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Friday started late with me sleeping until 9ish. I am exhausted today, Friday, and fighting nausea. Nevertheless, I wrote a long blog and even took Corwin to work in Air Volvo in the morning. I finish the blog at about noon and then dress as usual. I then read for an hour to rest. I was tired after getting dressed. I finally hit the road at 2:15ish to see Susie.

Air Volvo delivers me there at Forest Grove Rehab and Care Center at 3900 Pacific Highway, Room 44A, with us only having to dodge one extra-legal car driver’s unique interpretation of how to change lanes. I pass all the Covid-19 checks. As it is a bit late, I find Susie in bed and resting. She spent most of the morning in a wheelchair eating and hanging out. One of the new aphasic residents seems to have developed a friendship with Susie and comes to see Susie and just hold hands. One nurse aide comes to say goodbye to Susie as she will be off next week getting certified. Unfortunately, Susie’s issues include face recognition; Susie is unsure who the person is–even flashing her face, and the gal is a bit disappointed. But, I thank her, and Susie seems to remember the voice and wishes her well. Even for me, there is a moment for her to recognize me, and the hat and coat help, I believe.

We manage to get Leta on the phone using FaceTime. Susie and Leta have a long chat. I check with the nurses, and Susie’s vitals are stable; I check every day. I return to the room.

I am getting tired, and Susie is yawning. I can sleep in the chair or head out. I get a kiss on the way out. I forget to take a pic for Friday.

The walk to Air Volvo seems quite long. I get in the car and sit for a while without my mask on to get some more air. In a few minutes, I am better.

I head back to the house, but I have Air Volvo make an emergency ice cream break at Jim’s. I have a cone of Rocky Road that I eat mainly in the car, even while driving. The extra food and the simple pleasure of ice cream kept me going, and I reached home.

I am tired and a bit fuzzy. I start back on my taxes–why not? I log back into TurboTax, fight with the software for a few hours, and finally figure out what it wants on my stock option sales. Unfortunately, it looks like the bill will be huge this year. I am frustrated that all the tax records are not in the proper file, my fault, and I will have to search for the giving records. I believe I put them in a folder, but I cannot find them. It is likely on the floor. So I will search for them on Saturday.

On valuable financial news, all the proceeds from all the sales, now reduced by 1/3 for tax withholding for next year (always at the max rate), have been posted to my checking account, as did my paycheck, which, this time, was a number I recognize. Still wrong, but not twice or just $550 but the usual amount. Something to work out after my return to work. Thus I can now cover the taxes, medical bills for both of us, and Susie’s room and board. In addition, I have an MRI on 18Apl, which will be a hefty co-pay.

Aside: I don’t usually invest in IPO and the like, but I made an exception for Virgin Galactic. I like some of the ways that Virgin worked over the years and thus risked some cash. I cleared more than $3500 in profit on a small investment and even held it for a year to qualify it for long-term investment treatment. This is also why my taxes are a bit high this year. I did well in the market and cashed out last year, meaning I get to share my success with President Biden and the Oregon treasury. I sold all my small investments, making a few hundred dollars on Ford Motor Company, plus another hundred in dividends. I sold out to pay off the Volvo. I wanted my money out of the market as I sensed events were coming with Covid-19 already, creating a strange pressure on equities. Last year, I did not venture into Crypto as I had enough fun (and insane risk) with Virgin Galactic. I had invested in Crypto the previous year and made a few hundred bucks on a small investment. I like to be highly focused when I make crazy investments, so I keep to just one type of questionable investment with my cash. My retirement is managed by my risk category for my age, 57 (soon 58), and has a 25% increase for three years running, and I am facing a 10 percent loss so far this year–I never risk 401K money.

Returning to the narrative, I do rest for a bit. I am still not ready for dinner and just have cheese and crackers. Corwin finds the gumbo from Wholefoods for his dinner. The remains of which were still there this Saturday morning, forcing me to do all the dishes–fail!

I read and rest and chat with a few folks on the phone before sleeping most of the night away. I am up to prove hydration, and I am nearly overwhelmed by nausea. I rush and fall into bed without issue, and the problem subsides, and I fall asleep. I wake up a bit early and take some ginger; I have some candied for cooking, which helps this Saturday morning.

Another aside: The azaleas are starting to bloom. The roses are still growing, and buds are all over them. Some of the roses are still showing signs of stress, and I will take more action soon. The apple tree is starting to bloom, the state flower of Michigan. Spring has sprung.

 

 

I was up and moving late, about 9:15ish. This will make me run late all morning. I am also going slow as I don’t want to move too fast and get dizzy–it is essential to avoid trips to the ER.

