Thankful for Family and Friends

With everything going on with my dad (who received a the permanent pacemaker yesterday evening), I must report that I'm thankful that my siblings have taken on a bigger role in taking care of my parents. That's a good thing since I'm still anemic and get tired in the evenings.

I've also stayed busy hanging out with friends and family.

On Monday, I had lunch compliments of the colleague whose class I taught in - thanks, M., for lunch!

On Tuesday, I had lunch at the hospital while I was getting my infusion, but it wasn't enough so then I had lunch at McMenamin's (no, O'Callahans, no, McGillicuddy's, no O'Flanahan's; LOL, Reen!) with my sister, who bought lunch for me! Thanks, Reen!

I was going to go visit dad Tuesday evening, but my godmother (my godparents arrived yesterday after a bowling tournament in Reno so they could visit Dad) told me I looked tired and should stay home. So, I did. I still paid bills, though.

On Wednesday, I had acupuncture, then lunch with a friend from high school (Thanks, L., it was fun getting caught up!). I was pretty tired after school and into the evening. I still had dinner with another friend, B., at McGrath's. Yummy!

Today, I met with Dr. K., who agreed that I shouldn't wait until April 22nd for surgery. So, he was able to get hold of the surgeon at OHSU, who reported that he was trying to find a different plastic surgeon who could get me in sooner. In the meantime, I've been putting turmeric spice on the dressing and, while I have no empirical evidence, I tend to think it's helping to slow the growth of the damn thing under my armpit.

I also broke part of a tooth under a filling a few weeks ago, so I finally got into the dentist today (canceled last week because I had a fever). The decay was further back than expected, so they may have gotten close to a nerve. Because I'm on Zometa, it's very difficult to do root canals or extractions as the bone doesn't heal. We don't want to have to go that far, so we really have to watch my teeth for signs of decay to make sure it doesn't get far enough to need a root canal or extraction.

This evening, I'm having dinner with a grad student whose been working for me. That'll be fun to get caught up.

In the meantime, my dad is due to come home this afternoon. My colleague, K., offered to let us use her recliner for awhile, while dad recuperates. (Thanks, K.!! It is much appreciated.) My brothers made room for the recliner by taking apart the futon couch - we put the mattress under Eddie's loft bed and the frame is out in the garage. (Sheesh, someday, I would love either more storage space or to do another decluttering effort.)

Tomorrow, I meet with another grad student who works for me and will have lunch with a colleague about our spring term course.

So, life continues to be busy. I am thankful to family and friends - family for taking care of my folks, to friends for their company, and to colleagues for their ongoing support. Thank you!