My favorite Marine-- photos from the job

Glamorous new swimsuit....with a little help from the princess

Well, I was trying to take a photo of the glamorous new swimsuit I get to wear thanks to radiation-- the top is up to my collarbone-- when I had a little "help" from the princess. I'm sure it made for a better picture, anyway! :-)

Another day, another ER visit

No, this time it was not for me. Liv hurt her arm at a BBQ-- ever heard of nursemaid's elbow? It's a little like hyperextending your elbow and it's painful as all hell. We flew to the ER, Liv screaming and crying at the top of her lungs. Scariest. Sound. Ever.

We got in, got her looked at, and before the doctor could come in....

...she was fine.

Apparently the cure for nursemaid's elbow is pronating and supinating the arm (bending it, in other words), and Liv did that for herself. Poof. Just like that, all is well. No soreness. No nothing. She's doing great, playing with stuff in the ER room, being silly, demanding dinner. Perfectly healthy and happy little girl.

Our nerves may never be the same again.


*****

I forgot to say: it happened while playing a game with her baba who feels really crappy about the whole thing even though it wasn't his fault. Poor baba.

4 days

I just found this photo and noticed it was taken FOUR days before the fateful mammogram.

Funny how you seldom know when your life is going to change forever, eh?

Update on my favorite Marine

Here's the latest from Christy about her husband in Iraq:

So far Joe sounds really tired but he says the food is amazing. It's been over 110 degrees everyday. He said the sun comes up at 4am and by 6am it is already 80 degrees and by 8am it's 100. He said its completely dark by 8pm and there is no exterior lighting on the base so I'm sure it feels weird.

Here is what he can tell me about what he does... He works at Al Faw Palace (you can find pictures online - he said he'll send some as soon as he can). He works directly for Gen Petraeus and has video briefings from him first thing every morning. They work 14 hour days - until about 10pm - which is 3pm here....[she says] I keep calling what he lives in a "trailer: but over here it's call a CHU -- a containerized housing unit!...

Me, I can't wait to see the pictures. He works in the legal unit which was greatly affected by some recent Supreme Court rulings. Intriguing stuff. It's a lot of responsibility for a young Marine lawyer. We're all really proud of him.

Hair update - giving El Jeffe a run for his follicles!

Okay, El Jeffe, I'm slowly catching up to you. But I appear to be scotch and soda brown (looks darker in the photo), while you're your usual lager blonde. Go baby!

Wretched day enlived by old pals

Sometimes things just work out well. Today's been a wretched day, cancerwise. I feel like 20 pounds of irradiated, hormonal fertilizer in a 10 pound bag. Hot flashes, nausea, poor sleep and a lot of paperwork that needed doing. (Isn't that always the way?)

This sorry state of affairs was alleviated in large part by a mostly day-long e-chat with an old friend much beloved since I was nearly 12 years old. That and a joke sent from a 14 year old son of a dear friend. Both made me feel loved and made a really lousy, pain-filled day infinitely better.

God love all my friends. This would be so very much harder without them.

A new low in cancer-related tact

So after throwing up all night (long story, you don't want to know), I take Liv to her swim class this morning while taking a pass on my own since I'm not feeling real perky.

I sit down, wigless, on the side of the pool deck to chitchat with the lifeguards and watch my daughter swim when someone from my class inquires into my well-being. I tell her I'm fine. I'm happy to be growing hair, etc.

So she says, in reference to my tiny crop of hair, "Never in your life thought you'd be going butch, did you?"

Errr...no, I didn't. Thanks for asking.

A$$hat.

One more Circus Flora pic

This one is by L-Mac and it is SO true to life. Good thing I'm a grown-up, yes?

Ballet/tap class

Last time we tried dance class, about a year and a half ago, Liv laid down in the middle of the studio floor and let the rest of the class dance around her.

This time she begged for dance classes. I hear she's doing well. (Parents are banned from all but the last session of class.) Isn't she cute?