I had peanut butter toast for breakfast as I had yet to make it to the grocery store or shop online. Yes, we have no banana today. Susie needs some new flowers too. I did have a beef and cheddar sandwich for lunch. I toasted bread and microwaved the beef and cheddar to make it a better sandwich.

I had to update the information for Susie’s doctor as they were unclear about what I wanted. However, later in the day, they sent out orders to have Susie in rehab again at the facility in Forest Grove. Excellent!

I am going slow, and I am fatigued from anything. But, yes, the chemo is working. The day is bright, and our temperature will break 80F on Thursday. We have somehow become California and having this kind of morning: Link.

I managed to shower and dress but was tired after that. I also got up too fast once and held on to the wall until the stars and dizziness passed. So I read for an hour until I felt better in bed and finished Maise Dobbs number 17. It was dark as it unflinchingly covered American racism in World War 2, but I liked it. For example, GIs were welcomed to have dinner with Brits during the war, but this was restricted to only white GIs. This was a new story I did not know.

Aside: The navy named its next massive Ford Class aircraft carrier after a black man: USS Doris Miller. Please see the information here. There is also a movement to remove the name of Stennis from another carrier; we will see.

I took Air Volvo to see Susie at Forest Grove Rehab and Care Center at 3900 Pacific Highway, Room 44A. I was late, almost 3PM. Susie was in bed resting. Terry informed me, her roommate, that Susie had slept most of the day–a surprise as usually she only naps a bit. Susie was delighted to see me, and she was more responsive, even when a bit sleepy. We called her mother, Leta, on FaceTime. I was too tired to push a wheelchair, and Susie was already in bed, so we chatted for a bit. I then headed out as Susie and I both needed some rest.

I got a text from Mariah to have dinner. I agreed to 5ish. We try to get there before the crowds to keep my exposure down to not just Covid-19 but flu and colds as it is that season. I did have the flu vax before the winter, but likely I am dues for more flu vax and my fourth dose. It is recommended by various folks that I skip over to Pfizer as it is a slightly different mRNA vax. My friend and online personality, Violet Blu, has taken all three now, going for the stirred but not shaken protection. After my chemotherapy completes, I will continue with science and go for the stirred martini version of just Moderna and Pfizer.

I ask our waiter to stand back as I am on chemo and can’t avoid even a cold; she complied. Mariah and I have beers and a steak salad. The anemia makes lean steak on a salad a medical choice, not to mention it is the best thing on the menu at Gold Valley Brewery(GVB). But, again, a burger is a bit heavy for me.

It was very loud and despite the warm day we were in the bar, forty plus minutes wait for a table outside. The ventationation was running full power and we were a bit cold. But, I never complain about good ventation.

After GVB, I returned to home via Air Volvo. I was fatigued and napped a bit and chatted with the Smiths on the phone a bit. I was in bed and slept well and late again.

I purchased some more Architect of the West Kingdom promo items online. The Keewees apologized on their website for the high shipping costs from New Zealand to the USA; they have not found a low-cost option. I bought multiple copies to give to my fellow gamers as the shipping was $20 alone. This is a birthday present for myself.

My birthday is 16Apr, and all I want for my birthday is to get to that date and get my taxes done. I am working on both.

Aside: Grammarly is having some issues. It often can not make up its mind and loops for every on some style suggestions. It also repeats the same suggestion and I sometimes end up with two comas instead of one. It then, of course, flags that and changes it back. Most of the time it works, but I pay attention to the double coma issue.

I had trouble sleeping, so the morning came unbidden and bright. So did my allergies. Breathing is not optional, and the bright morning drove me from my cozy bed. I took more antihistamine, which brought the sneezing and coughing under control.

I went slow as I had many things to do this morning. I did write the blog (forgetting to include something) and a letter to the Forest Grove Rehab and Care Center. I am trying to have Susie return to their rehabilitation program. I contacted the insurance, and it is allowed; now I just have to have someone make it happen. I also paid for the previous and next week for Susie. No insurance covers this, so I pay about $12,000 a month for primary care for Susie. I would like the insurance to cover a few weeks and cover rehabilitation services. With all the paperwork, I was not dressed until noon.

Evan wanted to come over and visit Susie and see how I was doing. I put him off until noon. I am keeping with my fake-it-to-you-make-it attitude. Mostly pretending that chemotherapy is not that bad and nausea can be ignored. I am also careful not to get my head below my heart as the anemia from the chemo is harsh. I tire very quickly from the anemia and the chemo side effects. Evan showed up at noon.

