April 28, 2012
It Smells So Good Outside!
Spring has finally arrived here in the Portland area! There are many flowering crab apple trees on my street and all of them are now in bloom.The heavily laden branches are bending with the weight of the fat, fresh blossoms, especially after a little more weight added by a spring shower!
Then the wind blows and some of the petite pink petals flutter to the ground. My freshly mowed lawn looks like it has pink snow on it! When I open the front door to walk to the mailbox, I am overcome with the soft,sensual scent of these beautiful blossoms. It just smells so good outside!!! I take a deep breath and then another one and then decide I need to share this experience with my readers.
And just in time for May Day!
April 27, 2012
CA-125 Stabilized ~ Then Chemo Again!
It has been one month since I had chemo. I had my CA-125 drawn yesterday and the result came back today before my doctor’s appointment. Normal is 35 or below. Last month my CA-125 was 422. Today it was 430. I have been on chemo for the last 4 months. In other words, my CA-125 (the Ovarian Cancer Tumor Indicator) has continued to rise while I have been on chemo; it should go down while on chemo!
While I was slowly starting to mildly ‘freak out’ over the increase in the result my doctor quickly said that she considers my CA-125 to be “stabilized’. This is a new word for me as far as my disease progression/experience goes. My doctor explained that my CA-125 may drop next month, it may stay the same, or of course, there is always the possibility that it might go up. In any event she is considering this latest result to indicate that my cancer has stabilized for now. It sounds OK to me, but is just some sort of phrasing to make the patient (me in this case) feel better about the test result. My latest mantra for now “The CA-125 is just a number. It only indicates a trend.”
I had combination chemotherapy again today. Doxil and Carboplatin are the main drugs that I received along with several supporting medications. It took over 5 hours to administer them all. Tonight I have a headache that just won’t seem to go away … so I am treating that.
I am feeling a bit ‘needy’ tonight and couldn’t even think straight enough to think what meds might help my headache. I finally decided on a combination of Aleve and Tylenol after an afterhours call to my on-call Doctor. I just couldn’t think straight enough to make a decision about the meds and I needed help with the decision.
Whoa! I almost forgot about the constipation that follows chemo –better be proactive about that!
So, I am back on the chemo merry-go-round. I’ll have a difficult 2 weeks and then I’ll start feeling better and then try to get lots done in 8 days before my next chemo!
Sure hope this headache goes away soon!
April 25, 2012
The Amazing Race Casting Call
Well Portlanders, this is your BIG CHANCE!!!!!
The Amazing Race is having an open casting call (tryouts, interviews, whatever you want to call it) here in the Portland area this Sunday in Beaverton.
Sunday, May 20 10am-3pm
Big Al’s Progress Ridge Town Square 14950 SW BARROWS RD. BEAVERTON, OREGON
www.ILoveBigAls.com www.koinlocal6.com For important information, rules, guidelines and FAQ’s, email amazingrace@koin.com.
http://www.theamazingracecasting.com/opencastingcalls
http://www.ilovebigals.com/promo-loader.aspx?link=promos/AmazingRace.html&sitename=beaverton
- Sunday, May 20, 2012 | 10am-3pm Doors open at 10; casting calls begin at 10:30
- Big Al’s @Progress Ridge TownSquare | 14950 SW Barrows Road, Beaverton, OR. Take 217 to West (215) Shoalls Ferry Road to Barrows Rd.
In February 2011, KOIN Local 6 held a Casting Call for The Amazing Race at Stanford’s Restaurant in Lake Oswego. We’re told it was a great event with more than 700 teams vying for a chance to appear in front of the CBS cameras! Because of the turnout, KOIN learned that in order to accommodate the huge turnout that The Amazing Race Casting Calls attract,they needed a bigger venue…
So, this year Big Al’s partnered with KOIN Local 6 to bring The Amazing Race Casting Call to Big Al’s! Most TV casting calls require hopefuls to stand in long lines for hours on end, sometimes camping out overnight on cold, hard sidewalks. NOT THIS ONE! No camping out or standing in line overnight is ecessary or actually even permitted!
Big Al’s will open their doors at 10am and every aspiring team will be issued a numbered ticket. Instead of standing in line, teams can hang out inside and enjoy all the fun & games Big Al’s has to offer! Beginning at 10:30am, we will begin calling numbers AT RANDOM. When teams hear their number announced over the public address system, they will claim their Amazing Invitation, report to the Staging area, and excitedly wait to be called for their audition. Once inside, KOIN Local 6 cameras will roll and teams will have ONE MINUTE to make a memorable impression to Amazing Race Casting Producers!
Visit The Amazing Race Casting Call with KOIN Local 6 FAQ page for more information. Or email our friends at KOIN Local 6 at AmazingRace@KOIN.com and they’ll send you everything you MUST have!
April 22, 2012
International Space Station Sightings
The following are the times that Portlanders can view the ISS.
The second column is the number of minutes the ISS will be visable; the third column is the maximum elevation; the fourth column is where you should look as it comes into view; the last column is where it will exit your view.
In other words, the first sighting will begin at 9:26pm; last 3 minutes; will be no higher than 53 degrees; will ‘pop’ into view at 33 degrees in the NW sky; will exit your view at 26 degrees E. It might be helpful to remember that 90 degrees would be straight up.
Have fun!!!
| Sun Apr 22/09:26 PM |
3 |
53 |
33 above NW | 26 above E |
| Sun Apr 22/11:01 PM |
< 1 |
13 |
11 above W | 13 above W |
| Mon Apr 23/08:32 PM |
2 |
24 |
24 above ENE | 10 above E |
| Mon Apr 23/10:05 PM |
2 |
49 |
18 above WNW | 49 above SW |
| Tue Apr 24/09:10 PM |
3 |
86 |
36 above WNW | 19 above ESE |
| Tue Apr 24/10:45 PM |
< 1 |
12 |
10 above WSW | 12 above WSW |
| Wed Apr 25/09:49 PM |
3 |
23 |
11 above W | 24 above SSW |
| Thu Apr 26/08:55 PM |
4 |
50 |
32 above W | 12 above SE |
| Fri Apr 27/09:35 PM |
3 |
14 |
10 above WSW | 10 above SSW |
| Sat Apr 28/08:41 PM |
4 |
26 |
20 above WSW | 11 above SSE |
Happy Earth Day
This year ~ support our Earth. How? Well, you can do one thing that conserves energy or promotes ‘greenness’.
Some Suggestions:
Stop using the plastic bags at the grocery store ~ take you own reusable bags ~ many are now washable.
Consolidate your driving, or try walking to one place to which you would normally drive.
Use reusable coffee mugs instead of paper ones.
Use reusable water bottles. Stop buying cases of bottled water at Costco and instead purchase a Zero Water or Britta filter and fill your own reusable (BPA free) containers.
These are just a few suggestions…
Try making one small change this year…..
Help out our Beautiful Earth!!!
Happy Earth Day!
April 6, 2012
Nausea Update
This has been the worst nausea that I have ever had from chemo. It is now 11 days after chemo and I am still experiencing it constantly. I take my anti-nausea drugs, but it is still there.
Today I felt well enough to get dressed and drive to the acupuncturist office. It was my 3rd acupuncture treatment and I do get some good results from it. It is really a cool therapy and so amazing how the body’s own energy works to heal it!
Gradually feeling better!