Awesome 5th birthday party

Yes, that's what I said. We went to a kid's 5th b'day party and it was awesome. This is remarkable which you'd already know if you had kids.

Said party was at a bowling alley-- fun music, hysterically bad bowlers under 4 feet, and some of my best friends on Earth were there. El Freddo danced with me (for those of you not at the wedding, Fred is an incredible swing lead). At the end, he dipped me, whereupon I grabbed my wig and shouted, "hold on to the hair!"

I'll see if I can't get some pix off the camera, but retarded girl here put them on the hard drive instead of the card and I can't find my cable anywhere. (I usually use a card reader.) It's SO difficult being me....

***
Late breaking news: while getting into her swimsuit to play with the party favor from the birthday party (a squirt gun; thanks, Sherry...), a certain little person fell off her bed while standing on it. Not surprisingly, she got a HUGE bruise on her arm and had NO desire to put on a shirt (after much, much, cuddling and consoling, of course).

So...mama has plenty of scarves, right? Bali Hai, anyone? (And yes, El Freddo is letting her draw "tattoos" on his arms in red and blue ink. At least it's in patriotic colors...)

Joe made it to Iraq

Per my girl, Christy (after getting Joe's okay to publish-- routes are quite variable, apparently):

On Sunday June 8 he left on a flight out of Providence on an evening flight and arrived in Norfolk, VA. He spent a week there trying to amuse himself since they didn't know what to do with a Marine who was already trained for a war zone.

Then on Saturday June 14 he flew out of Norfolk and to Ft. Benning in GA. Again, he spent several days sitting around while the rest of the people with him got all of their shots, etc. He got small pox and anthrax, but everything else had been done in Newport before he left. He said by Wednesday and Thursday he was able to go to the rifle range and shoot and get some other things done so he wasn't as bored.

Then Friday June 20 he left Ft. Benning around 6pm. While in route he couldn't tell me where he was, but he flew through Bangor, Maine to Germany and then on to Kuwait. He was able to call me at each stop, but I had to guess where he was and couldn't confirm or deny!

He arrived in Kuwait about 6pm on Saturday (which is about 11am Saturday east coast time). He had heard that people get to Kuwait and can sit from 2 days to 2 weeks before they get them into Kuwait. Luckily after only 14 hours on the ground in Kuwait he got a flight into Baghdad and called to let me know he was safely there.

He's extremely exhausted after about 48 hours of travel and no sleep and he's not in her permanent "residence" (i.e. trailer) yet. He said he's in a dirty transient tent with bad a/c and it was about 110 degrees. (This was about 7:30 am east cost time so 2:30 pm there.) He said he was going to dinner with the guy he's replacing in order to start getting oriented.

We done got whomped

This is the first time I ever saw the town of Kirkwood on the weather news crawl. It said storm with 60 mph winds is heading for Kirkwood. It was right.

We keep our trees maintained. Nonetheless:

Another citizen of the Land of the Lost

Do you recall some months ago on the prior blog when I went off on stupid adoption questions? Well, featuring prominently in that diatribe was a Y childcare employee who asked me why the Chinese hate their girls so much, or some such tripe. (I corrected her.)

Today I think she's proved herself even less intelligent than I initially supposed.

The Komen Walk is in St. Louis today. El Freddo and I took Liv to swim class and, while I was buzzing around the Y, one of my buddies who also works in childcare grabbed me for a second to see how I was doing. In the room with her was Miss Dim Bulb 2008.

While I'm chatting with my friend, Miss Dim Bulb asks me (ala Dave Barry, I swear I'm not making this up) "Did you shave your head for the Komen race?"

Yes, stupid. That's EXACTLY what I did. And my eyebrows. And, to further demonstrate my solidarity, I also ruined my life for the last six months which, now that you ask, featured a lot of nausea and some quality time in the hospital, not to mention a fortune in medical bills.

Dumba$$.

