Chemo on Monday

Chemo "takes it out of me" I guess - that's why there's been no news.  Anyway it went off fine and Freda looked after me all day.

My blood tests from last Friday showed a slightly raised red blood cell count, so I didn't need blood this time, which was encouraging.  Left the hospital in the early evening.

Tomorrow

Tomorrow I get the last dose of chemo (cisPlatin) and possibly blood (if I need it), so I will be in the Cromwell Hospital most of the day.

10 more days of Radiotherapy  (20 days completed).  There are marks on my neck now (like a medium sunburn - we are treating it with a mixture of Skin Oils and Aloe Vera) and the inside of m mouth is getting a little sore.  Not too bad though, not too bad at all.

Appetite diminishing

It IS getting harder and harder to eat (psychologically as much as anything) but I did enjoy a Masala Dosa at Woodlands this lunchtime.  Somehow it seemed to agree with me, even though I can't really taste anything. Lots of smoothies and juices and soups at the moment.

Infection around rig tube

The last few days it has been a bit sore around the rig tube site.  There is obviously a small infection.  I mentioned it to Nurse Mary she took a swab and had it analysed and matched to various antibiotics.  I forget the name of the bacteria.  Anyway I guess Simon thinks I have had enough antibiotics so I didn't get any.  Mary suggested a dressing, which I tried, but somehow the infection seemed to fester under the dressing and became even more uncomfortable, so yesterday I dispensed with dressing and after I had cleaned it again Nicki sprayed the area with colloidal silver.  (Repeated twice a day) Now it seems to be improving I am happy to report.

Adam and Dana send a card

Adam and Dana who manage me in the USA sent me a nice card.

Thanks folks!

Pentagram # 1

A five pointed star popped into my mind in an exercise I was doing with therapist Claudia.  I wanted to draw one and a little research revealed that it can be done with straight edge and compass (this fact has been known for 2500 years approx, but was new to me). So I went to Ryman and bought the equipment.  Above you see my first attempt.

And.....

It is not that we should be collaborating more, and are in competition, it is a question of realisation.  In actual fact we collaborate enormously.  We are not isolated. 

The cake is collaboration and the competition is just tiny swirls in the icing on the top.  Her icing swirl is higher than his icing swirl.  But the cake, the cake itself is all co-operation and collaboration.

I cannot afford a doctor or a therapist to myself.  Thank you all the other patients and clients who are co-operating with me to share the doctor & therapist. Thanks to everyone else who buys electricity, and water.   Thanks to the tube passengers who share my journey (and the cost of my journey).   I cannot do it alone.  

etc. etc.

We are constantly collaborating and co-operating, yet somehow we forget, we deny, we ignore it.  What a terrible falsehood, and where is it leading us in our isolation and in our denial?

Society - a short comment

A few years ago I marvelled at how many people are involved in my Breakfast.  This Blog brings it home too - what a huge web of relationships we are all in.  Easy to forget sometimes.  I was reading a collection of writings by Albert Einstein and he pointed out how indebted to society we all are.  Few of us grow our own food or build our own houses.  Culture and Language we owe to society.  

Somehow in the last few decades it seems to have been possible to adopt the (crazy) idea that it is possible to live alone and outside society - simply exchanging MONEY with society to get the things we need.

How different from life in the village when we would have known the baker, the farmer, the miller, the carpenter and their families.

The bonds and inter-relationships of society - so important and so neglected.

Danger to Hearing?

When I met David at the Maggie Centre he was concerned to let me know that he had been told his Radiotherapy might leave him deaf.  Obviously I was concerned, but I presumed Simon Stewart would have told me about this - he knows what I do for a job.  So last Friday I spoke to someone in the RT clinic at the Cromwell and we looked at the  scans of my head.  He indicated that there was no real radiation in the area of my ears, and figured there was no danger.

I expressed my concerns about radiation damage to my hearing to Simon when I had my usual Monday meeting with him.  He has no worries about that. 

The danger, he says, is the cis Platin.  (One more dose to go)

Last week's favorite record

website here

Flowers from Laura

Laura sent me some (pictures of) flowers. I thought I would share them with the Blog:

Thanks Laura!

Saturday evening

Went to the movies to see this

Friday afternoon

After RT, on the way to Pilates, I dropped in at the Tate Britain 

where I had a look at this.

and then saw some of Martin Creed's Work #850

I was very intrigued with this and took a bunch of pictures which you can see here

Then it was a Pilates class with Sandra

Friday - blood sample

Radiotherapy was running a bit late -  temperamental machine (!), so I had my blood test first and Mary told me about the pods they put the samples in that zip the stuff around the building.

Cool:

But there was an issue (some pod stuck in the system somewhere) - the advantage (opportunity in diversity) was that we walked over to the lab and I meant John and Josh:

Lina also on Radiotherapy reception

But I missed her in the photo yesterday: