Posted by Stephanie 10:50pm CST from the apartment Houston, TX

I've been meaning to post for a couple of days, but I feel like death warmed over, so this will be very brief. I'm back in Houston, had my Day 8 infusion yesterday, and already I'm feeling crummier than this time last cycle. Poor Sammy is sick back home too, only he's got a nasty cold or swine flu or something otherwise unrelated to chemo, like my misery.

Anyway, I'll be back on tomorrow to post about my trip home, and some bloodwork updating, and such. I'm hoping to sleep better tonight than last night. I had some abdominal swelling and pain from chemo (despite my three days of oral steroids) that kept me from being able to sleep in the bed, and I wound up in the reclining chair partway through the night, never really getting any form of acceptable sleep. It's got to better tonight, I'm thinking. That's what we'll go with, anyway. Night all.

--Steph

Posted by Sammy

1030 pm from Home

As if we needed another reason why cancer sucks and should be eliminated like the scourge it is....

I ready today that Erich Kunzel, conductor for the Cincinnat Pops Orchestra has passed away from cancer. This is getting old.....

15 years ago (has it been that long???) my dad convinced me to start taking lessons with the principal trombone of Mr. Kunzel's orchestra. I went out and bought a CD by the pops. I still have it...its a disc full of Star Trek music. From the first big brass entrance I was blown away. First because I was a high school kid and had no clue that professional orchstras played movie music. This was a big deal but also the sound. The sound of that orchestra. The sound he had them play with. There was something about that sound and that orchestra that had me hooked from day one. I recorded all the Pops tv specials and watched them repeatedly. His Christmas with the Cincinnati Pops cd is still the first one that goes in the cd player every year the day after Thanksgiving. I can remember when I saw the pops play live for the first time. Even a bigger deal, when my brother and I got to go watch Mr. Kunzel run a rehearsal and sound check for the pops at Riverbend. It was a big deal because pops rehearsals are not typically open to the public....and beacuse it was with Doc Severinsen as soloist for his 70th birthday concert. (for those who dont remember, you need to know who Doc is....he was the bandleader for the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Google that if you dont know what that means or how significant it is). And I can remember for so long how much what he created in the Cincinnati Pops has meant to me. There was a time I wouldnt spend money on an orchestra CD unless it said Kunzel and Cincinnati on it. I would refuse to buy movie soundtracks, saving my money until the pops recorded it. To this day I even keep the Copeland CD in the car and listen to it if im driving through big hills and valleys in Tennessee or North Carolina. Its that good. They guy was a pioneer in orchestra recording and a borderline rock star in japan...pops cd's go gold there. One sold out the day it was released. I dreamed of getting to be on stage and play for him. I managed to make it on the stage, but for the symphony, not the pops. I still wish at some point I had.

I feel like the lights at music hall will be a bit dimmer this year, because a light has certainly gone out in Cincinnati. They guy founded the Cincinnati Pops and has had such an influence....and its weird. For a guy I didnt know personally he had such an influence on my upbringing as a musician. Every sound I made, when I couldnt be in a lesson was modeled off the sound of the pops trombone section. Nothing else came close in my mind to that orchestra. It was the orchestra that he created that first really excited me as a player and its sort of like a piece of childhood gone. Saddest was he showed no signs of slowing down. Only a month ago he was conducting at Riverbend. Like I said, as if we needed another reason to stop this disease.......

Posted by Stephanie 8:50pm CST from the apartment Houston, TX

Eeeesh, I didn't realize it had been a whole week since I had posted. I had it in my head that I did an entry late last week, but I must have dreamt that up. Anyway, let's get up to date.

I was able to get the first dose of cycle 2 today as planned. My platelets were a major problem last week, and there was serious doubt that they would be high enough to start the second cycle. Once they finally bottomed out at 19 (no transfusion, yay!) and started to climb back up, they did so at snail speed. Up four one day, then six the next, then 10.....finally last Friday, after a solid week of daily labs (ouch!), my platelets were above 50 and I could quit getting daily bloodwork. However, my platelets needed to be above 100 to start the next cycle, so we were left to wait until bloodwork today to see if they had managed to climb high enough. They were 131 this morning--higher than I expected. That's great, since the higher they are when I start, the more cushion I have when they start dropping.

