trim.3BAD6EDB-E595-4E52-BF3A-A8CB1EED8DCD

Yo. It’s that time again. Round 8. Crikey!

Round 7 proved to be less than heavenly. Which in some cases…is actually a good thing! I prefer my feet on the ground…wings are highly overrated because they are hard to keep clean (as evidenced by all those poor birds in the Gulf after the BP oil spill) and they make any “sitting event” (like a Cards game) very uncomfortable. I know this first hand because I was once employed as a team mascot for the Toronto Blue Jays…that ended very  badly after I beaked some hecklers….anyway back to chemo.

All went well though, I survived. Hopefully as the chemo builds back up in my system my super powers will too.

Cold sensitivity was not at it’s peak, but I assume it will rear it’s frigid head again this week. My brain power is at about a negative two. I guess chemo brain is real, contrary to the popular opinion of donkeys in Western Europe. I now carry an abacus for basic counting skills like making change at the cigar shop or when buying coconuts at the farmers’ market.  They need to make them smaller because they are hard to carry…I may invent a pocket abacus!

I plan on rolling into my treatment with my iPad and an Odoul’s. I need to test the nursing staff. I had a private room last week…they are trying to separate me from the general population at the Siteman Center! I mean who knew there was solitary confinement for cancer patients?! They can’t hide me forever…I will make my way back into general population.

Mr. Wonders should be there this week. I finally heard back from him. He had gone missing for awhile again…perhaps he too was placed in the “hole” for bad behavior.

I met with my colon specialist Monday. I think he was impressed with my abilities to push in the stool. He made mention of some issues…mental only though, so not to worry.

Hmm…what else?  I’ve been working still…part-time ish because I’ve been really tired this past round. Fatigue is also real…not the Army kind.

I had the opportunity to join Teri Griege last night in presenting Nikki Christ’s niece, Emily Linneman, the Powered by Hope medal (or the Hope Diamond, as I like to call it). That was a pretty amazing experience to be a part of. Of course Teri immediately put us to work in her sweat shop of Hope. Her lovely assistant, Joy, was just a dream to do business with. Oh, and of course camera Dan.

It’s was pretty fantastic to see the family and all of their supporters in person. You could really feel the love in the room…I made a point to touch as many people as I could to feel more love but I was quickly labeled as creepy and asked to leave.

Which brings me to my next point… I just wanted to thank everyone for their continued prayers and support. Through words of encouragement or just keeping me in their thoughts, it absolutely means the world to me to know I have everyone behind me. I wanted to thank those of you who have taken the time to read through my Pedal the Cause page and also thank anyone who has donated. I think raising money is a big deal, but raising awareness is also key.

So thank you, from the bottom of my liver!

 

 

I’m glad to announce that chemo #7 is in the books with no issues!  However, chemo really does make Jill angerer…I mean she seriously looks like the German goalie Nadine Angerer right?!

Of course, they are both angry women…but for different reasons.  Angerer is mad because they blew the number 1 spot and lost to the USA women in the World Cup (insert loud cheers)…Jill is angry because Apple Inc. just sent her a letter saying that she did NOT get hired as their new technical support manager for the Cloud.  I mean…I have to admit, I was a little surprised by this shun from Apple after Jill offered me this great technical advice just today.

IMG_3784

Now that my i-Phone is in the cloud I feel much more secure…thanks Jill you’re the best!

Seriously though, chemo is nothing to joke about! The mere thought of it brings out many emotions in Jill…pain…dread….fear…

Oh wait…that was just more gas…sorry guys.

Everyone has asked how Jill is handling everything so well and with such a positive attitude.  We thought we really owed it to everyone to share her secret to happiness.

So basically, there are 3 main ways that she is keeping it together and maintaining such a fun and upbeat attitude through this challenge.
#1…Yep you guessed it… pills…lots and lots of pills.  You got ’em she’ll take ’em folks! Anything from plant vitamins to horse tranquilizers! She’s like a walking Pez dispenser except pills go in…not out.  It’s seriously like watching Pac Man…she has pills hidden all over her house and she just walks around scooping them up in her giant mouth and eating them as if they were not even solid objects…like they’re air.  It’s weird…but whatever it takes right?!

#2…estrogen patches!!  After her hysterectomy things got a little dicey.  One night in the Tiki Bar she announced that she was “homicidally depressed” and went to get a knife from the kitchen…you know the knife…that giant one that Michael used in all of those Halloween movies…well…things got real…real fast!  I mean is there even such a thing as “homicidally depressed”?!  She said she was grouchy and just wanted to kill everyone else…well we took that to heart and have put 3 estrogen patches on her this week alone!!  She’s not aware of that fact so if you see her please don’t mention the “extra” patches on her back…it makes our lives a lot easier…and she’s real happy!

Last but certainly not least…she went to a natural healing doctor…Dr. Harrie Bush…who told her the key to positive energy and healing was drinking your own warm urine….gross I agree…but desperate times call for desperate measures folks.

Not everyday is sunshine and butterflies though.  Yesterday was especially challenging if you haven’t heard.  There was a giant ball of stitches in her incision that was causing irritation…I mean it when I say giant…it must have been like walking around with a human-centipede trying to crawl out of her stomach.

They had to cut through her fatty layer to get it out…thankfully it was her stomach and not her butt cheek…that would have taken a chain saw.  Now she has to pack a giant hole in her stomach and there’s a piece of gauze sticking out so she looks like one of those things you pull numbers out of at the deli in Schnucks!  

I keep pulling it out and acting like it’s the winning ticket in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory…she’s getting annoyed…at least I think so…number 138!!!  She really likes adding the packing…it makes her Thanks for all the support!  Keep sending the prayers and positive vibes Jill’s way please! I think there has been a transition from panda to sloth. Watch for old Two Toes to continue to make progress… Slowly, but surely. Your support in any way is clearly making an impact on her improvements. Thank you again.

 

Howdy y’all. It’s that time again. Getting geared up for another fantastic round of chemo. Yeah, that’s right. Looking forward to endless Luke warm beverages and ending my trend of 4am ice cream each day.

I have returned to work this week. Just working half days for awhile. Build up my tolerance to Jerry. Order has been restored!!

I am feeling a little better each day. Well enough, anyway. Thank you again for all of your support.

Friday morning I start back up on the chemo cocktail. It’s good stuff. Real good like. I think Captain Chemo  will be joining me. My little Che-mo sah-bee. Hopefully there will be someone to terrorize and Mr. Wonders and I will be in sync with treatments again. It’s always nice to see his smiling face. I saw him a few weeks back, he’s still waiting on a transplant.  If you have any extra positive energy, direct it his way. I would love to see this man get himself a new liver. He is quite the carpenter; he has shared photos of bird houses he has built with us. Very talented guy. I’m sure he’s writing something nice about me in his blog right now too. How cool I look in a T-shirt. Toting my IV pump around. You guys would really be impressed.

Anywho, onward. Hope you’re all still awake from this riveting update. If you’ve fallen off the edge of your seat in anticipation of something truly exciting I apologize.