ROLLER COASTER

Every time I shoot off my big mouth about how great I feel, it backfires on me. The last two days have probably been the worst of all so far. My radiation therapist tells me this is normal as the effects of the radiation and chemo treatment build up over the coarse of the treatment - and I am on my last two days now. My entire abdominal area hurts with pains shooting all over it and it is constantly making a gurgling sound like there is a pipe loose and something is running wild inside me. I feel like some kind of hose has broken or come loose, but I have been told - not to worry, so I won't worry. I guess I am kind of like some of the old cars I have had. Sometimes a hose breaks or something comes loose but you just keep driving it until it stops altogether.

It has been kind of up and down like a roller coaster since day one, but I can't complain. This is the worst it has been and it isn't really all that bad. I can now see why they want me to take a rest period of a month before I continue on with the chemotherapy. I think the radiation is over as of tomorrow. In a way I will miss the radiation. I was able to do away with my night light in the bedroom because I glow all by myself.

We will have a changing of the guard in a bit. I will go to the airport in a few minutes to pick up Mary Marlin, Andrew will be coming in Sunday and JL will be leaving Saturday - I think that is the way it is planned. I wasn't included in the decisions about who was coming and going, I was just given the instructions to carry out. A special thanks to Andrew who is coming in from Florida. He is coming in on his birthday! That is pretty neat and I thank him for his dedication. On the other hand, that means I will have to get him a present and a birthday card and get a cake for him too. Now I am not sure what his motivation is. Just kidding, he is very busy at work, has some major deadlines to meet and he is coming in to see me anyway and coming on his birthday. That is really special as far as I am concerned.

All three of my boys have had some major projects they are working on with important deadlines and all of them still have come in with no complaint or problem. JL has been on a computer in the back bedroom since he got here - he is working on a major program as well. It was kind of a waste of his time to come down here from Dallas. He gets in the car and takes me to my treatments and comes back and gets on the computer. I could have rented a car or hired a taxi for a lot less than it has cost him to come down here just to haul me back and forth. He has been able to get a lot of work done as he is working around 14 hours a day on that computer.

Will probably be coming back to Albuquerque sometime in July to rest up and then back here for some more tests and lab work and then back to Albuquerque to finish up the Chemotherapy. I think the second phase in Albuquerque will be a lot tougher and it will last for two months. At least I will be able to slip in a taco or two during the process.

Got to take off to the airport now. I could get lost and end up at the airport in San Antonio or New Orleans and leave poor Mary standing on the curb at Houston Hobby. Gotta have plenty of time and gotta remember to take a map!

ANOTHER DAY IN WHOSE TOWN (HOUSTON)

Just another day in Houston. This routine is becoming a habit - one that I would like to break. 8:30 am another attack by the laser guns upon the mid-section of my body. I look for holes in my body each day as I shower. So far no signs of any surface damage. I still can't understand how they can penetrate my skin and everything that lies beneath it without creating some type of hole or leaving some kind of scar. And, how does that laser thing know what to do once it's inside the body? How does it know which one of those things in there is supposed to be destroyed? There is some proof that it can slip up and destroy things that were not intended to be destroyed. I think I moved a little one day when I wasn't supposed to and all of a sudden my memory has been destroyed. It is terrible when you have to refer to your spouse as "Mam" or "Hey You" just because you can't remember the name right off the top of your head. I get up to get something from the next room and by the time I get there I can't remember why I came into the room.

Before you say anything, the above has nothing to do with age. It is all a matter of the radiation malfunctioning. In fact I was close friends with this girl who was my next door
neighbor for 20 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .I'm sorry - I can't remember what I was going to say about the girl next door.

My son JL has been in the second bedroom at the apartment conducting business on his computer since he got here. He is an internal auditor for a large national firm. I guess to some extent I have been dealing with internal auditors since I got to Houston. They are auditing my internal makeup and are rejecting much of what they find. JL does the same only he is dealing with finances and procedures while my guys are dealing with livers, lungs, pancreases, etc. All he has to do is change some procedures or fire someone when things aren't as they should be. My guys deal with sharp knives!