When I patiently explained that I actually have cancer and was undergoing radiation, she clapped her hands excitedly and piped up with "so you're all better, right?"

You'll have to blame my mother for my upbringing which caused me to answer any of her stupid questions in the first place. There is a definite drawback to being brought up reflexively not to tell people to do things to themselves which a) they richly deserve; and b) are anatomically unlikely.

I may have to reconsider my position on manners with Livi.

hair today

How much do I love El Jeffe? So much that I'm posting yet another semi-bald shot. It's actually coming in with pigment these days; a very exciting development for me!

Now if I could just have some eyebrows, please?

Coolest. Dad. Ever.

El Freddo took the Bean to Six Flags today while mama got some quiet time today.

What he brought home was the happiest, cutest, wettest little girl I have ever seen. She came in with a HUGE tub of cotton candy, snacks and wearing a Wonder Woman cape. Liv apparently is a complete thrill ride afficionado. She loves the free fall rides, the "sizzler," everything! They'd been on all the water rides and snorked up junk food to their hearts' content.

The husbie rocks. I slept for nearly 4 hours.

Time to stop kvetching

My girlfriend was in the gold jeep pictured below; the drunk guy was in the car that hit her. It took them 45 minutes to cut her out of her jeep. She says:

I have a broken ankle that still needs surgery, the other leg broken had surgery and have a titanium rod and I had surgery on my elbow which was put back together with screws. I have some misc bruises, scrapes, stitches, and staples, but no head injury, no facial injury, no chest injury and no internal injuries..I don't know worst case or best case because doctors are pieces of shit but somewhere between definitely walking to almost back to normal expected. The left arm will lose a lot of mobility and the right ankle injury is the one that will cause the most problems but they don't know how much...

I got NOTHING to complain about.

Lights out

So, here's the thing about cancer treatment. You're going along on your merry way, digging in your garden, out with friends, whatever. And then it's just lights out. Say goodnight, Gracie. It's over.

I swear I just can't get through a normal, admittedly hyperactive, "me" type of day without, at some point, overshooting the mark and ending up inside, either fast asleep, reading or staring at my computer screen.

It's been this way since...um....January?

I'm bored, folks. This cancer business is getting really, seriously dull. Not that I require the cancer stuff be any more exciting. Nope. Thanks. Had my fill. But jeeeeesus-squeeze us, I could use a little less dull.

Kvetch of the Day.

Rads not so bad; produce, however, is another story altogether

Naw, false alarm. Ice is fine. All is well in boob-land.

Took the baby on a walk around K'wood today. (Yes, I'm in denial; I know she's 5...) We ran errands, played in the playroom at the library, and went to the Farmers' Market. We bought one smallish nectarine and one mid-size peach for snacks at one of the stalls while in the Market; paid $2.19. Sheesh.

Otherwise, quite the uneventful day. Please. Send the bald chick funny emails. Keep me amused. Thank you one and all.

Radiation day -- annotated

Well, they're right. 15 minutes door-to-door. But I kind of feel like I've been microwaved.

My right upper chest feels like warmed-over, microwaved chicken. The dang thing is radiating more warmth than usual, if you know what I mean.

To put it delicately, there's not a ton of flesh where my tumor was (think just a few inches South of the clavicle), so I'm getting nuked where there's not much "me" to nuke. Kinda stings, sort of like I got too much sun but it's not quite burned.

Not sure this bodes well for the next 32 treatments. But, again, if I can do chemo AND get hospitalized for same, I can do this.

Doesn't mean I won't kvetch, though.

******

Apparently I'm doing it all wrong.

After I came back from the circus, I grabbed my ever-handy blue ice pack and slapped that sucker right on the burned part. (Ever-handy, by the way, because I'm forever hurting myself-- in the gym, in the garden, doing laundry...any old way. I can relate to an old buddy who had to get ACL from stepping out of a golf cart. Seriously.) Anyway, one of my BC buddies told me the ice damages the skin even more.

