Sorry to hear that, Ed. I do hope things go well with the insurance people. Have a blessed day, friend.

Keep fighting Lone.

**** Cancer.

The hip feels better, so maybe it was just a cramp in there.

I was diagnosed with vascular necrosis in my hip several years ago. I have pain from time to time, but hip replacement is still a long way off AFAICT. I obviously don't know the details of your situation, but I doubt you have a near term problem there. But knowing it's there makes you conscious of every little twinge.

My hip has hurt before in my life, but now like you say, every twinge makes me wonder what is going on. I have avascular necrosis, and there is also vascular necrosis, but don't ask me what the difference is!

Things went well today and I had a good deal of energy. I made a big dinner for family and a friend, which included me making a batch of cooked red cabbage today, and a nice dessert, Danish apple crumb cake. I mowed a few acres between the house and barn, too. I am tired now, but not wiped out. Monday is treatment day, so this energy I am enjoying now will soon be squished like a bug for several days or a week, and only time will tell how long it goes on.

Oops, yeah, I meant avascular.

Sounds like quite a feast.

Continued prayers for you, Ed. God is in your corner.

Avastan, correct?

Man, my stomach won't stop churning either. Sounds like a road crew in there. Had some serious pain the other day, thought it might be a heart attack, went up and had some baby aspirin and went back to bed hoping that if it was, it was going to kill me quick.

Hang in there my Viking brother. At least you've got me sharing this shit with you.

Yep, and I have been off of it for 2 treatments now. I don't have that cement mixer feeling in the guts and I am not as gassy now, but that isn't saying much! When I had the triple mix of chemos, I was like a rhino that ate a 50 lb. sack of pinto beans.

You hang in there, too, and baffle those docs when you go past what they said you have left. My hurdle is next August. If I am alive past then, I am really going to rub their noses in it. Of course, that could jinx me into dying on September 1st. Gah, what a thought... dying during preseason football! The horror!

I'd like to make it through Christmas so I can spend it with my daughter. That will be the back end of the 3 to 6 months they gave my in July. Really wanted to go to Maui during Christmas to go see the Humpbacks, but it's hard to make travel plans when the doc said you won't be able to travel at that time due to being dead.

Hang in there brother.

Here's a little viking metal drinking music for your Saturday night!

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ndu33Uv7Aco" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

You men are amazing. Fight on.

x100000 this!

I wish I had a few of these on hand...

Ed! You're still alive!!

And I expect nothing less from you for the next 30 years

I get to be freed from the infusion pump at 11 am tomorrow, so I will be much more lively after that. I hope my energy level kicks up by Friday.

You gonna' be aight', brotha'!

Kick it's ass!

Ed's a bad ass

I am not feeling so good. Part of it is the 3 or 4 lbs. I lost in ten minutes yesterday when the colon went berserk. I feel like someone hit me across the waist with a broom stick. The other part is stress. My dad had surgery on his back which seems to be a success, but now I have to do even more to look after things. The cleaning people broke a tile in my folks' shower, so I cut a new tile yesterday and caught my mother just before she swallowed a big glob of premixed tile grout. I have no idea why she tried to eat some and when I asked what the hell she was doing, she denied trying to eat any. So, I asked, ummm, then why is it all over your face? She said she didn't know. You know what is great about being 94 years old? NOTHING!

I need a ride to the nearest looney bin where they can put me in a nice, quiet, dark room.

Sorry to hear that you're having a rough time, brother. Thinking of you.

Good vibes sent your way, Ed.

I am at the center once again receiving chemotherapy. I spoke at length with my nurse practitioner and mentioned the pains I was suffering over the weekend, and she checked me over and didn't think anything was too out of the ordinary. I was very concerned with my glucose levels but she told me not to worry about it. I don't want to become diabetic and she said I am not. I will still avoid Krispy Kreme on the way home, though. I mentioned Denmark and when I would go, staying for about 8 weeks and she said to go for it. If I die over there, they can keep my carcass until Chipp and Rod arrive since they know the places I want my ashes to be spread, so I have it all covered. Now to start making my plans and jump on a good airfare.

Denmark awaits!

Hey brother, hope you're feeling better than the last time you posted... make those plans and go enjoy yourself my man

Denmark, I like the sound of it..

Sent from my phone using Tapatalk (so spelling be damned!!!)