I never watch TV at home but have little choice down here. I am too tired to do anything else. JL brought some movies down with him and I watched "Employee of the Month" (I think that was the name - I can't remember for sure). It was a funny movie and I enjoyed it. For those of you in New Mexico, the film was supposedly made in New Mexico. And one of the stars, a young and attractive blond girl (I have forgotten her name too) was a high school classmate of my grandson - Christopher, JL's oldest son. JL said when the girl came back to the high school campus in Dallas as a movie star, she asked Christopher if he knew who she was. Christopher looked at her and simply said; "No". He knew very well who she was but refused to give her the satisfaction of thinking he was impressed with her. I don't know what is wrong with this younger generation. If this had happened to me when I was Christopher's age, I would have possibly stretched the truth a bit about a few things, or even told a white lie or two - or maybe even a bold faced lie - to get this gal to go for a ride in my 1948 Ford coupe! I can see, in addition to all the other responsibilities I have, I am going to need to have a session or two with my grandson.

Everything is going great on the medical front - will probably have more news in a day or two. I will finish the radiation this coming Friday and see what surprises they have in store for me at that time.

I will be checking in again within a day or two.

GOOD NEWS TODAY!!

Back to work today! Started out at 8:30 this morning with radiation, then to the lab for blood testing and then a session with the Oncologist. I can really notice the difference after having the weekend off. I am wiped out today but still have to force myself to get on the tread mill later on.

The good news is a lab report. I don't know what these numbers mean except that lower is better than higher. On May 8th the reading for cancer cells was 359. On June 25th it was 149.6. The radiation and chemotherapy plus my good behavior (if you can buy that) have reduced this number by more than half.

The downside of this good news is my white blood cell count has gone down from 9.4 to 6.1. That is to be expected, but not good. The chemo and radiation are killing cancer cells but killing white blood cells too. Because of the good results I am having and because of the lower white blood cell count, they are going to make me rest for a while after my last series of chemo/radiation at the end of this week.

It looks like they will probably send me home for the last series of chemotherapy and it will be a two month process. According to the doctor this morning, this is the series that might make me sick for several days after each therapy and might cause me to lose my golden locks. Even if I come home for a rest, I will have to come back to Houston again late in August to be tested again by the heart doctor and have another cat-scan. Then two months of chemotherapy in Albuquerque and back to Houston in early October for surgery. This process has stretched out a lot longer than I anticipated, but I am sure that these folks know what they are doing and I do have absolute confidence in them. I will go along with whatever they say or want.

MY SUPPORT GROUP

I have mentioned several times the strangers who have come to my aide and offered and provided much support and encouragement and their prayers. I appreciate this so much and it has given me whole new outlook on life and the people of our country. However, I don't want to overlook the wonderful friends, neighbors, co-workers whom I have known for many years and my own family. This group includes all the fantastic people who have worked with me in the insurance industry for many years, people I have met and worked with in Pre-Paid Legal, from all over the country in New Mexico, Oregon, California, Texas, Illinois, Florida, Oklahoma, Colorado, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Hawaii, and many other places I can't remember off the top of my head - but thanks to them just the same.

I am also very grateful to my second family - all of my friends at CarMax and especially my office mate, Stephanie. I love all you guys! I have had the love and support of many members of our family from all over the nation. First my wife, who has been such a great support and so helpful during this period of time, my three sons; JL in Dallas, who is with me now, Scott in Albuquerque who has just taken charge and gotten things done when they needed to be done, and Andrew in Florida who is coming in next week. And the families of my three sons have all made sacrifices so my sons could direct their attention to me.

Family members from Florida, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana, Texas, New Mexico, California, Colorado, Washington, Illinois, have all added their support and love. Old friends and old classmates (they are not old in age - they are young just like me. They are just "Old" friends) have added additional support and prayers.

And I add to the list all of my friends in Albuquerque and other places I have met through other activities. This includes many people in the medical profession who have helped me discover I have this condition and have helped me get the treatment I need. I have learned that I have so many great friends in so many places that are worth more than all the gold on earth. A special thanks to my Dietician, Ann Sockaci at the Presbyterian Healthplex, who has made me the slim trim handsome hunk that I am. Thanks to all of you.

I am in the process of licking this thing and I will beat it!! It is taken a little longer than I expected but it is going in the right direction and I will win this battle - count on it!

My love to all of you great people. Thanks for your help and encouragement. You are the best medicine I have had through all this so far and I will count on you for the rest of the journey. God Bless you all!

WEEK END PASS!!

I feel like a Buck-Private in the US Army getting an 8 hour pass off base during basic training. I have two days off without any radiation or chemotherapy!! YEA! I took advantage of the beautiful day by boarding the metro-rail train into down town Houston and going to the Hardrock Cafe for a real meal. To be sure - just like the US Army, I did have the Master Sergent at my side supervising my every move, but I did manage to get in a 10 ounce beautiful hamburger with blue cheese spread across the top - yum, yum. It is the first food I have had that I really enjoyed. It is the first thing that has tasted good for awhile. A few french fries before I got my hands slapped and of course a handful of pills as an appetizer and a couple of pills as a desert. After all - they don't me to lose weight and I am working hard not to disappoint them.

It has been awhile since I have been down town in Houston. Quite a change. As you go down on the train you see buildings on both sides of the street including high rises which are probably 20 to 50 stories tall - boarded up and abandoned, many with graffiti painted all over them. Then just a few blocks away you see magnificent new buildings towering up into the clouds - like the old home of Enron Corp and the JP Getty /Chase bank building. When you get off the train you do have to kind of wade your way through skid row to get to the better parts of the downtown area, but they do have many museums, theaters and public buildings in addition to the huge skyscrapers. You also see many vacant lots in the downtown area. I remember one hurricane not too many years ago hit the downtown area as well as those areas closer to the coast. I don't know what Katrina did to the downtown area. It might have added to the condition of it.

I understand that Houston has not had any zoning laws in the past so you might see a great Church with a raunchy bar right next door. I think they have changed that some. I have to say the overall downtown areas of Dallas and Denver are nicer than Houston, but neither has buildings that compare to some of the skyscrapers of downtown Houston.

I mentioned I had a little trouble with directions. I do know, or at least I thought I did, the way to the supermarket. It is about a 10 minute drive from the apartment. I was sent on an errand to the supermarket today and 2 and 1/2 hours later I made it back to the apartment. This is hard to believe, but while I was in shopping - I wasn't there that long either - someday moved the streets around and I got totally lost. I came down a street that had these beautiful sculptures of animals created out of living trees in the island between the lanes of traffic on either side. I was stunned - I had never seen these before even though I have gone to the supermarket several times. I then noticed the street sign and I was on a street I had never seen before. I decided I should backtrack my way back to the supermarket and start all over. Guess what? They moved the supermarket too. I couldn't find the supermarket. I finally came upon the Katy Freeway and I did remember that Katy is a community way up north from downtown Houston. Hey wait a minute - I am supposed to be on the South end of Houston! It was raining and overcast and you couldn't have seen a landmark even if there was one. I realized I had forgotten to bring a map - after all I know how to get to the supermarket and back. Hey I have a cell phone. I called the Master Sergent who sent me on this mission and she had conveniently decided to go to the media center and didn't take her cell phone. What a way to spend the balance of my week-end pass. All for some salad stuff - lettuce, tomatoes, salad dressing. If it had been for beer or hamburgers or fried chicken it might have been worth while. What a waste.

My eldest son, J.L., came in from Dallas tonight and Mary leaves for Albuquerque tomorrow. They don't trust me by myself even for one minute. After giving me instructions on what to do and how to do it, she gave John Leslie all the same instructions - like I couldn't remember myself. (Maybe she was still thinking of my trip to the supermarket) It is like a relay team - when J.L. leaves, Andrew from Florida will be in the parking lot to pick up the baton. When Andrew leaves, Scott will be back to pick up what is left of me.

Gotta sign off now - have another day left on my weekend pass and have to make exciting plans for that.

TEMPORARY SETBACK

Things have been going along pretty well and I have worked hard to maintain a good and positive attitude about everything. Yesterday - everything crashed and burned and I was ready to throw in the towel and go home.

I got a call from the business office of MD Anderson informing me that Presbyterian in Albuquerque had notified them that my radiation treatments and chemotherapy had not been approved for reimbursement and they would not pay for these treatments. At this point I had already had 5 radiation treatments and 5 chemotherapy treatments.

I called Presbyterian in Albuquerque and was told by the nurse in charge of approving referrals that I had been approved to come to MD Anderson for a second opinion only and for surgery. I pointed out that I had already made trips over to Houston during the month of May for examinations and consultations and I had already started the Radiation and Chemo treatments. Her position was that all of this could have been done in Albuquerque so they were not going to pay for it.

The truth of the matter is that I called Presbyterian as soon as they approved the referral and told them that it was great they approved the referral and asked what my cost was going to be. They said my total cost would be $200 for co-pay for the surgery. Later I got a bill from Presbyterian for some lab studies in Houston and called them on that and was told that was a mistake and they would cover it. On this phone call I specifically asked if the Chemotherapy and Radiation would be covered and they said it would. MDA also called and got referral approved for all the other tests, or they wouldn't have done them.

I pointed out to the Pres. people that we had already incurred personal expense of somewhere between $10,000 and $15,000 to get to this point, I had missed a couple of months of work and my wife and son, Scott, had missed work and my other two sons were going to miss work and have expenses related to this. I was not willing to change the course now.

It was a tough night for me. My blood sugar reading shot up and I felt defeated. I went over and did get another radiation treatment this morning and went to the business office of MD Anderson and talked to a very nice lady there. Presbyterian promised to call me back which they didn't. After I left several messages they finally called back and agreed to leave everything the way it was and proceed with the program as is.

I am grateful for being able to proceed as planned - but outraged that some super-charged nurse would be so insensitive at this time to call and try to derail the whole program - especially after they had already committed and agreed to everything that was being done.

Anyway - I am working my way back up to the top - with a sour taste in my mouth for now, but I will get over it.

VALUMAX - AL

CarMax is the largest car dealership in the world - for good reason. In my opinion, it is about the only place to buy a car. They do a lot of unique things. Every car goes through a 125 point inspection and if it doesn't pass it is not put on the lot. They also have some age and mileage restrictions. Old cars and cars with too many miles don't make the lot. However, they do have a special designation - ValuMax - they give a car that does meet the 125 point inspection but has high mileage or is a little older. They are declaring that these are good cars but acknowledging that they have a few more miles or are a little older than other cars.

Well I have been through the 125 point inspection plus some. I know I have a lot of miles on this old frame but it is still in pretty good condition. There are a few that would declare, even though untrue, that I am a little older than the average bear. However, with a few replacement parts and a little rust removed within the next couple of months - my motor will be purring and I will be good for another 25 years or so. I plan to be registered in the record book as the oldest teenager on the face of the earth in about 25 years - so watch out. HERE I COME!!!!!

TOO POOPED TO POP!!!

I guess I have been bragging a bit too much about not having any ill affects from the treatment I have received. That might be a case of "Big Mouth" overloading "Small Brain". It has finally hit me! Nothing painful, but I have just been drained of almost every ounce of energy I ever had. I am dead tired almost all the time and have to push myself to do anything. I have lot my appetite - show me any kind of food - T-Bone Steak, Hamburgers (one of my favorite foods of the past), French Fries, Shrimp - anything and everything. None of it appeals to me in any way. The upside is that I am eating fruits and vegetables now because they don't appeal to me any less than anything else does.

I will overcome this but it is going to take a lot of effort. They don't want me to lose any weight. When I got up on the table for radiation today the girl noticed my pants were overlapped because the belt was so tight just to hold them up. She said; "What you need to do is go out and party tonight and have a few beers." That doesn't appeal to me either - so I will just keep stuffing things in my mouth whether I like it or not - I guess. It is my hope that this spirit can continue after I get all through with this cancer thing so I can maintain a good weight and not put back on all the pounds I have gained in the past.

I have had four days of radiation and chemotherapy and after one more day - I get a weekend break. I am looking forward to that. It is a very strange routine for me. Go in every day for the treatment and then not a whole lot to do after that. Actually, there is a whole bunch to do in Houston, but like the food, I am just not interested in doing anything.

I have needed a haircut but held off because I thought I would lose all my hair anyway. I was told that this will not happen with the treatment I am getting. By accident I found a barber shop in the basement of the hospital and they give free haircuts to patients. So I did get my ears lowered a bit and gave the girl a $5.00 tip and still ended up with a bargain.

LIGHTENING CAN STRIKE IN THE SAME PLACE TWICE:

We have a very nice two bedroom apartment in a very nice complex. It is a large complex with around 250 individual apartments ranging from one to four bedrooms. They have beautiful courtyards with a couple of very nice swimming pools and fountains all over the place. Night before last we had a somewhat violent storm with lightening flashing outside our third floor windows very close to us. We got a note from the management that last week lightening actually struck the complex twice. It affected many of the electrical components of the building including security gates, computers, electricity in some of the apartments, etc. Maybe that is the reason I am so tired. It must have "shorted" me out or something. Houston is a nice city but it is in a nasty weather belt this time of year.

Well - I need to rest up now so I can have some energy for the weekend. I need to get away from this apartment - as nice as it is, and stay away from the hospital for awhile. I would sure like to be back home working 12 to14 hours a day. I am looking forward to that day.

Now anyone can leave a comment.

When I set up this blog, I accidentally switched the settings on Al's blog so that you had to be a Google member to be able to leave a comment on the post. I've fixed that and now anyone can leave a comment even if they don't have a Blogger or Google account!

Sheri

RADIATION AND CHEMOTHERAPY

I am into the second day of treatment now. I mentioned the black cross they put on my chest and on my sides. Yesterday, Sally came in and added to the art work. She is the one who will be doing my radiation treatments each day from now on, and yesterday was a long session. I now look like human graffiti with red and green markings added to the crosses. Actually the one on my stomach and chest looks like a map of Houston. I am grateful for that because I do get lost here. There are no mountains to help you tell which direction you are going - and because this is Texas they kind of do things their own way. The sun rises in the South~! So, I got lost on my way home the other day and just pulled up my shirt and looked at the drawing on my belly - and made it home in good shape. I think the drawing on my left side is a replica of the state of Idaho - and I don't know about the right side yet.

So far I haven't had any nausea or other affects of the treatments - except I am really tired. I have become very lethargic and could be satisfied with just sitting and staring off into space. Have to push myself to do things a little now. I will get on the tread mill after I finish this and see if I can stay awake enough to stay on. I saw a young boy walking down the hall a bit ago - I think I will see if I can give him $5.00 to do the treadmill for me today.

I see people at the hospital each day who make me realize how very lucky I am. There are a lot of people who have medical problems far worse than mine. I am so very lucky in so many different ways.

HOUSTON TRIVIA:

I learned last night that Houston in the 6th most humid city in the country - the only one West of the Mississippi. However, New Orleans in something like 5th and it is only a good spit away from being on the west side of the Mississippi.

Houston is the 4th largest city in the Nation. I always thought Philadelphia was, but it is Houston. And, my experience tells me that all Houston streets sound the same and are spelled almost exactly the same and all of them run both North and South and East and West - which is a lame excuse for the reason I get lost every time I get in the car.

All is well with me and I almost fell guilty for feeling so good. With all the support I have received from so many wonderful people, I feel obligated to feel a little bit bad, at least. However, I think there will be plenty of that to go around when the cutting starts - so hold on. I promise to feel bad before it is all over.

Thanks to all of you for you love and support!!

ALBUQUERQUE AL

Finally Getting Started

MD Anderson is a wonderful institution and I will never complain about anything they do, however at times it does get to be a little frustrating. Scott and I came in Monday and I was ready to get started. Schedules keep getting changed and we ended up spending the whole week visiting doctors and getting final check-ups and instructions. Friday I went in and got fit for a mold I will be in every time I get the radiation treatment. This is very precise and they need for me to be in the same exact position every time. So, they put me on the table and created a mold that will fit my body. I was told they would give me a tattoo they would line up on with laser beams to make certain I was in the exact correct position each time. (I was kind of hoping for a tattoo of a pin up girl in a bikini like they used to put on the bomber airplanes during WII.) I have a black cross on my front that runs from the top of my chest down to my waist line. I have two more black crosses - one on each side. You get the feeling you are going to be used for target practice - which, in a way, I guess I am.