I did see Dr. Benjamin this morning, as I always do before starting a cycle, and he actually surprised me by asking if I wanted to hear some hopeful news. Um, hello, of course! He said that according to this morning's chest x-ray, it looks as though the growth rate has slowed down or even maybe started to go in the other direction. He said it's hard to tell for sure on the chest x-ray, and that the CT scan after this cycle will give much more information, but right now, it's looking as though it's responding (at least a little!) to the Gemtax. HOORAY!! I don't think I realized how much I needed a little bit of good news until I heard it--it's like getting a second wind when you're ready to collapse. He also said he anticipates my platelet issues to get worse as we go on, which is no surprise. I see many platelet transfusions in my future.

So, chemo for today is done. Mom and I did a rousing rendition of the "chemo dance" as the Gemcitabine infused. I'm tellin' ya, it's proven to make the chemo work better. I'm sure anyone who walked by thought we looked ridiculous. The only thing I feel so far tonight is some nasty hot flashes--the air is on high, and yet I'm sweating just sitting here in the recliner. That happened after the Day 1 infusion last time, and it shouldn't last long.

In other news, mom and I bought plane tickets over the weekend to fly home tomorrow. It was a risk, since there was a chance my platelets wouldn't be high enough to get chemo today, but just in case, we scheduled the flight for late in the day so I could've gotten Tuesday chemo if needed. Thankfully, I didn't need that, so we'll head home tomorrow and be able to stay until Sunday evening, when we fly back. Mom and I had been tossing around the idea of trying to get home for the second and third weeks of the cycle, since that'd give us more time at home, but with the platelet issues, we opted to come home between Day 1 and Day 8 instead. Getting bloodwork and transfusions at home is much more complicated, and unless I know it can be done right, I don't want to mess with it. It's a long story, one I'll share in another post. Surprisingly, we got great prices on the tickets--otherwise we might not have been able to swing the trip home. All that matters right now is that I get to see my husband, and my cat, and friends and family, and be in my own house.

Evidently the weather back home is feeling more like fall than late summer right now. I'm looking forward to that. It's cooler here than it has been, but it's still in the low 90's during the day and only down into the 70's at night. Not too bad to do our evening walks in, but you've still got a good sheen of sweat after a lap or two. Yummy. Take care everyone--I'll post again from home later this week!

--Steph

Posted by Stephanie 8:55pm CST from the apartment Houston, TX

Hopefully by now you've all read Sammy's synopsis of his ride yesterday. I can't say enough how proud I am of him and what he accomplished. I'm truly lucky that he not only stands beside while we go through this, but also goes above and beyond to fight back any way he can! He said there were several thousand riders that participated, and when you added workers and volunteers, there were 6300 people involved with the Philly Livestrong event. Wow. Thanks to everyone who donated--Sammy raised around $1500 for the LAF, and paired with the money raised by all the other riders, I'm sure we helped fight back in a big way.

Counts update: Platelets are still dropping. They're not much lower today--just down two to 19, but I'm getting frustrated. I'd like for them to turn around and start going up so that I can quit getting stuck with a needle everyday. They're moving so slowly at this point that mom and I are concerned about whether or not they'll be back up high enough to start chemo again next Monday. Guess we'll just have to wait and see. On a positive note, they drew an electrolyte panel (which hadn't been done in several days), and my creatinine and carbon dioxide levels are both improving. Creatinine measures how effectively your kidneys are filtering, and for the last couple of months, mine's been hovering around 0.9-1.0, which is the high side of normal. Today, though, it was 0.7, which is awesome. Guess my day-after-day consumption of four liters of fluid is finally paying off. My C02 level has been low for a long time--that's why I take a massive amount of sodium bicarbonate tablets to balance things out. Usually that level runs about 22 or 23, on the low side of normal. But today, it was 32, actually above normal range, which means I can cut back on the number of tablets I take everyday. Fewer tablets means my body is doing more of the work itself, which means my kidneys are slowly recovering. All of this is good news in case we do have to go back to Ifosfamide at some point.

