March 22nd

Before I fall asleep at night I like to think back on my day's events. I reflect on all of the things I'm thankful for. Tonight my list took me awhile to get through.

Tonight I began with being thankful for the great weather this weekend. I accomplished 99% of everything I wanted.
I am also thankful for: (feel free to skip this part)

• Derek. He continues to amaze me.


• Friends.


• A volunteer job. Helping people is rewarding.


• Having the energy to clean the house.


• Having the energy and focus to host dinner.


• Having enough that we are able to share with others.


• Being able to understand intelligent jokes.


• Not having to win a game in order to enjoy it.


• Being able to play a game and not look like a ding-dong.


• Having pets.


• Being able to enjoy the moment in the moment, without worry.


• Not watching the news and being sucked into the negativity.


• Having "Fred". Thank God for such a strong wake-up call. I'm grateful for this 2nd chance to be aware of the goodness that surrounds me.

That's it so far. Hopefully it's not to sappy and you'll keep on reading my posts.

Jen

March 18th

It's been 1 year since the discovery of "Fred". I'm still deciding on when to mark my 1 year survival date. Is is post surgery? Post radiation? Post chemo? The questions keep on coming. I started doing research into life insurance for myself. The trick is to expect the worst and still hope for the best. That way when the insurance representative tells me I need to wait 5 years (with no complications) after my last chemo dose, I won't be disappointed. That's the word right now from State Farm. I'm not worried. Five years should be easy to reach with no problems.

I mentioned before that "Fred" has been known to me for 1 year. This due to Avnet letting me know my FMLA ran out. My last day at work was Sat. March 14th. Not to worry I still have my long term disability. It is a weird feeling not having a job as a safety net. I believe the correct term is bitter-sweet.

In the health department I feel good. I'm averaging 3 visits to the gym each week and I can almost jog a 1/2 mile. I'm a little bummed because I don't think I'll be able to participate in this year's Boulder Bolder.

On a lighter note, last night Derek and I went to see the Colorado 14teeners play against the Idaho Stampede. That's minor league basketball. What a great game. There were maybe 150 fans watching, maybe. This made it easier to catch a free t-shirt during one of the time outs. I did catch a t-shirt. The writing on it said...
Get your IRISH on!
St. Patty's Day 2008
Derek and I were trying to figure out if someone made a mistake on the year and didn't catch it in time before printing or if the t-shirts were from last year. The game was a nail bitter. At the end of the 4th period the teams were tied at 102 points. The 14teeners won in overtime. I think last night was the first time I've been to the Broomfield event center and actually seen the home team win.

3/12/09

I'm not sure if I've always been forgetful or if it's just part of getting older. I was supposed to meet a friend out for tapas last night and I "no showed". I know! I'm such a jerk. I didn't "no show" because I was feeling ill. I "no showed" because I forgot. I understand this can happen to people from time to time. Except! I had it written down in my 1990's style calendar. This month of all months I decided I would make the switch to digital. No one explained that going digital only works if you update your digital device. It hurts to know that I'm a nincompoop. This isn't the first thing I've forgotten this week. Earlier I had put Cora in the basement during some bathroom construction. I brought out blankets for her to curl up on and opened the blind for her to have a warm sun spot. I forgot to bring down a bowl of water. Luckily she survived and forgave me. Dogs are so kind.

3/4/09

I had another follow up appointment this morning. My poor doctor. She was running 45 minutes behind. I felt so bad for her. I hope whomever she was helping is doing better now. I passed all of my tests. AND it only took one poke to draw blood. Hallelujah! I'm off to catch up on some sleep.

March 3rd

I'm not sure if I should be excited about all of the warm weather lately or be very very afraid. Derek has mentioned a couple times that it's hard to dislike global warming when it is so beautiful outside. I tend to agree with him. Although I am hoping it will snow soon and the weather will start acting like March again.

Last weekend was fantastic. I went to Denver for another friends birthday. I lasted 2 hours and 15 minutes. Right On! This is an improvement of 45 minutes from last weekend. Sunday was a bit more difficult. I felt like I had a horrible hang over. The best cure for a hang over? White chocolate macadamia nut cookies. Yes, I know how to make them. But I recommend only eating them in moderation. I have a thing for cookies and this only came on in the last 9 months. I ate more cookies than I can remember on Sunday and I spent the whole day feeling sick to my stomach. Hurting never tasted so good.

Today has been interesting. I was going for my walk with Cora this morning and we found a little dog wondering on it's own. It was almost hit by 2 cars when it decided it was o.k. to let me pet him. We knocked on about 5 doors and he didn't belong to anyone. He had a collar but no tags. Which I thought was odd. I took him to the Humane Society and he didn't have a microchip. I feel really bad about dropping him off. He was well behaved, didn't bark and seemed to enjoy riding in the car. Now the poor thing is getting vaccines, possibly neutered and a bath. And it's all my fault.

So much for going to the gym today. I'm exhausted.