Treatment starts tomorrow - Monday with oral chemotherapy and radiation treatment. This will happen five days per week for two weeks and then the radiation treatment will stop. I will go into a second phase of chem with a 4 hour intravenous injection of chemo every two weeks. I will do that a couple of times here and then go back to Albuquerque and have a couple of treatments there and then a rest period and back for surgery.

I have been okay with everything until this week when they gave me instructions and medication to take when I become sick and/or nauseated from the treatment. I didn't know I was supposed to do that - now I am worried about it.

I continue to be blessed. We went to church this morning and a couple sat next to us. He asked if we were from Houston - he asked if we had come to visit family - finally he asked why were in Houston. I told him we were here to visit MD Anderson. After Church, this couple looked for, and caught up with us as we were ready to walk out the door. They gave us their names and phone number and told us to be sure to call them if we needed anything and asked for our phone number so they could check in on us. Another pair of complete strangers who are going out of their way to open up their hearts to a couple from Albuquerque they had never seen, before today. This experience with cancer has taught me a lot. Believe it or not, there has been a lot of good that has come out of this experience. Once again - thank all of you for your support and your prayers.

AL

Getting Ready In Houston

All examinations are completed and today we had a simulation on radiation and Monday we finally start the real thing. The simulation is a dry run so they can establish the exact position I will be in each day as I go in for the radiation. They told me they were going to give me a tattoo and I had thoughts of a pin-up girl in a bikini but they were thinking along different lines. I now have a big cross that covers my stomach area from side to side and from just below my neck down to my belt and a similar cross on each side. I guess these are targets for them to shoot at. In any event this will be my total activity for the next two weeks - go in daily for the radiation and a once per week visit with the doctor and once a week blood test. At the same time I will be doing the chemotherapy at home with six pills per day. After the first two weeks I will be getting a four hour injection every two weeks for the chemo and the radiation will be completed at this point. I will probably be here until shortly after the first of August and then back to Albuquerque for a continuation of the second phase of radiation, a short recuperation period and then back to Houston for the operation.

Meanwhile - thanks to all of you for you love and support and prayers. There are a lot of special people out there - family, friends and people I work with. I am so grateful that for some reason at some time along the way - we have become acquainted.

AL

UPDATE ON AL IN HOUSTON (MD ANDERSON CANCER CLINIC)

June 13th - spent all day at MD Anderson getting prepared for chemotherapy and radiation. Examinations, interviews, reviews, and more instructions than I will ever be able to remember. One instruction that kind of puzzled me is that I am not to lose any more weight - in fact they won't be unhappy if I gain a little. I have lost about 40 pounds in the last year and 10 of that since I started coming down here for treatment. I am still about 30 pounds more than I want to be - but they say "NO".

Radiation will start on Monday 18th simultaneously with chemotherapy daily for a two week period. Radiation will stop at end of two weeks as will this first phase of chemotherapy. I will still have to stay in Houston as a second phase of chemotherapy will begin where I will get chemo intravenously for a four hour period every two weeks. I will be monitored at MD Anderson on a regular basis and eventually sent home for the continuation of this second phase for another several sessions. They are going to give me a period of a couple of weeks in Albuquerque to catch my breath and then back for the big Finale.

Their approach is to kill all the cancer cells they can prior to surgery and have my body in a healthy enough condition to handle the surgery. I have been down-playing the surgery itself and trying not to think too much about it, but a couple of the doctors I visited today made me understand it is a very serious and complicated surgery. I would have been just as happy if they had not gone into the detail they did, but it is what it is and I can't do much about it.

Thanks to all of you for you love, prayers and support. It really means a lot to me and I will never forget any of you.

AL