I'm happy to say I still have my hair at this point, although I'm sure it won't be long before it starts coming out--it's already lost it's usual life and vigor. It usually happens about 2-3 weeks after chemo starts. I don't know whether it's the Gemcitabine or Docetaxel (or both) that will cause it to fall out, so it could happen in three days, or it could still be two weeks away. I made the bonehead move of forgetting my scarves when I came back down, so Sammy will have to mail some down.

Time for a walk around the apartment complex. Have a good night everyone!

--Steph

Posted by Sammy

930 pm from the hotel in Philadelphia (ok techinically im in Plymouth Meeting, but that doesnt count since every house here has its own township name)

Well, I did it! 100 miles on a bike, my first centruy, to fight back against cancer. I think I won....though I took some gut punches from a few hills. It wasnt that they were long (some were) but they were STEEEEEEEP. For incline, im thinking its going to be like Breiel extension or Pennyroal Lane (if you know the middletown/franklin area). Oh no. Now on the flats, id look at my spedometer and it would say somwhere between 20 and 24mph...upwards of 33 on decents. On the climb up to Landis Store???? 4 MPH!!!! Not cool. Hills that make me, on wheels go near the average walking speed are not okay.

No one told me our rest stop was at the top of that!!!

So yeah there were a few hills. And a few, um, "speical' riders. Like the kind that think they are the new Lance. The kind that fly up the beginning of hills and then get passed. The kind that nearly cause pile ups because they cant hold their line on their super fast new bikey-bike. Or the kind that whip around a down hill turn, with a "cyclists go slow" sign, "cyclists go slow" paint on the pavement and a sign telling CARS to go 15mph....and then promptly fight the guardrail with their face. Guess some have to learn the hard way.

Overall I had a great time today. It definitly wasnt anything close to easy. I really had to work up a few of those hills and I pretty much hurt everywhere as I type this but its a good kind of hurt. The kind where you know youve done something good and special. It meant a lot to me to cross that finish line in time and Id be lying if I said I didnt choke up a bit. Wishing Steph was there as I crossed the line (shes having happyfunchemotime), thinking about all it has put us through and thinking about all it has taken from so many. I feel like Ive finally fought back and hit cancer where it hurts..

Heres a visual illustration...thats cancer on the left and me on the right....hitting cancer where it hurts. Get it?...

Also had an interesting experience with a guy dressed as the devil. Now if you dont know the backstory, and older guy is always at the Tour de France, dressed as the devil. He cheers teh riders on and chases them up hills. Its kind of funny and the riders get a kick out of it. Hes there every year. We had our own guy at the challenge today. He was standing on the slope of the hardest hill of the day cheering us on and said "comen on guys keep going, only 50 meters after this turn!". Yeah. More like 200 yards. Turd. Teehee. Actually that was pretty funny. I saw him at the post-ride dinner and told him i thought his routine was funny and said "really? 50 meters my ---!" He laughed and said "you trusted the devil? dude I always lie!" Funny stuff. I thought he might be, but was hoping he was telling the truth...that hill was rough. He was nice enough to pose for a pic after the ride.

But it was a great day. It was amazing to see so many taking up the fight. We have to keep fighting though. Im doing this again next year....and Im asking anyone who reads this who wants to take up the fight to consider coming along. Theres shorter rides so if you dont think youre up for 100 miles or dont own a bike thats made for long distances you can do a shorter one and then laugh at me as I limp around. Im looking for people to come and ride with me. Lets not just give cancer the low blow, lets hit it with the steel chair, hulk up and give it the 'ol leg drop. Whos in?

And just in case you need to get motivated....click Here. I posted this link to my facebook but for those of you who dont use facebook here it is. 40 inspirational speeches in 2 minutes. If youve seen it, watch it again anyway....the last few clips are totally worth it. Its almost moving yet just enough tounge-in-cheek you laugh more. Im off to lay motionless for the next 3249875324894 hours.

LiveSTRONG!

