Current caregiver props to my parents, who were supposed to drive half way from Atlanta on Saturday and arrive on Sunday but Surprise Again, there they were at dinnertime Saturday. They are preparing tons and tons of food for me to eat now and later, whether I want to or not.

The Drains Out aka Bongo Voyage party was terrific and a real morale boost for me pre-chemo. Thanx to ALL of you who came by, whether it was just for a few minutes to Show The Luv or to enjoy a full meal.

I have been walking at dawn outside for two to four miles daily, and doing my post-surgery stretches like a good girl, to avoid frozen shoulder and so on. I am a very compliant patient. As a clinician, I tell my people "if you do this this and this you will feel better". And then they don't do it and they don't feel better, go figure. When my docs tell me what to do, I do it, and guess what, it works.

Today I saw the oncologist in the AM. He had more statistical, study based, and not really uplifting information on survival rates regarding my trifecta of cancers. On the other hand, I could get hit by a bus tomorrow and this would all be moot. Dr. L says my PICC looks fine. He wrote me a prescription for "replacement hair" x 2.

I saw Dr. Bashore for a post-drain-out check this evening. He says next week I may get my stitches out.

Chemo round one tomorrow. I have been hydrating like a maniac since last night. Its supposed to help. I have lab work at 8:45 and chemo at 9:30 at the Merritt Island office. It's supposed to take three hours. I have a very powerful anti-nausea med, Emend. While my insurance pays for most stuff, it does not have a good drug plan. Prescriptions are mostly out of pocket, even after meeting the deductible. If the Emend is going to enhance my quality of life for the duration, its worth its weight in gold. Altho I believe it cost me more than its weight in gold.

Then Wednesday afternoon I go back to the MI infusion lab to get a shot of Neulasta to rebuild the white blood cell count that the chemo will wipe out.

This all definitely seems to call for retail therapy. For every dollar spent on medication and treatment I should be entitled to spend one dollar on something fun and frivolous. At this point matching my out-of-pocket expenses could provide me with a week along the French Riviera.

More blogging post chemo.