oh well wait another day. Our research nurse called us a little while ago with the results and they were very good. The measurable tumors in my liver are shrinking at a good pace and the original tumor in my rectum is no longer measurable via CT scan. My CEA is still at a good level. CEA is a marker that is produced by tumors. When CEA levels decrease after therapy, it means that most or all of the CEA-producing tumor has been removed.

On a sadder note the clinic was really busy today. I was able to get my favorite chair. They actually reserve it for me. There is a new guy who has throat cancer. He is a really nice guy and has a great attitude. We chat and joke around a bit to liven up the place. I always manage to get the nurses laughing when they ask if there is anything they can get me and I respond "Find me a cure for cancer." There has got to one out there and it's really important to keep the research funded. I know we are in the midst of tough economic times and money is tight however if you have budgeted money for charity please consider giving a little to the American Cancer Society in order to help rid the world of this scourge.

One of the things that I failed to mention in my last post was that I found a 4 leaf clover when I was on vacation. I consider my self lucky and I'm grateful for everyone who is supporting me though their thoughts prayers and actions. A special thanks goes out to my wife Sandy who is always there for me no matter what and my mom and mother in-law for always helping out with Olivia and to you my friends (some of whom I have never met) for reading my blog.

THANKS!

Monday, August 3, 2009

August update...

Hi Everyone -

Just wanted to touch base with you all and let you know that I am progressing well through treatment. This week I go for round 9 of chemo and I have a scan scheduled for tomorrow. I hope they are able to get the results for Wednesday when I meet with the doc otherwise we'll have to wait. I will send out a message and update the blog as soon as I know the results. I think I have been lucky so far and have experienced mild side effects. The mouth sores started to appear after treatment 7. They are like canker sores and cause pain and discomfort however, the doc did prescribe some medicine to help. Its called swish and swallow and makes your mouth numb for about 1/2 an hour. It also has curative effects too as once you use it the sores disappear in a day or 2. The fatigue is biggest challenge for me. I always feel tired and its a tired that naps don't seem to cure.

We are in contact with Memorial Sloan Kettering and are making an appointment to go down for a second opinion. They do some amazing stuff down there and I want to make sure that I am getting the best treatment possible. I will keep everyone up to date on this front as well. (just in We have an appointment on August 31!)

We spent time in the Adirondack mountains last week. Our friend has a place on the shore of Schroon lake. It was great! Friends from North Carolina joined us who we haven't seen in while. It was very nice. We had great weather all week. We went on hike through the natural stone bridge and caves. Olivia rode on my back in the pack. She is very funny and remembers her time in China. When I took the pack out to put her in it she asked me if we were going to China. Olivia also had her first swim in big water as she called it. She loved to swim in the lake and play in the sand. She enjoyed playing with our friend Amy's twin boys. A good time was had by all...

I am back to work now but its going to be a short week due to treatment. I am looking forward to going to Saratoga a couple of times this month to watch the horse races and going to a couple of car shows weather permitting. The all Mustang show is coming up mid month.

Thanks to everyone for keeping me in your thoughts and prayers.

==Shawn