Easily digestible fruits

Tomorrow we drive south again to Toronto, Canada’s largest city.  I have 3 appointments on Friday and if the tests all come back good to go I’ll have my 2nd round of chemotherapy on Monday. 

As luck would have it, our daughter has the flu so we will be staying at an Airbnb.  I’ve had to add that fact to my page. 

I don’t have any need to go down this isle but have used it as a detour to get to the back of the store.  But I never actually “looked” at the products.  I need to eat more fruit and remembered that I thought that the baby food variety wasn’t so bad.  Yup, I can do it for 3 or 4 days until I get over the sickie stage.  I was surprised to see that the prune puree is made in Italy.  I guess we don’t grow enough plums here in Canada.  I still think it is terrible that all that plastic is used for baby food.  I only found one company that put their food in a glass jar.  

I bought some flavoured apple sauce too and jelly desserts but I’m not a big fan of them.  But will force them down for the 4 days or so.  Hopefully my upset tummy won’t last any longer than the last round did.  I had coffee on the 5th day after the chemo. 

I really like the birdies that I added in my sky! 

Sewing fabric strips together

As you know, normally I work in my sketchbook but no time for sketchbook work for me today. These four squares have taken me all week to sew.  I’ve been watching Kathryn  k3nclothtales on U-Tube and following along except for the week (week 3) when I had my first chemotherapy treatment.  What I like about this project is that I used up all the scraps except for what you see on the left.  The square on the top right ↗️ is my favourite.  I tossed the strips out of the bag when I realised that I was running out of long pieces.  I played with them for a bit until I could sew them all down.  I don’t think I’ll sew the squares together because I don’t have a plan for them.  I’m just going to let them “BE” for now.  Thanks again to Kathryn, I definitely need this meditative distraction. 

No Power and two mallards

Yesterday began as a very good day, then the bottom fell out when we lost power for almost 8 hours.  There was a pole fire up on the highway just a few poles south of our concession road.  They had to hook up a new pole.  Of course, we had to drive around to see where the problem was because the WiFi was out and this sort of thing isn’t newsworthy.  I kept getting updates from Hydro One on my phone pushing back the time for completion but finally at 19:23 (for regular folks that 7:23 pm) the lights came on. 

I was up before sunrise and saw something dark under the bird feeder.  Then I saw the ducks head against the snow.  I think Mother Nature has sent out some inappropriate signals; it’s only January, we have lots of winter left here even though we are having a January thaw.  

They didn’t come back so maybe they’re heading south again. 

We went to town yesterday

My gosh how I missed driving Bertha! It was such a good feeling to get her out of the yard and down the highway.  When I had my knee replacement surgery, I let her sit and it cost me a whole pile of dough to get her brakes machined.  I don’t want that to happen again.  I will make my hubby drive her if I have to but he doesn’t like to drive her.  

I was thrilled to wear real clothing yesterday so I thought I’d should document that fact.  I’m supremely happy to feel normal once again. 

Bananas and Maple syrup

It seems that I’m getting better each day because I’ve not had to take my allergy pill since my chemo treatment.  I will tonight though.  The brain works in mysterious ways.  I don’t know why it planted this seed but I accepted it as is.  I’ve had to find foods that are easily digestible especially fruits as I am supposed to stay away from anything acidic.  

I’ve never been a real lover of bananas but have learned to eat them as an adult.  However, I’m really picky about how I eat my bananas.  No banana pudding, ice cream, jello or even banana splits for me.  Woolworths (yes, that was a long time ago) use to have banana split days when I was a kid but I never played “pop the balloon” to win one!   Now, I do appreciate a cut up banana in milk drizzled with maple syrup.  Yes you got it, I love my maple syrup and there is always a bottle in the fridge.  I will admit that banana bread muffins with chocolate chips will happily rest in my stomach too. 

I drank coffee today

I had my first round of chemotherapy on Monday, this morning I felt well enough to have a cup of coffee.  It has been a tough few days.  Thankfully the anti-nausea medications worked  but they did a number on my bowels.  

I’m getting the heavy duty 3 drug cocktail all at one go.  The nurse pushed the first drug in manually.  No I didn’t watch!!!  She did her job and I did mine and that is to look away and stay calm. 

What I learned is that I need to wear loose clothing because all the fluids that they put in you makes you urinate with great regularity.  My husband had to go with me and undo and do up my jeans since the IV was in the top portion of my hand.  I looked around and noticed the other chemo patients were either smarter than me or this wasn’t their first day at the rodeo!  Next time it’s sweat pants for this chick. 

My hubby will have to come with regardless since I can’t wash my hand,  it needs a friend to get clean!  Oh well, in sickness and in health and all that. 

He is a good man and is cooking up some comfort food for supper tonight. 

Thymoma

I never thought I would document this in my sketchbook but it is what it is.  It’s happening to me right now.  Last Wednesday, I met with yet another doctor and it has been decided that radiation therapy is not the way to go for me at this juncture.  I may get radiation after the operation that will remove the large tumour lying on my right lung and bordering on my esophagus and heart. 

In November, I was diagnosed with having cancer; a thymoma tumour.   Tomorrow, I will receive my first chemotherapy treatment; a 3 drug cocktail.  The infusion takes many hours, at least 4 and possibly more.  

In the last few weeks,  we have been staying with our family in Canada’s largest city!  Our local regional hospital doesn’t have the capacity to deal with my type of cancer so my care has been transferred to a renowned cancer hospital in Toronto.  My mother went there 50 years ago because there was no cancer care available  locally in those days. 

With this new regime I can go home and return to the big city in February for another infusion of chemotherapy. 

So I’m not sure if I will document much of this journey or if I will feel like scrolling.   So I thought I’d mention why I’ve been absent and why I may disappear from posting. Or, maybe I will feel not bad, who knows. 

I see faces

I bought a mystery fabric pack at the charity shop and this battenburg lace was in it.  It has been a long time since I’ve seen one of these - a Kleenex box cover! I have never used one because I never really thought that it was important to glam up a tissue box. Not my style to be sure.   So I’ve cut it up to re-use and re-purpose.  Then I saw it! I saw a face and thought, “How appropriate is that!!!?”  Do you see what I see?!