Sleep was hard, and getting started at 8:30 was hard. I made coffee and then decided it was time to bake. So I creamed sugar and butter and followed all the slightly bizarre steps to make Irish Black Ginger Cake. I wanted something not sweet, and the ginger helps with nausea. I was out of practice, and soon I struggled to get the heavy batter into the 8″ round baking pans. My arms and hands were tired, and I had trouble holding a few pounds in the air for a while. But finally, I managed to get the cakes done and baked.
While the cakes were finishing in the oven, Corwin needed a ride to work. I threw on clothing and delivered him a few miles away via Air Volvo. I got the cakes out of the oven and started on the blog. I had the cakes for a late breakfast. I also took my pills, including my day 13 chemotherapy. Just this and Wednesday remain. I am tired from baking and writing and almost miss posting the blog at near noon.
I shower and dress and then lie down for a bit. I am fatigued already. I am reading when I hear the lawn service arrive who is mowing and tidying up the lawn and flower beds. I get going, head out, and step out to discover it is snowing while they are working. My lawn guy smiles and says, “Crazy weather!” and gets back to mowing while it snows on him.
Air Volvo takes me quickly out of the micro-climate that is our little spot in Aloha, now Beaverton, Oregon. It is now sunny, then rainy, wet snow, and then clear again. The traffic is a bit less today as I am later, and the Snow-tastrify has many folks still home. The clean-up is still ongoing, and the fear of three inches of snow or less has many folks hiding under blankets at home. Driving in the snow is too much for folks (there is no snow on the roads), and there is snow in the forecast (we did not get it).
I reach Forest Grove Rehab and Care Center without issue. The Coastal Mountains are white with snow again and beautiful. Forest Grove is higher altitude and is the last city before the mountains and foothills start.
Susie can barely open her eyes. She is very comfortable in bed, and the nurses let me know that she was up all morning watching TV near the nurse’s station in her wheelchair. Apparently, the nurses woke up Susie and Terry, her roommate, all night, and Terry figured they had three hours of sleep. Susie barely manages a conversation via FaceTime with her mother, Leta, as she falls to sleep again. Finally, I get a kiss and let them sleep. It was a very short visit.
I tucked in Susie with her little frog.
I return directly to the Volvo Cave without witnessing any extra-legal driving from my fellow Oregonians. From what I could see, most of the other drivers were still white-knuckled from the chance of snow and the white stuff visible here and there. Driving was slower, and everyone today was sticking to following lane markings.
Flowers arrived from my sister. She knows I like to grow roses, so she sent me various colors of roses for my birthday on Saturday, the 16th.
I went back to reading and lying down. I got a text from Mariah suggesting dinner, and thus I headed out on the non-snow-covered roads once again. We met at BJ’s Brewhouse for dinner. I had chicken fettuccini because I wanted to see if their version was better than my own. Nope, I could have made that. I also did not need the extra calories, but I had only a salad, pudding, and a piece of Irish Ginger Cake for lunch and was hungry. It was also dessert Tuesday, 1/2 off, so I had ice cream and a cookie I only finished 1/2 of with coffee.
I am looking forward to needing less food once chemotherapy ends. Now, I am still losing weight. Chemotherapy pills end on Wednesday at 10PM!
Mariah has a new job at Sage and loves the extra money and the new work. She is now collecting money for selling and re-upping licenses. This allows her to use her two years of customer service skills and knowledge of the software to find the right match of expense to service for Sage customers. It is working for her.
I was past fatigue and headed to exhaustion, so we said our goodbyes. I arrive home with Air Volvo safe and intact. I then collapse into bed. Sleeping until 10PM.
This late nap, of course, ruins my sleep. I managed to sleep after 4:30AM. I struggle to get going and finally release myself from the warm comfort of bed at 9ish. Unfortunately, my plan to get up early and do my taxes did not happen.
Alohawild (Michael Wild's) Website 