I am also looking into a 5 or 6 night side trip to England so I can spend some time pubbing in London, head to the Cotswolds and visit Cheddar so I can find the tangiest, sourest, sharpest of all cheddar on the planet, and maybe a train up to Birmingham to meet a friend I know there and mingle with the Brummies, those northern bastards!

Go feed your inner Viking.

Yessss! He hungers.

**** yeah man! THAT is good news.

And so is this! I was up very late last night due to pains in my shoulder blades. For something to do, I checked my airfares again and Delta/KLM showed up at 455 dollars roundtrip but it had been showing at 1400 and over. I refreshed the browser, rubbed my eyes, checked for any stupid 24 hour plus layovers and found none, so I jumped on it. I was ready to go 1150 on SAS. Now I am going to Minneapolis to Amsterdam to AAlborg and the reverse coming back. I leave KC on 24 April and return 20 June.

My brother is going for 4 to 6 weeks and my nephew, who was never been overseas, will join us for 2 weeks or a bit more if we can talk him into it. I will teach him the finer points of beer drinking since he told me he doesn't like "those heavy beers." I will start him out on Carlsberg and Green Tuborg before moving to ambers and dark beers. Then we will move to the porters and stouts.

Sounds like a blast

Get Down!

You are a traveling GOD!!!

have fun Ed.

The GF and I took that trip last month. Get a fill of the Cotswolds, my regret is the time there was way too short.

My friend, Chipp, is now going for 2 weeks and will make the side trip to England with me, too. It's looking to be a great trip! Now if only I hadn't thrown up the chicken and veggies in Thai peanut sauce I made for dinner. I feel like I lost a fight now. Ugh. I was eating and got about a third of the way through when my stomach leapt three times and I didn't even make it off the couch, but thank God for my tv tray. I hit the kitchen and raaaalfed in the sink about 4 or 5 more times. Damn this chemotherapy.

Ooof. No Bueno.

If there is a plus side, I should be nice and hungry for breakfast.

Breakfast is actually my favorite meal of the day! I LOVE some biscuits & gravy + eggs. Mix it all together.

They have this thing called "the Stretch" at the Broadway Diner in Columbia...Chili and gravy with onions on eggs and hash browns, covered in cheese. It's probably not any easier on ya than the Pad thai...but oh man, it's good.

:D

Hahaha! I've put down a good 150 stretches in my days. I like mine topped with syrup, ranch and ketchup. And only after 2am.

:eek:

Anti-nausea meds are working for me so far...

Ed you're a ****ing champ man. Have fun in Europe

I'm glad you're getting another chance to go. You're an inspiration.

Oh hell no.

Now I need some after reading that lol



X2

Do you need a place to stay in Copenhagen? My cousin has an apartment she AirBnB's there. Awesome news you're feeling better

I won't be in Copenhagen at all this trip, actually. With the unbelievable 1000 dollar drop in the fare on KLM, I am going through Amsterdam instead to Aalborg. Thanks, though!

Rocking the new colored Sabotage reissue right meow...

That is a great album and aren't the songs Hole in the Sky and Symptom of the Universe just heavy as all get out?

In other news, my trip next spring is all set as of this morning. I booked a side trip to London, complete with a hotel, and already have my main trip set. So, it shaped up like this: I leave KC on 24 April and arrive in Aalborg, Denmark on 25 April with my friend Chipp. A few hours later, my brother and nephew will arrive. We will all stay in Aalborg for 6 nights. I am having a big party for my family and friends in the Irish House on 27 April. My nephew has been to a Mexican border town when he was 14, but never across the Pond. I will teach him the finer points of beer appreciation since he made the claim to me that he "doesn't like heavier beers." I'll start him out on Carlsberg and Green Tuborg. On 1 May, we all head north to Løkken. Chipp and I will go to London on 2 May and return on 7 May. Chipp can only stay until 9 May, so he will be going back first. My nephew is staying for 3 weeks and my brother for 6. I will still be in Løkken when he goes home. On 14 June, I will head back to Aalborg for the last days of my trip, flying back to KC on 20 June.

My nurse practitioner told me to go for it and they would work around my trip, so I am not going to worry much about the cancer gaining ground on me while I am off treatments for probably 10 weeks. My body and spirit will be much stronger after the long break and I can renew the battle after my return. As long as I don't die until the last day of my trip, it's all good.