Sammy 

Posted by Stephanie 12:10pm CST from the apartment Houston, TX

I am on pins and needles waiting to hear how Sammy's doing on his ride! I've gotten a couple text messages on water/food stops, but I'm so anxious to know how it's going. I'm really bummed that I wasn't able to be in Philly with him this weekend. I've never been to Philadelphia and would've liked to see a little bit of the city (even though he says I'm not missing much). Oh, and then there's the cheesesteak--that would've been amazing, I'm sure. Even if I were there, I wouldn't know much more about how he's doing than I do now--I'd be parked in one spot waiting for the pack of riders to come by, but I wanted to experience the atmosphere of a big charity ride like that. They have a Livestrong village with booths and vendors, plus a big afterparty! I'm sure he'll post soon with his thoughts on the ride.

Meanwhile, here in Houston, the dreaded week o' fatigue has been, well, not what I expected. From what I was told, I expected extreme tiredness and no energy. After the infusion on Monday, I was just waiting for it to hit. Tuesday, had my Neulasta shot, but felt nothing. Wednesday, still nothing. I thought for sure I'd get the achiness and bone pain from the Neulasta on Wednesday, but nope, I felt fine. Thursday, I woke up, and finally felt the effects of the Neulasta, but still had energy to move around the apartment, go to the grocery and take an evening walk. I was confused, for sure. I thought maybe I'd managed to get off scot free. HA! Well, Friday it finally hit me, but not in the way I thought it would. I felt like garbage--achy (but in a different way from the Neulasta) and with shooting pain all over my body. One minute my left tricep would hurt, and then the next minute it was pain shooting down into the right sole of my foot. Weird. I could get up and get around, but I didn't want to move, and when I did try to do something like brush my teeth or put gel in my hair, after about 30 seconds my muscles were just suddenly too tired to keep holding my hands up. My heart felt like it was working extra hard, though it wasn't racing like it used to when I'd have low hemoglobin and be wiped back on Ifosfamide. I guess that can be considered fatigue in a way, but it certainly didn't fit the normal definition--it's so difficult to describe accurately what it was like. Anyway, Friday was pretty awful. Tylenol or heavier pain meds did nothing to relieve how I was feeling, and that night was one of the worst nights of sleep I can ever remember. I haven't slept well at all the last couple of weeks, but that night, I woke up about 2am and felt like I did after surgery last fall when I'd wake up and my pain meds had worn off.....all over my body. *shudders* Not cool. Thankfully, yesterday was somewhat better, and today is a little better still. Almost all the aches and pains are gone, along with most signs of tiredness. In fact, all I'm really dealing with now is a generally puny feeling and a nasty sore throat.

My counts are the other half of the story this week. Dr. Benjamin told me he didn't expect my immune system to suffer much at first on this regiment, but that eventually it would, especially my platelets. Well, my poor platelets are having to fight already. On Monday, they were 90--low, but not too low. Friday when I had bloodwork, they had dropped to 37. Boo. Anything below 50 requires daily labs, so mom and I spent yesterday morning at the hospital getting bloodwork and waiting for the results. They were down again--26, but still above transfusion range, so we were back this morning. I'm sad to say that at 21 today they're still dropping, but it looks like it's starting to slow down. The question now is, when will they level out and start to go back up? We were seriously entertaining the idea of coming home as soon as I felt better, but now that I'm having platelets issues, we have to wait until they're back above 50, and as slow as they're moving, that's probably going to be several days. Right now, it's looking like we'll be stuck down here until the start of my next round on the 31st.

It's lunch time. Mom and I are having a Philly cheesesteak from a local sandwich shop around here in honor of Sammy. That, paired with a strawberry slush from Sonic (it helps my throat feel better) and I'll be all set! Ciao for now!

--Steph

Posted by Sammy

9pm from Philadelphia, PA

What is it about road trips? I like them, dont get me wrong here. But why is it that whenever I set out on some sort of expedition that involves going accross part (or most) of the country by car, odd things tend to happen? I left out from school yesterday around 330, stopped in Wilmington for gas and caffinated beverage and headed out. By the way, Wilmington OH has an exceptionally nice UDF, as far as UDF's go. Anyway things were just dandy. I evens survived traveling accross eastern Ohio and through. Thats saying somehing...there's not much there and one wrong turn and you could wind up in Athens....and nobody wants that to happen to them....

