If the shoe fits...

          Sunday night, 12-16-01, and it's been a fairly typical week of increased progress and unexpected ups & downs.  Not too bad on the downs side though, so all in all, it's been a pretty good week for me.

          My Phantom Menace pain in my toes is being controlled by the Neurontin for the most part.  It only took a couple of days for my body to get used to it, and now it seems to be pretty smooth sailing, other than it's a little on the downer side.  By that, I mean that I feel more tired than usual - not quite as alert as I've been.  I thought it would address the numb finger and thumb on my left hand as well, but it doesn't seem to.  They still feel the same - very little feeling other than some tingling that never goes away.

          I still wake up in the middle of the night most nights with the toe pain just starting.  Then I get up and take a 600mg Ibuprofen tab that was prescribed and sit up on the net for the next few hours while it kicks in.  Usually, the pain gets pretty bad before the drug kicks in, but not for long.

          It's got my sleep habits pretty well screwed up.  I'm up a few hours, then need a few hours nap, then up again for a few more hours.  I feel tired almost all the time.  Oh well.  It's not like I have anywhere to go that requires me to have a regular schedule these days, so I'm just going with the flow and resting when I feel the need.

          Today, for the first time in about 2 months, I drove.  It felt good to be back in the saddle again.  I took Casey to the movies and we saw "Behind Enemy Lines" with a stop at Wendy's for burgers and fries.  I was a little nervous to be behind the wheel of my step mom's mini-van after all that time, but it's just like riding a bike I guess, and after a block or two it felt totally natural again.

          Not only that, but I wore my shoes again for the first time since my sisters brought me home from Knoxville!  I've been in slippers for the past couple of months, with my feet too swollen to wear my regular shoes, so this was a pretty big deal to me.  And even though my feet are almost back to normal size again, I picked up 6 pounds in the past week.  That puts me right at my regular weight of 180, and it feels pretty good.

          My beard and mustache are getting pretty long and starting to fill in some.  I wasn't allowed to shave while my blood platelets were so low.  They didn't want me around any sharp objects so I wouldn't bleed like a fountain.  I guess I could shave again now that the platelet count is up (as of the last visit to the doc 2 weeks ago) but I'm sort of on a roll now, so I think I'll just let it go and see what happens.

          Admittedly, it's looking kinda scraggly, but who cares?  It's not like I'm looking for a date these days (although I AM single, for you ladies out there - and willing to shave!  Hahaha!).  Besides, the chemotherapy that starts in about a week and a half will probably take it out anyway, along with the rest of my hair.  Think of the money I'll save in razors and shaving cream!!  LOL!! 

          I made the $1400.00+ payment to the insurance company to straighten out that little mess, so I'm feeling a lot more secure about the situation than I was a week ago.  I'll feel even better when I get confirmation that it's been received, processed and everything is back to normal again with the insurance, but at least I'm not worried about it anymore.

          My best friend from my teen years came by to see me on Saturday, 12-15-01.  It's been years since the last time I saw him, as I've been on the road the whole time.  We swapped stories and reminisced about some of our teenaged escapades and he told me he'd been diagnosed with Hepatitis C.  His doc gave him 6 months to 6 years to live, which upset him pretty much, and he said he found religion.  He also told me his younger brother has been diagnosed with Lymphoma, like me, but he didn't know any of the particulars about which variety.

          In any case, my friend still looks healthy, is working and taking karate to keep physically fit, and seems to be doing pretty well with it all.  We promised to visit again soon.

          I helped Casey update her web site and it really turned out cool.  She did most of it herself, while I helped with some of the technical stuff.  She's been wanting to do that for a long time, claiming her old web page was "gay".  I can't keep up with teenage slang anymore, but I take it that she was dissatisfied with the old one.  Well, it hadn't been updated in about 2 years, so I guess it was about time.  Anyway, if you get a chance, slide on over to see it.  It really is pretty impressive.  Oh, and be sure to sign her guest book (I worked for hours on that thing to make it work right!!).  Just click HERE to get to her new web site, and prepare to be amazed!

          Next:  Holiday Cheer!