So Evan and I headed out to Forest Grove at about noon plus 15. We took the new updated version of the board game Architects of the West Kingdoms with us. I have the latest cool roll-out matt and all the new bits from all the add-ons, plus some promo cards from the last Kickstarter for the game, and this includes a large box to hold everything. Garphill games add-ons often improve the game and add new useful features. Other game companies often dilute the game with extra rules and sometimes introduce broken combinations. For example, the makers of the board game Scythe added airships, but I seldom play with them. So I am looking forward to playing all the add-ons and promos all at once and enjoying an improved game. The online reviewers give this combination a high rating. However, we can play only If I can manage it–last time I passed as I was too exhausted.

Without losing any paint on Air Volvo, we make it to the Forest Grove Rehab and Care Center at 3900 Pacific Highway, Room 44A. We witnessed some very relaxed drivers who obviously are assured of their salvation or reincarnation in the next life, making lane changes without regard to their other fellow drivers. The other drivers did manage to break and miss them.

When we got there, Susie was just finishing her lunch. While Susie’s speech is unclear, she is more conversational and smiles and laughs more. Most days, Susie looks better than the day before. With the excellent help of the staff who say they love her (their words), she has surprised everyone with her sudden recovery.

I received word later, but it fits the story better here that Susie is officially leaving hospice on Friday. The paper blob is enormous to do this but is mainly handled by Bristol Hospice nurse Dawn. She will do an exit check of Susie on Friday and contact Susie’s primary care doctor to effectively give Susie back to our doctor’s care. Exciting.

We call Susie’s mother while Evan sits with Susie; she finished lunch after we arrived–eating about 1/2 of it. I then pay the bill for Susie to reside in Forest Grove, over five thousand for two weeks. I then deliver my letter that states our intent for Susie to be accepted into rehab services at the Forest Grove facility when Susie leaves hospice. I talk to all the directors and admin folks so they can understand the intent. I am hopeful this little paperwork miracle is possible to get Susie back to getting rehab.

Evan and then I left Susie for about 90 minutes. We headed to the Grand Lodge, and we had lunch. I had a diet RC cola and the hummus platter. I figure this will more likely stay down over a heavy burger and still supply some protein-based calories. I also eat slowly, but it will be iced tea and not soda next time–diet soda is not welcome to my nausea, even with the cold bubbles. Evan has a pizza and a cocktail.

We return to find Susie in bed resting. She looks tired but is talkative and happy to see us twice on the same day. Finally, Susie starts to yawn, and after the fourth one, Evan and I say our goodbyes. It is always sad to leave, but Susie was happy to nap and see me the next day. So a better ending.

After so many strokes, Susie’s mental condition includes the inability to recognize faces, almost no short-term memory, and some loss of logical thinking, showing signs of dementia. All of this will be helped by more interaction with people and some rehab. While Susie cannot remember that I told her she is getting better and that we are looking at rehab options and moving her closer to home, she knows that things are better, and she is smiling more. While I will have to repeat what is happening to her every day, she remembers not my words but my positive attitude and smile and thus knows that things are better.

Returning to the narrative, Evan and I take an uneventful trip in Air Volvo to the local bar, 649, not far from the house. I am not as tired and nauseated as yesterday and agree to a small beer and a game. I am trying to do more in my days than watch Clone Wars endless episodes. The board game Architects of the West Kingdom takes a few hours, and I try out all the new features of the updated game. We flubbed a few minor rules that would have not changed the outcome. I love the new rules and use them to pull ahead of Evan by 15 points. He was not using the new rules, and I remembered how Richard beat me so many times in Architects of the West Kingdom, so I tried to build combinations that locked together to give me extra scoring at the end of the game. Evan built the top level of the Cathedral and went for maxed-out honor–a good strategy. I have done this plan before, and it prevents you from building the point-building combinations as it takes so many resources, and I have lost even with the 20 points for the top of the Cathedral to Richard and Evan. Instead of using honorable means like Evan, I used the black market and influence to support my less than honorable plans. I also built the wonder from bricks. Lastly, I started with the Thief Apprentice and could raid the tax stand without serious harm. As I said, I won by 15 points.

We put the game away as the 649 was filling up. Steven, our bartender, had a line nearly out the door for drinks, so I just let him close my tab later, and he will add a 20% tip.

We picked up Corwin and headed to Mexican for dinner. I wanted a nice taco and a tamale. We ate fast, and I had just iced tea. We returned home, and Evan headed out. Corwin went to the gym. I stayed home under my heated blanket and watched the next episode of Moon Night. This is the newest Marvel series, and I like it, but it is scarier than their usual fair of inexplicable superpowers. It reminds me of the Hawkeye series I liked in 2021.