A little stretch of highway through West Virginia and I was in Pennsilvania. I hit the PA Turnpike. This festive little gem of a highway is where you come up on what looks like a giant amusement park entrance gate and take a ticket...and then promptly drive for your life as 8 lanes condense to 3 lanes in about 10 feet. The ticket is so you can later on give it to a little man in box and pay him ($17 by the way for me) for the privelege of driving on the road. They also have an interesting system of what they call "service centers". Now I remember some of thses from when Dad and I came out here for a National Youth Orchestra my senior year in high school. (During said trip I apparently missed a "sit in" in protest of some Gothic [think dresses like heavy metal but mopey like an emo kid...would have looooved Twilight] student being told not to paint her face like Casper the Friendly Ghost....gee sorry I wasnt there for that one). Anyway...I rememberd service centers being a truck stop store (CB radios and Jesus-Logs ) and a Roy Rogers. Now they have added Cinnabon, Starbucks and Sbarro Italian, which is apparently the state fast food in PA...its everywhere. After being up since 5 am and driving accross three states I all but skipped up to Starbucks. Oh, and in case you are wondering, no I wasnt kidding about the logs...

Finally made it to the last 30 miles and decided to downpour like crazy. Some wild lightning too...could feel the thunder in the car. I got to the hotel around 1230am...

So it was quite the adventure...but as similar thing happened to us going from Houston to Myrtle Beach. Just to fill you all in, when traveling and stopping for the night, I will often just pick a hotel and show up. Usually can get a room at a Mariott, Hampton, Drury or Jameson. Well silly me for thinking one could execute this maneuver in ALABAMA. We stopped for dinner at a Steak and Shake in Mobile and ate in the company of the most poorly behaved church youth group EVAR. Really annoying kids and adults that were oblivious to the fact that the waiters really were having a rough time doing their jobs because of the little cherubs. I wont carry on about them, but let me just say for comparison that if they had been wearing shirts that said East Clinton Band on them, there would have been weeping and gnashing of teeth on the bus that night. So here was my logic: In Ohio, you cant go from Cincy to Dayton to Columbus without seeing a hotel every 20 miles at least. Not so much in the land of the Crimson Tide. We left Mobile headed toward Montgomery and I kid you not, did not see a viable exit or hotel for 130 miles. No street lights either. It was crazy dark...so dark that a very car-stir-crazy Steph and I decided to flim some commentary in night vision on the camera. Ill try to get that posted on here soon . The only light was coming from IN the car. We really were wondering when LargeMarge from PeeWees Big Adventure was going to show up.  Thath would have been par for the course after taking forever to get out of Texas, stuck in a traffic jam on the biggest bridge EVAR in Baton Rouge (we could feel it sway with traffic) and having to actually be in Mississippi for more than 30 seconds. And Im pretty sure we got the very last hotel room in all of Alabama that night. But we made it!

So now im off to rest. Tomomrrow is the Livestrong Challenge! Im riding 100 miles to fight back agains this disease that has put us through so much. I feel good. Its finally something empower Ive found that I can do to fight back. Something tangible. Ill be doing it again next year and I have big goals which Ill talk about in the coming weeks. But for now my focus is tomorrow. Steph and I are both sad she could not be here. Down in Houston doing the chemo dance. But Ill be taking her along with me along with all of you who have supported us these last 3 and a half (has it been that long?) years. You are all with me tomorrow and this is us fighting back together. Thank you to all who have supported by donation, to all who have sent prayers and warm thoughts and to everyone who has helped in some small way to make this happen. I feel like Im finally drawing a line in the sand against this disease and every pedal stroke of the riders tomorrow is gut puch to cancer. The Philadelphia Livestrong Challenge has rasied $3 Million dollars for the Lance Armstrong Foundation. And it all goes toward fighting back...awareness, research, support, advocacy. This is how it happens. This is where we pick a fight with cancer!

LiveSTRONG!