Sounds awesome, bro... so glad you're going back to revive your inner spirit

And it looks like the airfare is going to be $1000 cheaper? holy crap, talk about a discount... more money for beer PBJ

"Hole in the Sky" is probably my favorite late-era Sabbath tune.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOO Heavy.

Glad you are feeling better!

Today marks two years since I had my port replaced. It's working fine and I am grateful that the doctor did such a good job. I can't prove it, but I think my first port was poorly done, which is what led to the infection that nearly killed me. I won't forget the agonizing two months of having the wound packed with hydrafera blue and repacked every couple of days. That was a painful experience that went on and on. I still have a dent in my chest on the right side where the infection ate down about 2 inches.

Glad you're doing better man! Keep fighting.

Keep kicking ass Ed.

Great news, Ed! I love it that you're just getting out there, traveling, and doing your thing, brother.

Godspeed!

What he said^ x1000

You kick ass, Ed!

Mmmm, mmmm! The nurse who just came to check on me while I am getting chemo is hot! She is sandy blonde, very cute face, hourglass figure and she looks great coming and going, and she's fit. If I had Saccopoo's game, I might get me some of that naughty nurse action, too. How does the man do it? Even without his game, if I was 20 years younger and didn't have cancer, I'd have to ask her out for a coffee. I hope she comes back to see how I am doing.

Hit it!

This!!!

In the world of the interwebs all things are possible.

#FakeNews

This year is not shaping up well for a good end. I got a test result back and my CEA, the cancer marker in my blood, has shot up from the mid 200s in October to 427. It was nowhere near that high when I was first diagnosed and told I'd die in ten weeks without treatment. I am not sure what the hell is going on with that. They're going to turn me into a pin cushion over the next week, too, and I don't like all the needles that are going to be jabbed at me. Today, I have to go in for a blood draw (30 miles each way just for that...) and a CT scan Friday, but at least it is at the center on 435 and Nall so much closer to home, and then treatment next Monday.

Prayers for you, my Brother. Stay strong

Sorry to hear about your potential setback. Best of luck with the testing this week.

I got a call on the way home from one of my nurses, but it was not one of those "come back right away!" calls. She said my platelets rose from 84 to 137, but they are still low. 150 is the minimum they want to see. They might put me back on the stuff that gave me a horrid rash on my face last year to try to knock that CEA down, but I hope there is another option. The rash on my face did go away but you can still see some discoloration on my abdomen where it popped out there. That was miserable and I don't care to revisit it.

I feel so tired. Nap time. I just got a message from a dear friend. Her husband found out today he has testicular cancer. A needle biopsy awaits. I'd have to be knocked well out before they took a needle to my bollocks. I feel terrible for the guy.

Prayers all-around. You're a warrior, a WARRIOR I tell ya.

Keep on fighting you strong Viking!

Thinking of you, brother.

Deal with the rash, enjoy the holidays and look forward to your kick ass spring trip.

Hang in there Ed!

Praying friend.

Always praying for the strongest man I know, brother.

I can't recall if I ever posted a pic of myself with the rash, but I looked like an extra from the Walking Dead. The rash burns, itches, and hurts all at the same time. Just turning my head at night on my pillow popped several of the blisters I had and I woke up with blood spots on the case. The first day I go the treatment that ended up giving me that hideous rash, I threw up three different times that day, too. If I get that treatment again, I hope it's after Christmas. I want to enjoy a nice brew on New Years Eve.

Then I just have to survive until April 24th and I am out of here!

You've kicked this cancer's ass back and forth across the pond a couple times now. I know I speak for many here when I say your zest for life is inspiring.We are all 100% in your corner whatever comes next.

Seconded

Thirded...

You've got this Ed. Keep kicking its ass!

This is unusual for me... I can hardly wait for treatment tomorrow. The lymph nodes in my upper abdomen are swollen again, causing constant pain and making me think of a certain scene in the movie "Alien." I've got a lingering cough, little energy, and aches in my back muscles. If they can make that all go away or least calm down some, I will be happy. I can't eat as much as I normally do with those stupid lymph nodes crowding my guts. I made a big pot of chicken soup which is going to last for a third dinner as a result.

So it all comes down to what the results of the CT scan on Friday were before I know what treatment comes next. I hope I can sleep tonight, but if the lymph nodes keep this up, I won't get much at all.