Back and forth

I haven’t quite gotten back to my regular blogging schedule yet…so now I’ve got to play some more catch-up.

The photo gallery has some bits and pieces from the past week and a half. Prior to my departure from Bethesda and Miss Sally’s fine company, the two of us made a quick stop at the local merry go round before touring Hillwood, the over the top home of Marjorie Merriweather Post. I left feeling refreshed and confident that my own acquisitiveness was indeed of the minor sort (who needs more than one Faberge egg?).

I bade a breathless farewell to Sal at the airport, as we’d been mightily delayed by traffic. I fretted through security and ran to my gate only to discover that my flight had been delayed. I made the best of the situation and enjoyed a Maryland crab cake (not quite as good as the one Brian brought, but almost…). And then a funny thing happened.

David was flying out to Austin that evening, and had a layover in
Baltimore. As it turned out, my departure was pushed back even further and I got to hang out with my my husband in the airport for an hour; a lovely surprise.

The fourth of July weekend was primarily devoted to housekeeping, as we did the final sweep of our previous home. It wasn’t only work though, as we enjoyed a cold summer picnic at Mary and Raleigh’s. On Monday we attended the annual Independence Day parade in Amherst. Clowns, kittens, antique cars, children from the village on decorated bikes, floats, jugglers, karate demonstrations and politicians…Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsmen were each in attendance shaking hands all around (though not ‘one of their people’, I shook em both). It was something.

After the parade we cooled off with a swim. The boys have decided that Buddy, our very hairy golden retriever, is not to be denied access to the pool. I am of two minds regarding this; but I must say our dog has never been cleaner. Or happier.

That evening a neighbor put on an impressive display of fireworks (legal in Hew Hampshire, the live free or die state), which the boys viewed from an adjacent pasture. Exhausted, I was content with the audio version and an occasional glimpse through the trees. Besides, the yard was alive with fireflies, and as much as I like fireworks (a lot), they don’t hold a candle to the magic of phosphorescence.

I had my two month scan on Wednesday, and Thursday night a wonderful long distance conversation with a friend from New Zealand, Sarah. She is a poet, (I will include one of her poems in an upcoming blog) a mother of three young children and a three year survivor of stage four lung cancer. Sarah was an early participant (before myself) in the crizotinib trial and I am inspired by both her bravery and her resilience (as well as the fact that her way with words is breathtaking).

Tonight David and I will attend a fundraiser for lung cancer at the home of Diane Legg and her husband. Diane is yet another amazing woman; more than six years out since her diagnosis she is the busy mother of three boys but also a relentless advocate who never misses an opportunity to raise awareness regarding our disease. Just one of my heroes.

So that brings us up to speed–on Tuesday I will get the results from the latest scan and perhaps a better understanding as to how my cancer is progressing. If my cough is any indication, I would say there has indeed been ‘progress’.  I’ll keep you posted…