Tuesday, May 21

A quick update on where things sit.
My appointment for a CT scan was at 2:30 today.  We basically just killed time before this.  Checked out Mountain Equipment Co-op, went for a lattee at Artigianos (they make the best lattees) and checked out the Whole Foods Grocery Store.  Bill couldn't believe we were cruising around a grocery store but the weather was so so today and it seemed like as good a thing to do as anything.  The funny part of it was we walked in the door of the store and the very first person we laid eyes on was Duane.  Here we are in a city where we no no one and who do we run into???  Our friends doing their grocery shopping.
We are staying with them tonight and Maureen is cooking her delicious Seafood Cliopino for us!  What a treat!

We met with the nurse who will be monitoring me through the trial and she went over the consent form with me before I signed it.  We discussed the possible side effects which for the most part didn't seem too bad, the worst being death!  I think every single medication and surgery I have had this has been a listed risk factor.  There are 62 people in the trial and actually theyt have had one death from a perforated bowel.  The way a phase 1 trial works is they continually increase the dosage with the purpose being to discover toxicity levels.  They have actually cut back on the dosage due to some of the side effects they've been seeing in patients participating in this particular trial.  Because of this one death I have to see a gastroenterologist before I head back to Calgary.  Not sure what tests I'll have to undergo there but am really hoping that I see that doctor in the next day or so.  We asked if I could delay starting the trial for another week but the doctor said no, I have to be back in Vancouver on May 27.  It certainly makes things more frantic but it is very important to me to be home for Saturdays event at Schanks.  Soooo.....depending on this appointment I will either drive back with Bill or catch a flight home.  I may fly out on Sunday and he will drive out with our fifth wheel.  I have blood work and other tests on Monday and then will have the chemo on Tuesday.  We have booked a site in the RV park for the month and will take it from there at the end of the month.  It is my understanding that if I am tolerating the drugs OK I'll be able to come and go after the first month and won't need so much monitoring!

Just talked to the doctor.  Apparently it is an endocope I am having.  They need to check that there is no residual tumour in my throat.  He does not think this is going to be the case based on my PET scan but wants to be certain before they start me.  So we leave Vancouver tomorrow, will stop in Windermere to pick up my fur child and my golf clubs, then home to Calgary for a whirlwind of prep then back to Vancouver with the fifth wheel on Sunday!  Good thing Bill doesn't mind driving!  The other option is I may fly out myself and he will just drive out depending on how things go with getting organized.

Soooo.....I'll be at the party on Saturday and I expect you all to celebrate big time!

Monday, May 20

A long day of driving.  Try coming into Vancouver around 5 PM on a holiday weekend!  BRUTAL!  Both Maureen and Kelli said that we would encounter a nightmare around Chilliwack and sure enough we did.  Crawled along and noticed that many cars were exiting.  Bill picked out a guy pulling a trailer because "it looked like he knew where he was going....no hesitation," and we followed him onto the off ramp and then along the secondary route for quite a few kilometers before we finally lost him.  I expressed my profound amazement that we were following someone we didn't know in a city of three million, assuming he was probably heading the same place we were.  Bill's answer.......He did surveillance for five years and knows how to profile a target!  Duh.. After some meandering around on this secondary route we managed to find our way back to the main route and fortunately the pace had picked up a little.  In all though, the trip took close to ten hours and we are both bushed tonight.  We went out for Sushi to one of Kelli's former haunts.  Unbelievably we could not finish the sushi we ordered (Both Geoff and Bill have the problem that they always over order!!) and the bill came to $23.00.  It is amazing that eating out in Vancouver is so much cheaper than eating out in Calgary!  We are staying at the Sandman suites tonight which is only a short drive to the hospital where I have to go for my appointments tomorrow.  If we have to stay in Vancouver tomorrow night we will stay with Maureen and Duane.  They came to Vancouver on Sunday for the Fleetwood Mac concert.  Maureen was telling me tonight that at the end of the concert Stevie Nix was thanking the audience and going on and on about how beautiful this city was and how lucky the audience was to live here.....in Toronto!  I guess there was an audible gasp from the crowd!!! Talk about a major faux pas!!!

