So today was my second chemo session. Having done this before, I was a little more prepared and not quite as scared. They say that the chemo has an accumulative effect so the side effects and the fatigue may get worse and sooner, each round. Well first they did the blood draw to make sure my blood count was good enough to take the chemo. I had the same nurse, Kay, and she was kind and gentle. My husband took me and my "mom" Ellie, came and sat with us also. We started talking about my blog and nurse Kay was listening. So I read her "TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHEMO" and it made her smile. Then I read to her the part of my blog where I had mentioned her before. I think she was flattered in some way and it made her feel important. Which, let me tell you.....this lady is VERY important.....very important to me! She is the keeper of the gates of chemo. She can make you comfortable or.....well......well, uh..... I am not going to even think of my sweet nurse Kay in that way. The RED DEVIL did his deed, his friend followed and the whole thing was over!
Kevin, his mother, and I stopped by Chili's on the way home. (Thanks to my client and friend Cheryl for the gift card). Funny, Cheryl sent me a gift card and I don't think she even knew about my blog to know I have been craving steak and veggies from Chili's. So this time my taste buds were puny and I decided to just get veggies and soup. We had a nice lunch. It was good to see Ellie. She always gives me strength and tells me how strong I am, and lets me know that I will beat this. Afterwards, we went home and MAM was in front of my house. MAM is Patsy, MY ADOPTED MOTHER. She had brought over dinner for the evening when the kids came home. This included a yummy cherry cheesecake pie! Yummy! Let me tell you how nice it is not to have to cook. Especially since our oven pooped out about the same time as my cancer diagnosis.
We went home and I kicked back. Had the chemo headache again, but not quite as bad this time. Kevin ran some errands. We decided to go get a new comforter that has a duvet to fit. My dog Charlie loves to jump on the bed. She seems to be guarding or protecting me in some way. When I got home from the hospital after my surgery, she jumped on the bed and almost tip-toed as if she new I was in pain. German Shepherds are supposed to be really intelligent. Anyways, we were told she wouldn't shed much, but I think that was not completely true. So we got this comforter and a duvet cover so that we could easily take it off and wash it......and so that Charlie could lay next to her mommy when she is not feeling well. For those of you who don't think of your pets as true members of the family, this might sound kind of gross. Well let me tell you, you are absolutely right! As soon as we put the new duvet on the bed, Charlie got up on the bed. Exactly one minute later, Kevin got out the hand vac and was frantically sucking the hair off the bed at which point we both noticed about 3-4 slobber spots. This was where Charlie had christened the new cover. Pets....you gotta love 'em. I would never do without their unconditional love and protection in a million years.
You know how when you were younger, and your parents gave you the "I had to walk 20 miles in the frozen know to get to school stories"? Well every now and again, I get to listen to one from my husband.....but on a much grander scale. You see he grew up during the Iranian revolution. Life for him was much different than than the life he has here and now. So tonight he told me about what would happen when they needed a new cover or blanket for the bed. So I will tell you the story as he told it to me.....
"Our beds were made of wooden slats mounted on top of 2-3 foot wooden legs. There were no mattresses. All we had were blankets that were piled on top of each other to give us some cushion. When we needed a new comforter my grandmother would sew us a big cloth fabric the size of the bed. I remember a man coming by with a donkey. The donkey was loaded with bags on either side of his back. Inside the bags were feathers. Lots and lots of feathers. This is how this man made money, by going around and selling feathers. So my grandmother would buy the amount of feathers she needed. Then, she would stuff the fabric with the feathers and sew the fabric tacking it down in formations of squares so that each part of the cover would have equal distribution of feathers to keep us warm. Sometimes the beds were moved outside depending on the season as there was not any central heat or air.".....Kevin Navid
So now that I am spending so much time in my bed, I have a whole new appreciation for the comfort it gives me. I also am reminded of all the things my husband endured that was so different from our life now. Somehow, this makes me feel safe. It makes me feel that if all were taken away......we would at least no how to stuff our own comforters.....LOL.
Just kidding! There is so much my mother-n-law, Kevin, and his brother Andy lived through. It would blow your mind! If you want the book....I'll tell you again. It is on Amazon and it is "THE RAIN STOPS IN TEXAS" by Ellie Kamran Belfiglio.
So the bed is all put together and I am eating saltine crackers as I type. Charlie had to go to her crate because she kept on stealing my saltine crackers. Since I have cancer.....I figure "hey, I can eat crackers in my bed anytime!".....but not my dog....that is where I draw the line! I mean I don't care if SHE eats crackers in my bed, but she is not eating MY crackers in my bed!!!
1 comment:
My dear Penny, The daughter that God gave me after my manopause, how you use your sense of humor! You're one precious woman that won't allow your family and friends feel bad. As I watching you yesterday on the chemo bed, I thought how lucky we all are living in USA. The story that kevin told you last night is all true except the mattress part. They were made by hand also with feather. They were actually vey comfortable. We had an old woman helper, who had come from former Soviet union. She had four children. Her husband was dead. My father took them under his wing (Like we didn't have enough people living in our house, 11+4). This woman was like a second mother to me (I tell you later what she did for me). She was the one who knew how to make mattress and comforter from feather. The work required four women to work on each corner and a large room. Enough of Talking about bedding. Let's go to animals. I can not understand
how anyone can harm animals. They give you such an unconditional love that sometimes it is hard to get it elsewhere. And yes, German Shepareds are very smart , so is shi tzues. Ha, ha. Let's not forget about simese cats.
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