Per G.G., Chief of Ordnance

This is the newsletter I sent to my support group this evening and servers as an update on my current condition.

Hello Everyone, Time again; for that monthly e-mail nudging you to attend another regular meeting of the Support Group. That’s OK, trust me when I suggest there are many worst things one could be bugged about. This month, we are talking May already, will be an open meeting and a time to catch up with each other and enjoy one another’s company. This month we meet on the first day of May at 6:00PM. As per our normal course of events, this gathering will be at the Pima County Medical Building which is located at 5199 E. Farness Drive. I hope everyone who attended the show last week had a wonderful time. It is always a raucous event and I for one really enjoy the opportunity to see us all beaming with laughter. The figures are currently being double checked and there should be an accounting of how we did with the ticket sales by Tuesday if not before. I will distribute that information to everyone once I receive the final tally. This year I sat upstairs and had a wonderful time and got that milkshake I promised I would have. I will admit that I was unable to finish it all, but I sure tried too as I enjoyed the show. I hope and trust you all had an enjoyable evening as I personally feel that humor, as well as a positive ‘spiritual’ attitude are important to OUR continued health. As is my usual writing demeanor; here comes that jaunt into the past which I hope in some way puts you in a mood to remember to attend this coming Tuesday. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was published in 1884 in England and 1885 in the United States. At the very beginning, prior to chapter one, the author of the literary work, Mark Twain pens the following warning: Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished; persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot. BY ORDER OF THE AUTHOR Per G.G., Chief of Ordnance Now, with all due respect to Mr. Clemens; I wish to proctor just those very ideals in order to entertain, conjoin and exhilarate each of you to continue to take another step, to accept a new day and enjoy yet one more moment as a living human being. A few weeks ago, it became that time once again to become prostrate myself before my insurance provider and humbly plea for the preferred medical procedure which MY medical professional of choice would like to have performed. YUP; time again had come for a PET scan. HA, DENIED! So, in a time when doctors are forced into doing more, accepting less and still keeping a semblance of a bed side manor; my doctor appealed and got the blessing for a Chest CT. (Which of course the over burdening co-pay still falls upon me.) Trust me; I do not in any way look for a hand out when it comes to my medical coverage.  I have no desire to sip from the cup of society. Damn it, I have had, have maintained and will continue to ascertain insurance coverage. Once again I will turn to a quote from the character Eugene Kittridge in the first Mission Impossible movie: ‘Dying slowly in America after all, can be a very expensive proposition.’ `OK, enough of that. Well, during this time I decided to take a day trip and come to peace with the fact that all this stuff is for the pondering of those of a much higher pay grade. There is little I can do about any of this so along with a good friend and his wife, off to St. Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Monastery I went. Having already learned to live a somewhat ‘monastic’ lifestyle, I decided I would go and observe the ones that live it correctly for some inspiration and calmness. I am a great believer in prayer and there just isn’t anywhere as good for me as St. Anthony’s to walk in silence and come to grip with my Lord. I hope you enjoy these few pictures and if you have not experienced a trip to the Monastery, please try and fit a trip into your schedule if you can. I find it most refreshing as to my Faith and fortifying for my Soul. There are some truly spiritual places there at which to pause and pray for help in becoming whole. The point of all this, the results of the Chest CT were sent to Dr. Manning and of course Jan took time out of her busy day to e-mail me and very happily let me know that my CT was clear and my chest was in great shape with no signs of cancer. I think the exact message from her was – “YAY!!!!  Your scan is supercalifragilisticexpialidocious! “See, even the Lord understands supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. Well, that’s it for this newsletter and I hope to see everyone this Tuesday evening and I long to hear everyone being in high spirits and good health.  Be strong everyone because Cancer does suck.

yet more awesome spaces

 

I just love http://awesomespaces.tumblr.com/ . I hope you find the time to get lost there. I do almost daily. Here is yet just one more reason why.

To the unknown taker and owner of this image….thank you.

some catching up

and I will finish posting the pictures from my Feb. visit to my daughters soon.

But first…Xandier has a birthday party:

Yup, that’s him

His uncle Will on the right and a grandpa

son #1, #2 aka dad and an uncle.

another grandpa, this one is crazy and has a crown.

the birthday boy and cousin Hayden having fun

I was just in the mood this morning.

Thought I would go on a Voyage.

Field Notes Envy!

March is here

(Delivered to my support group, read by Scott)

Hello Everyone,

I truly hope everyone is doing wonderfully.

I really did have a great time with my daughter and her family. I smiled for days.

However, back to the real world I came. Mom has had another series of seizures and I have been dealing with that. These things take such a toll on her physical well being and of course confuse the heck out of her and we all are back to step one.

Time for me to start gearing up for poking and prodding. Dr. Haung's office called and he says it's time for him to have a look see. I am sure Dr. Manning and Dr. Stratigoulras are not that far behind. We are coming up on the year out Pet Scan ordeal. This has historically been the scan that has disclosed further cancer activity. I ask for all of the prayers and good thoughts that you can send my way. Just once; I really would like this (one year) scan to be clear.

I have been working really hard on eating. After feasting on formula, chocolate candy, fruit smoothies and frequent stops at Dairy Queen; I know, a lot of you would trade for my problem, I am happy to tell everyone I now weigh 143.5 pounds. That is the most I have weighted since 2006.

I continue to be as active as I can be and I try each day to leave this world a bit better off than I have found it. Some days, it is just by a smile, but that's one more smile that wasn't on the earth yesterday. There are so many things that bother me, both here and around the world. I spend a great deal of time in prayer; I can only hope that it helps just a little.

It is so good to see everyone and I just hope you all the best. Life is very good for me even though it has many worries for me to deal with. I love you all as I continue to mark off each and every day till December 21st. I am not sure that any winter solstice has been so anticipated as this one. I do so intend to sit on my patio in my chair and just smile. Smile because on that day I will have smitten the Mayan demons and I shall be rewarded with yet one more morning to know each and every one of you wonderful people. Pole shift ha. I have stared the black maw of cancer in the face and because of my faith in God, I shall fear no evil.

Be good and kind to the world everyone, and be strong, because cancer sucks.

and on into Minneapolis

 

Packing into the soccer mom’s transport is always a challenge.

could you give me some room?

Ha ha, I have my own seat.

Dad, we need gas!

Bad daughter, bad daughter:

into St. Paul and a wonderful Cathedral

 

Where it is beautiful.

 

A monument to the lord on the hill.

the girls do nickelodeon Universe

 

First up was a quick trip through Lego land and I have to say; some of the displays were staggering.

 

Yes, all made from Lego’s.

 

I was rather taken by how big and charming this theme park in a mall was. You can find further info if desired at  http://www.nickelodeonuniverse.com/ .

The girls getting excited.

l-caydence c-bailey r-aurora

 

Sarah and a select few internet friends understand: (You will see more when we get to the zoo in a few days.)

Someone is excited to ride the bumper cars.

 

I’m too little to ride. (Darwin)

We have to ride with her; just do it and make Grandpa happy!

Peek!

More exciting tales tomorrow.

for my birthday to the Mall…of America!

I wanted to spend some time with the girls and this seemed a fun way to do it.
Travel involved.

OK, calm down.


Peace seems to be the ‘sign’ of the times.

One reason to go is to see the Microsoft store across from the Apple store:

My son in law can not decide which to enter.


for William and Aaron:


OK, more mall excitement tomorrow.