The Silent Auction is coming together nicely thanks to the generosity and hard work of so many people.  We are so happy that so many people have purchased tickets and are planning to join us next Saturday!  I can hardly wait!  Below is a photo of some of the itmes that have been donated for the auction.  The list is impressive!!!  I also just checked the Honey Badgers progress on the fundraising front.....Congratulations team!  We have now hit $80,000!  Only $20,000 to go to make our $100,000 goal!  I think it's doable!

I just sat down and read through the consent document that I have to sign tomorrow to be part of the study!  It is a little sobering but honestly I have signed others that are similar over the past year and a half.  Of course there could be side effects and I need to be aware of them, however, I choose to read them and then hope that these possibilities won't  be the case for me.  So far I have dodged most of the side effect bullets from the various drugs and treatments I have had and hope for more of the same.  The good news is, is that participation in the study is my choice and I can withdraw at any time should these side effects become too severe or the treatment does not appear to be helping.  I choose to go into this study with the hope the treatment will be effective and knowing that my participation may help others.

Sunday, May 19

Got up to cloudy, socked in skies this morning and after some discussion decided that Bill and I would golf on the membership and poor Dad would stay home and do housework.  We threw the garbage into the back of the truck, planning to stop and do a drop at the dump.  We arrived at the dump bright and early and there wasn't a soul in sight.  Bill pulled up to the dumpsters and proceeded to toss several small bags of garbage in.  He was almost finished when a truck roared in and a very angry man jumped out ,  cursing and swearing about the way we had parked, blocking off his access to the dumpster.  He himself was not dumping garbage but was there to garbage pick!  Bill looked at him with some surprise and said "Good Morning," to which this individual replied, "You can just go out to that stop sign, turn left, go to the next four way stop and take a left to F*!@ing Calgary!!!  Honestly, how does a person get so jaded!  We drove away and left him at the dump raging at damn Albertans!  We then arrived at the course and in conversation with the starter discovered there had been a brawl on the course yesterday and both the police and paramedics had to be summoned.  I guess one group hit into the other group on hole nine and the ball actually hit the guys wife on the shoulder.  The husband was furious and picked up the offending ball before proceeding on to hole 10.  The group that had hit into them caught up on the tenth tee box and demanded to have their ball back at which point the husband of the lady who had been hit whacked the guy with his club, splitting the guys head open.  Then, the two thirty year old sons got into the fray and threw the fellow who had demanded his ball back on the ground and started pummeling him.  Can you believe it!!!!  Unreal! And they say golf is a gentleman's stroke!  Hmph!

We really weren't sure we would get all 18 holes in today with the way the skies looked so went with the attitude that if it rained we would just pack it in.  As it turned out, the first five holes were good and then the skies opened up.  We finished the front nine but both of us were having issues with our clubs slipping in our hands and what started out looking like it might be a good round slowly deteriorated.  The rain lightened up by the time we finished nine holes but we were both pretty much soaked and decided that lunch and coffee at Kicking Horse Coffee might be more fun.

Had our lunch, picked up some plumbing supplies and headed home so Bill could finish working on Dad's bathtub!  While he was doing that I took Boomer for a good long walk and then we headed over to see the Lenzins for a bit. It was like dog day camp today with four dogs sharing the beach!  Boomer was in seventh heaven!  Held his own with those young pups!  For an almost ten year old dog he's still pretty energetic!!!

Boomer and Ryker!!!  Two ADHD Canines!  Getting them to pose for this shot was no easy task!  Thank goodness for treats

Off to Vancouver tomorrow!  Hope the holiday traffic isn't too terrible!