Sammy

Posted by Stephanie 9:55pm CST from the apartment Houston, TX

Whew, it's been a crazy last few days! Between my birthday festivities, having Ang in town, doing the memorial walk, church and flying back to Houston, I'm worn out! It was a great birthday weekend--dinner out at Thai 9 (AMAZING) and some good ol' cake and ice cream on Saturday night. Earlier that day, Ang went with Sammy, mom and I to the memorial walk for my former babysitter Rosemary. The walking route was 3 miles in the sun and heat, so I opted to stay back at the park shelter. Sammy stayed with me while mom and Ang joined the 75 or so people who came in support of the Richardson family. They raised over $900 for Sammy and I at this year's walk, and we are so grateful for their generosity. To add to that, Sunday we received an anonymous donation from someone at church. The support we continue to get is just unbelievable. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who donates, sends cards or makes phone calls or facebook and xanga comments. We appreciate it so much!

Mom and I arrived back in Houston late yesterday evening and got a ride back to the apartment from Joe and Sarah. I had my second chemo dose of this first cycle this afternoon. That dose included I.V. steroids and anti-nausea meds, then an infusion of Gemcitabine like last week, plus the addition of the Docetaxel. I've also been taking oral steroids since yesterday morning to offset the edema (mom informed me I had been spelling that wrong previously) from the the Docetaxel. We learned during today's infusion that I will be getting a Neulasta shot tomorrow evening. Boo. I had gotten rather used to not dealing with the massive bone pain and skin sensitivity that comes from the spike in my white blood cell count. But, if it's needed to help prevent a massive immune system crash, I can deal with a day or two of soreness, although in combination with the fatigue caused by the Docetaxel, it looks to be a rough first few days. So far tonight, though, I'm feeling fine. Bloodwork from this morning was good--platelets a little on the low side at 90, but they only have to be above 75 for this treatment, not the normal 100. I'm keeping my fingers (and toes and eyes) crossed that the side effects won't be as bad as expected.

So, now I'm 30. I know a lot of people dread turning 30--they feel like they've lost the carefree youth of their 20's, or can't go out as much as they used to......which I understand can be frustrating. Heck, the entire second half of my 20's has been spent battling this disease and stripping me of lots of fun with Sammy, family and friends. But, while some people turn 30 and worry about feeling old, I'm worried about just making it to my next birthday. It's rather depressing, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't on my mind quite a bit. My plan is to just be thankful for all that I do have and keep fighting to get through this so that I can reclaim the years that I have lost to this disease! Besides, 30 isn't what it used to be--I'm still a youngin'.

I'm off to have a quick webcam chat with Sammy, then hit the hay. Nighty night!

--Steph

Posted by Sammy 1130pm from Home

Ive been a blog slacker again. Actually ive been semi-MIA from most things inter-web for about 3 weeks. Starting the last week of July we had band camp at school, followed by a week of post camp finishing the show and getting our pregame blocked, then this week Steph was home so Ive been spending what free time ive had with her.

Things have been going well on the school front. The band had a great camp and a strong summer overall. Im probably looking forward to the start of this school year more than any previous year. Though I can't say im looking forward to getting up at 5am again. Or meetings. Yes I know meetings are part of the job. Its just that I tend to have a lot on my plate in and out of school and that combined with me having, as a friend put it, "the attention span of a butterfly"...i tend to fidget a bit in meetings. But Ill survive, im pretty sure.

In other news, Im applying to start a master's degree. The current program requires a GRE score, though there is no minimum. The having to take the GRE part is very dumb. The no minimum score is very good. Especially on the math portion since some of it wasnt really review for me so much as it was new material...that and the fact that the last math course I took was Pre-College Math with Mr. Flory, my last day of which was in 1998...11 years ago. And my aforementioned attention span, or lack thereof was signed up for that class as well. Oh and I managed to come off like King Dunce on one essay. In answering the question I decided to use Jonas Salk as an example...only problem was when I went to mention what he created (polio vaccine) my brain pulled out another word that started with the same letter (Penicillin)....brilliant. Hopefully they dont fact-check that paragraph....

Steph goes back to Texas in the morning. Booo. Monday will be the second infusion of Gemcitabine and adding in our new friend Docetaxyl. Were hoping and praying this does the trick. Her cancer has managed to not follow typically protocol so hopefully that means that the oddball combo will work and we can be done with having cancer. Either way im hoping to get down to see her at some point during the fall. That or maybe she can get home gain next round.