Hell's bells, folks. No lotions, no deodorant, no ice?? No fair.

Circus Flora

Don't believe the blase look Liv has on her face. These pix were taken before the circus started. Once it started, she was laughing and clapping wildly!

Oh fer gawd's sake

Check out my lovely new sharpie marks. I know this is supposed to be better than chemo and all, but dang this looks stupid!

Radiation set-up day

Well, today was the day they did the set-up for my radiation. My formerly private bosom got drawn on with a sharpie, examined, and more photographed than various starlets and what can only be described as comedy boobs. But at least they didn't use tattoos as markers for the radiation to come. When I get tattooed, I like to choose the pattern and location. I'm funny like that.

I will start radiation at 7 am every weekday starting this coming Wednesday. This will work out great; Fred can work from home until I get back from radiation every morning. Liv, who likes to sleep late, will probably not even notice I'm gone.

Thus far, the experience has been great. The radiologist/oncologist is gentle, polite, pleasant, Latin, and very easy on the eyes. The radiation tech I met today was also most of those qualities and, best of all, from a small town in Missouri I happen to know well. We had all kinds of fun things to talk about.

The downside to not having tattoos is that I have to be very careful not to wash off the sharpie marks. At present, they are visible even above my crew neck tshirt, which looks a little weird. As it's considerably less of a fashion issue than the absence of hair, I'll surely deal. After coping with that hellacious chemo, I can make due. H3ll, after that hellacious chemo, I can pretty much do anything. (Except, perhaps, get out of a bean bag chair unassisted. Unrelated, but nonetheless true.)

Company picnic and Cards game

El Freddo's company had a company picnic today which was a hoot!  It was for 8,000 employees whom they fed and sent to the ballgame.  

We then visited Liv's "brick" near Gate 1 on the Big Mac's 70th HR commemorative block.  And cheerfully watched as the Cards vindicated themselves after getting stomped by the Phillies last night.

A perfect day.

My chance came...

...and it went.  I was hoping to go to a Cards game while still bald, wearing Cards temp tattoos.  It didn't work.  Apparently, wearing sunblock means a temp tatt will not stick to your head.  Plus it got all gunked up with my hair!  Imagine my distress.

However, I did whip off my hat and mention loudly while waiting for Fredbird's attention, that it would be kinda cool if he bit my bald head.  And he did!  He actually blew a raspberry on me while he was there, too.  I could not stop laughing! (The picture must've been taken right before he blew the raspberry because I almost fell down laughing!)

What am I going to do without Tim Russert?

Seriously.  No one will ever replace that brilliant, pudgy little newsman in my affections.  This election is going to be so much less fun without him; I'm broken hearted.

Requiescat in pace, my little political guru.  You're the only reason I continued to watch the first 1/2 hour of the Today Show.  I'm going to miss you.

Thursday was a good day

Playgroup at Tilles with L-Mac and then dinner with The Girls. Once again, my cup runneth over.

Oh, how I live for the day this comes to pass

Props to L-Mac for sending me a vision of wish-fulfillment. Also for more Bizarro, check out Dan Piraro’s website and blog.

Look....it's HAIR!

Suedehead

For those of you not lucky enough to have been listening to alternative radio in the late 80s, then you probably missed Morrissey's single, Suedehead.  I didn't miss it.  In fact it's on my iPod.

Just this afternoon my darling girl started making a weird wailing noise.  No, she was not in pain.  She was singing Suedehead.  

Here's a repeat performance:

No fair!

Beloved El Jeffe is clearly more hair-enabled (would that be the correct PC term?) than I am!  I'm still in the fuzz stage....

Portrait of mama with hair

Hair and possibly a baseball glove. 

Diva gardening

St. Petersfest last Friday

Rainy.  But a water balloon fight for the ages.  Big fun.

Here are Liv and L'il Miss Mac.  I don't know HOW they could be any cuter.