Saturday May 18

For once the horrible weather forecast really didn't reach it's potential and we have actually had three excellent days on the golf course.  When Geoff and I were driving out here we were seriously wondering if we would be golfing at all, let alone three days in a row.  This morning the phone rang at 9:10 and it was the golf course asking us where we were.  Somehow we had the idea our tee time was an hour later than it really was.  Fortunately for us they slotted us in but it was the mad dash to the course and then right out which isn't usually the best start for me.  In any case the rain held off and it didn't really start to thunder and lightening until the 18th hole.  We were thinking we may have been the last of the golfers to get off dry.  Geoff had his first ever Eagle today, shooting a 3 on a par 5!  Pretty impressive hole!  My game is not really worth mentionning today, however, the story of my lunch certainly is.  We were just finishing the 9th hole and I opened up the sandwich I had brought along.  I had eaten half of it as we were going up the hill towards the 10th green.  I reached down to the cubby hole to retreive the second half of my sandwich and it was gone!  We were out here a week or so ago and a crow stole my dad's bagel right out of the cart.  I looked around thinking that perhaps he had repeated this trick on me but he was no where in sight.  When we reached the 11th tee box, we were standing up on the white tee box waiting for the group ahead of us to get out of range.  All of a sudden the crow flew right over us with something in his beak.  I pointed and said that I thought that was my sandwich!  Well, that bugger landed on the red tee box in front of us and proceeded to peck away at his lunch (previously my lunch).  Sure enough by the time the guys had hit and we got to the red tee box the bird had flown away, leaving only the cheese from my sandwich, confirming that it was in fact him that had scooped my lunch!

Bill arrived this afternoon and is doing some plumbing work for my Dad.  We are hoping to get a game in tomorrow before heading to Vancouver.  Packing lots of play time in before the next chapter of my life begins.

Friday, May 17

Well, thank goodness the weatherman isn't always right.  Geoff and I arrived here in Windermere on Thursday, not really sure we were going to get to play golf but crossing our fingers.  We have had two excellent days on the golf course.  Today Kelli joined us and we had our own foursome:  Dad, Geoff, Kelli and I.  The round was a little slow as you might expect for a long weekend tee time but the day was glorious.  Kelli played her best nine ever, shooting a 47 on the front nine and beating both my Dad and I.  Fortunately for me she wasn't as stellar on the back and I was able to catch her but must confess today I was not a shining star.  We arrived for our 9:47 tee time and ran into a friend of my Dad's who was working the Lions Charity Golf Shot Shoot today.  She looked at Kelli and Geoff and told them they were not paying today....she was inviting them to play on her membership!  Bonus for the kids and sooo nice of Nelda to do that for them.  So when we got to the fourth hole I put our twenty dollars into the Kinsmen pot and we all got a shot at winning the hole in one contest  If you land your ball on the green you get a ball, if you land your ball within a club length of the flag you get a sleeve of balls and if you put it in the hole you win the thousand dollars.  Both Geoff and I won a ball.  Grandpa and Kelli were skunked!

Fabulous Foursome!

We got home from golf and put on our biking gear and headed out for an hour bike ride on the Windermere Loop.  As the four of us were cruising down the holiday, both Geoff and I had the thought that we are definitely a family that doesn't learn.  Riding your bike on the highway on the Friday of the May long weekend is probably not the brightest thing to do.  Given the fact that my dad was run over a few years ago by a motor home you would think we would learn.  Oh well....nobody was hit today and we successfully did the loop. I am amazed at my Dad's ability to keep up with his grandchildren!  I don't think you would find too many 83 year olds riding his bike up and down mountain hills like he does!  As we were riding along I couldn't help but think that we were in good hands.....a paramedic and a doctor to take care of us!

On the way back,  I dropped in on the Gillettes.  So great to see them all!
Some very special kids that I have had the priviledge to teach over the years!

Today, I got the call from Vancouver that I had been accepted into the clinical trial that I was interested in.  Things are moving fast though, and I have to be in Vancouver on Tuesday for a bunch of tests and scans etc.  Bill is coming out here tomorrow and we will drive to Vancouver on Monday then will return to Calgary in time for the silent auction on Saturday!  It is quite likely that things will get started the following week.  A little overwhelming and comforting at the same time.  I must give huge credit to Kelli for all the work she has done to get me the connections I need to take part in these studies.  I'm not sure I would have had the where with all to do it myself and so appreciate her tireless efforts on my behalf.

Wishing everyone a safe and fun Holiday weekend!!!  See you at Schanks a week from tomorrow!!!

Top of the 2 km hill!  Sucking wind!