Im off to Philadelphia this coming weekend for the Livestrong Challenge. 100 miles of cycling to raise money and awareness in the fight against cancer. Its not too late to donate... just go to http://philly09.livestrong.org  and give what you can if you are able. Every penny goes to support the mission of the Lance Armstrong Foundation and if you dont know much about this wonderful organziation and how much they do to support survivors around the world go to www.livestrong.org and read up. Youll be glad you gave. If every reader of this blog who hasnt donated yet gave at least $10, we can reach the $3000 goal I set for this year. It would be my honor to represent our part of the country at the fundraising celebration on Saturday. The days are counting down and we can still reach that goal! We hear on the news all about healthcare. The arguements for or against various ideas have become so distorted and polluted by partisan viewpoints on all sides that no one is really debating the material anymore. Its become a playground brawl where two kids are screaming "my dad can beat up your dad" so loud and angrily that they can't even remember what they were arguing about in the first place. I dont even know what to believe from either side of the argument. But what I do know is that this challenge, this event and this foundation is a real answer toward a common goal of eliminating a disease, lessening suffering and supporting those affected. In a world where everyone on TV wants to pretend they have the answer to caring for people, this foundation, which doesnt claim to have all the answers, just real information is something we can all support. "Unity is Strength, Knowledge is Power, Attitude is Everything". That idea in the spirit, in the hope of eliminating cancer and the suffering it causes is an idea that transendes politics. Right, left, liberal conservative, elephant, donkey...you might as well be a liberservative somewhere south of north of the geographic square root of pi with a marmoset as your mascot. Cancer doesnt care. It doesnt descriminate so we cant afford to pick any side in this fight except the one that stops cancer in its tracks. I will ride 100 miles next sunday to do what little I can to fight back against this disease that has taken so much from so many. Im asking your help...every pedal stroke, every climb is a salvo we throw back. I know how much meaning Im putting into it...Im asking all of you to support that. Ive had enough of this disease. Im going to Philly to pick a fight. Who's with me?

Sammy

Posted by Stephanie 7:50pm from the house

Hooray for being home! I know it hasn't been that long since I was here, but we learned big, not-so-great news since I was home last, so it was nice to be able to spend some time with Sammy and unwind. The main reason for us coming home is that my birthday is tomorrow......the big 3-0. Oh goody. Ang is driving up from NC tomorrow, and we'll all go out on Saturday night to celebrate. Sammy's 29th birthday is a week after mine, so our celebration this time will be a joint one, since I'll be back in Houston next week. It also turns out that this Saturday is the memorial walk for Rosemary, so I'm thrilled we're home for that. Proceeds are going to Sammy and I, and it will be a great chance to celebrate the life of a wonderful woman. There will be food, cornhole, and a raffle. Here's the link again to the myspace page with all the info:

Rosemary's Walk of Love

So, an update on how the first round is going. It's been......interesting. I started feeling kinda crummy late evening on the day I got chemo--headache, slightly nauseous, reaaalllly warm. A little phenergan and some tylenol took care of it, and for another couple of days, I felt okay. Mom and I flew home Tuesday afternoon, and I felt a little crummy that night, but I figured it was from the traveling. Yesterday, however, I started having sharp, shooting abdominal pains--reminiscent of what I dealt with on methotrexate (and lead me to need steroids in the first place last spring). It's certainly possible that this chemo combination is irritating my abdominal lining. In fact, I'd venture to say that's largely to blame, but I bet it also has to do with how active I was yesterday. A dentist's appointment, a trial workout at Curves, a couple of errands, and dinner with Reba. The workout probably did the most damage, since I jumped right in and tried to exercise like I was able to when I was totally well and semi in-shape. I was hoping that having a low-impact workout available to me would keep me strong during treatment, but the way my body reacted, I'm not sure that's a possibility. Thankfully, forced couch-potato time last night and most of today has alleviated some of the abdominal pain, and now I'm just dealing with a general icky feeling. I hope I start feeling better for our birthday celebrations--it's no fun trying to be happy when you feel like garbage!

I'm gonna lay down and rest until Sammy gets home from band practice. I know he's been wanting to get on and do a post, and I certainly have more to say when I feel up to it, so one or both of us will be back on to post again soon. Take care everyone.

--Steph