Peace in the garden (also lots of backbreaking work)

Perhaps you've noticed how everything is locked up? Well, my neighbor's two cats and pellet gun are doing nothing to thin, or even discourage the bunny population. The best I can do is lock ol' Thumper out of my garden and away from my strawberries.

The Rosenbloggers build a greenhouse

Yep, we winged it. We sat down with a piece of paper, drew out some rough sketches and built me a grow frame. Technically not a greenhouse-- it's not protected from the elements, although, come winter, it could be should I get so motivated.

It's eight feet deep and six and a half feet tall. The growbed in the center is 6' x 3' x 10" which means I actually bought more stuff to plant than I have room for-- thus the pots along side the growbed.

In the meanwhile I am just as pleased as I can be! I'm growing tomatoes, peppers, spaghetti squash, strawberries, cucumbers, all kinds of stuff. I am the rookiest of rookie home farmers, but if my grandmothers could have victory gardens, so can I.

I may paint and pretty it up some time, but right now I am overjoyed. AND, Miz bald breast cancer patient hefted 2 x 3s, bales of chicken wire, 40# bags of soil and wielded a staple gun like a mensch. Okay, a mensch covered with a LOT of sunblock.

(Oh, and for those who haven't been to the house, that 1200 sq foot behemoth next to the grow bed? Our garage. Long story. The previous owners were nutty as pet ducks.)

Photos from dinner

Chris is our favorite waitress at Massa's; we've known her since before Liv came home and have lots of pics of the two of them together.
















The other is Yosh and Dennis, the funnest couple alive. Like I said, fun dinner! I forgot to mention, we ended up the evening strolling around Kirkwood, having walked across the street from the restaurant to the local custard station. It was a beautiful, cool, moonlit evening; could not have been prettier.

One more important thing

My girl Christy (check out her Komen 3-day walk fund raiser link on the side of this blog--I'm an honoree and never get tired of saying so) is bidding farewell to her beloved husband Joe this weekend. He's on his way to Iraq.

Now you all know my politics and that I don't think the reasons for going where we went are valid. But goddamn it I'm proud of the folks who are there. Particularly Joe. Joe's a lawyer and he fought very hard to get the legal posting; a lot of folks wanted that job and he got it, which is remarkable in itself. I should also probably mention that with his credentials he could walk into a very high paying job any time he so chose. But the important thing is I know if there's good to be done over there, he'll do it.

And Christy? She's one tough, brave, patriotic cookie. Don't you dare pity her; she's doing her part for something she believes in.

Good luck and godspeed, Joe. My family's hearts and thoughts go with you.

A fine weekend, minus the deluge

Hello, all, from the soggy Midwest. I know I'll miss all this rain come August, but right now it's a pain in the bazooties. Still, there was much garden-building done this weekend. And yes, I bought two bags of manure. That is, I paid for poo. I, the owner of two prodigious dogs, did this. On a happier note, I also bought straw, the smell of which sent me back to my horse-riding days and made me really happy.

A fun dinner with my gal Yosh and Dennis-- I can't even think of words enough to tell you how cute they are and how much I just love them. "A whole bunch" just doesn't cover it. Suffice it to say I laughed a LOT at dinner. That, also, made me really happy. That and the fact that Yosh lets me help with the engagement ring shopping. And you KNOW that entertains me no end.

On another happy note, I'm growing a little more hair. It's still really fluffy, like that stuff on a baby chicken before it actually grows feathers. At the moment it's looking light, light brown. I'm petitioning the universe for more pigment, dang it. Oh and getting back some more eyebrows and lashes, while we're at it wouldn't be bad, either.

Oh and another happy thing: the local municipal authorities let me use last year's photo on my pool I.D. At least I don't have to go a full year with my pink bandana in the picture!

So I'm attaching photos of my latest "hair do." I know, I know. Don't hate me because I'm beautiful!

It's a shame I have iPhotobooth, otherwise there'd be less silliness in the world