I read Maise Dobbs until late, going to bed a bit early. I am still having issues when I stand up too fast, so lying down and reading is comfortable. That is the anemia and problems existing in my inner ear before chemo. I am careful to stop and hold on to something when I forget and get going too fast. I slept with a few interruptions that proved I had lots of iced tea this evening. Only one bad dream, and I slept well after that.

Aside: I watched the movie Cromwell from 1970 two nights ago on my Apple. I wanted to see it as I had watched a great scene on YouTube. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend the movie as it shows all the signs of a Hollywood version of history, but it is pretty and has a zany soundtrack. Alec Guinness and Richard Harris both star in it. I rented it for about $4.

 

Sleep is still hard, but I manage to sleep from 2AM until 8ish, so that is a good night for me. I am finding more side effects to check off. I have pain and stiffness in my knees now. Check!

Years ago, I injured my left leg in a fishing accident where I fell four feet into a brush pile when returning a fish to the water that I had caught. My left knee landed on a broken-off branch and drove wood splinters into the joint. Six months later, a massive infection occurred from the wood and the shards, which did not show up on x-rays (we did not then have the excellent machines we have now that could have identified the wood) and were finally flushed out. Unfortunately, the chemo has caused the memory of the injury to return somewhat strongly in the left knee, but I can control it with ibuprofen.

The news on Susie is unexpectedly good. Susie will likely graduate from hospice on Friday. I am also trying to get the Forest Grove facility to put her back into a short rehab program to start her on her return. Susie is eating and more responsive and has had no new strokes (better living through chemistry!); thus, she is graduating. This means we will start rehab and like services again. I spoke to United Health Care (UHC), my insurance through Nike, and the benefits are available on a calendar basis. Thus, we can do them all again this year.

Aside (rant): UHC will only pay for one rehab service per person per calendar year. While the insurance industry says it does not make medical decisions, you can see that if you were injured twice in one year, you could only have rehab once–that is a medical decision in my mind. I believe that medical insurance should cover what is medically necessary and not based on effectively buying services for only one event a year. The bottom line: I am limited to one emergency a year with UHC; please schedule the unexpected to align with my annual insurance limits. Nonsense. 

UHC made an 8.7% margin in 2021 and earned more than $18 a share; details are here. The compensation for the CEO of UHC, David Wichmann, is reported to be over $17 million.

Glenda Hill, Susie’s aunt, has decided to visit and help me find a new place for Susie if we think that is a good idea, and also allow me to put the house together as now it looks like a bookstore and gaming store exploded. Glenda arrives on 16April2022, my birthday, which is +3 days after the last cycle. That is usually the first day I feel better. 

Returning to the narrative, I started my day with a call from Dawn, the hospice nurse, and she explained how Susie no longer appears to be dying and thus will be discharged soon. This would mean that she will return to the care of Forest Grove and her regular doc. Dawn believes Susie would thrive at a good Adult Foster Care place near the house. Also, in a later call, Dawn agrees that we should restart rehab at Forest Grove when hospice ends. Exciting!

I write a short blog that does not contain this information about Susie as I am still trying to understand it all. I also have to communicate it all to family and friends. As you read, today’s blog contains that update.

I have my last banana and peanut butter toast for breakfast and a salami and cheese sandwich for lunch. Again, nausea is hard to put out of my mind, but I keep going without seeing lunch a second time. I throw on some clothes on and drive Corwin to work. Later, I shower and head out in the mid-afternoon.

I did take my pills and chemotherapy pills at 10AM.

Air Volvo reaches the Forest Grove Rehab and Care Center at 3900 Pacific Highway, Room 44A, without incident and with no alarms.

Susie is up and finished with lunch when I get there. I am exhausted already and sit in the chair next to Susie; Susie is delighted to see me. We call Leta, her mother, and Susie is happy to chat. Next, we call Dr. Peter Koper, who is in Arizona watching birds. I share that Susie is graduating from hospice, and we celebrate that and that I am in my last cycle. After that, Susie is tired and wants to rest. Susie’s roommate, Terry, is back, and I am happy to see her. She is pale and shows the exhaustion of some medical adventures (I can’t share anything on that) and is also excited that Susie is graduating from hospice. Terry helped Susie calm down and rest some nights. Terry helped Susie get better.

I leave as they are getting Susie back in bed to rest before dinner. I drive directly home in Air Volvo and rest for a bit. I cannot sleep despite the fatigue, so I watch more Clone Wars.

I order Indian food using GrubHub. Thank you, Nike and the Smiths in New York City, for the cards. I ordered from Abhiruchi Restaurant and had Chicken Tikka Kabab.

I watched more Clone Wars–it is endless with 22 episodes a season, and I think five seasons. Again, not sure it really is a kid’s show with the darkness.

Aside: I put in sell orders for options and stock to cover the extra expenses for Susie (and to a limited degree myself). I am blessed to still have much of my holdings as I was thinking about retirement. But, I was not expecting to pay what amount to the cost of a trip to Europe every two weeks for Susie’s care, but I believe I can manage it, another thanks to Nike, Inc. for all the good years. Also, my 401K has lost only about 9% this year–my holdings include 29% in bonds, and most equities are in the USA, thus avoiding direct exposure to the war. Susie’s IRA, PAX, shows a 6.3% loss for the year. So far, I can handle the money side of things.

I head to bed and continue to sleep and wake up again, repeatedly, until 2AM and then finally sleep once the chemotherapy I took at 10PM wears down.

 

 

 

Sleep was hard to get, and I started late as I tried to get some extra sleep. So I rolled over a lot. Finally, starting at about 8:30. Oregon weather is the usual rain, sometimes windblown and sideways, and the sun comes out between the rain.

I finished a short blog early and got dressed a bit earlier than usual. I had my regular banana and peanut butter toast with coffee for breakfast and then roast beef and a cold swiss sandwich for lunch.

My phone stopped working. It would drop calls and just be useless. It would, after being restarted, finally notice the inbound calls I missed. It could not make local calls. AT&T had a bad day, but it did not get any news play. After four tries, I contacted Bristol Hospice and told them to let Dawn, our nurse for Susie, know that my phone was not working. The issue cleared in the afternoon.

In the blowing rain, I managed to reach the Forest Grove Rehab and Care Center at 3900 Pacific Highway, Room 44A, without any incident or alarms from Air Volvo. I am now on day 5 of chemotherapy, and the fatigue is hard. The walk from the Air Volvo to the front door of the facility seems four times longer now. Also, my body can’t decide if lunch will be rejected and ejected, but I manage to fake-it-to-you-make-it and ignore nausea, and it fades.

Susie is just finishing lunch when I get there. She had enjoyed about 1/3 of the offering. It is pureed. Dessert is the best, and Susie is now getting ice cream for each meal. Better.

Susie and I watched some videos for a bit. Susie sings “Sing in the Rain” while I put on the classic dance number for her. We do some Fiddler on the Roof songs and then Music Man, “There is Trouble in River City.” I am dizzy again from the anemia and the chemo-based fatigue. Next, we call Leta, which actually works, and Susie and Leta, her mother, chat for a while. I then head out. On the way home, I stop for an ice cream cone at Jim’s in Hillsboro.

Before the ice cream, I had to tour Hillsboro downtown as the main road was closed by what I assume is a fallen tree. The winds are strong enough to have tree branches now on the road. I do get to pass by the redwoods in Hillsboro and they were enjoying the winds and dancing their huge limbs to the storm.

I reach home in Air Volvo without issue. I lie down and rest and awake after 6PM. I slept for three hours or more!

Corwin is making dinner, but Mariah invites me to have dinner. So Corwin will put the dinner away for me. I often eat a small dinner at 10PM as the pills I take then need to be taken with food, so this works out.

I meet Mariah at BJ’s Brewhouse and have a beer and a Southwest Salad. It is a lot for me, and it takes me as long to eat as Mariah, who has a double pork chop with all the sides. I order a small dessert, a small one, a cookie, and a scoop of ice cream. Ice cream is a new fav now that I can eat it again.

Mariah was delayed as the road is still closed in Hillsboro.

I am still losing weight, and the side effects are growing as they should. I will have some hard days to come. I will stay with my fake-it-to-you-make-it approach. Just believe you will not toss your cookies and put it out of your mind.

I also have to be careful not to bring my head below my heart with the anemia and other side effects, plus an existing ear problem; otherwise, I could get into some trouble. That is what tripped the ER trip. So things that fall to the floor stay there until I am sure I am OK to pick them up and remain conscious (literally) of where my head is compared to my heart.

I get home, Corwin is out already lifting weights at a gym, and I try his dinner. It is delicious. I will only take a small bite as nausea requires me to stick to one dinner. I watch Moon Knight, recommended by Cory, and it is spooky and well done–recommended for the first episode. The quality of the writing, special effects, and craziness reminds me of the Hawkeye series. I also watch some more Clone Wars and still am surprised with the darkness of this series. Not sure this is really a kids’ show.

I go to bed; I am stumbling tired now and sleep until about 2AM. I have a few waking dreams and one nightmare before finally sleeping. Finally, I managed to sleep in the dark.