Sunday, July 31, 2011

I can't believe that I didn't post my great news here!   I saw Dr. McCourt almost two weeks ago and she reported that my CA 125 is back down to nine and my CT scan report was about a paragraph long.  Not only that, but I "graduated"...now I only have to go for blood work and CT scans every six months instead of every three.  That was such a RELIEF and such great news. 

I was just about hyperventilating as I was driving down to the appointment.  Can't believe how anxious I was.  Even playing Srabble on the iPhone in the waiting room didn't do much to calm me down.  Now I can't believe that I let myself waste the last two months worrying about stuff that turned out to be nothing.  I'll pledge to not do that again, but I guess I just can't help it.

There is something to worry about and that is my blood.  I got my test results from Dr. Valin and it showed that I am back to being anemic again.  And some of my other blood counts, white and red cells, are low too.  So there is a reason why I have been dragging around again....I thought it was the cancer but it's not.  Hopefully, by doubling up on my iron pills and increasing my green leafy vegetable intake yet again, I can kick the anemia.

The day after my good check-up I went online and signed up for that trip to Costa Rica.  Then I called Charmine and Pat to let them know...turns out they hadn't signed up yet!  They have signed up now and their friends have too...so we are all good to go.  Charmine is scouting for the best air fares for us and I have every confidence that she will get us a decent deal. 

Now I have to work on a wardrobe that can pack in one small bag.  I'm not schlepping a bunch of luggage around Costa Rica!  I hope to have two pairs of zip-off pants, two tropic weight shirts (with SPF protection) and a light weight jacket.  Maybe my rain jacket too.  Then a couple pairs of shoes, a pair of sandals, hat, and my socks and undies...that's it.  I always over pack.  This time I refuse to do so.

It's my birthday this week and I'm getting myself a new camcorder...a HD one that is small, has memory sticks and can download movies to my computer for editing/copying.  I'm checking out the web sites for Sonys and Canons.  I have to make sure they are compatible with the Mac.  Don't want to screw that up!

Sandy and I drove up (well, Sandy drove) to Berwick Me yesterday, with Truman tagging along.  We went to Seacoast Dog Diving to check out what it's like.  We think Rocky would enjoy this activity.  The way he throws himself off the little "docks" we have in the swimming pool makes us think that he might be pretty good at dock diving.  If he can only get past all the "socializing" he feels he has to do, going to visit people around the area.

We didn't bring Rocket with us because we didn't know the lay-out of the place and how he would react.  Truman watched the other dogs jumping and quickly figured out what was going on...he was pulling Sandy to go around back to get in line with the other dogs and their handlers!  Smart guy!  He wanted that toy.  We doubt that he would actually jump if he got up to the edge of the pool...he'd probably stand there and bark at the toy in the water.

Rocky on the other hand, loves to jump!   We will see.

We also scouted out two campgrounds nearby to see if we could find a nice place to put the RV when we go up there again.  We did find a very nice one and plan to return there to camp.  We scouted out another one that was down a long, bumpy, pot-hole filled dirt road through the pines.  When we got to the campgrounds I went to the office, which we approached with some trepidation.  The whole place looked rather run-down and in need of serious repairs.  They had a pool area attached to the office.  It was enclosed but there was a huge green tarp over the roof, duct-taped together.  It looks like there was a storm and it had blown part of the tin roof away.

The stuff inside the office was ancient...those old camp stickers with the Indian-chief-wearing-a-headress kind of things....selling for a dime.  Who sells stuff for a dime nowadays?   There was an older couple in there, registering to stay for four days.  They revealed themselves as the owners of the converted Hostess Bread Truck, with the orange paint barely concealing the logo of the little girl eating the cupcake on the side. 

They were from South Carolina, she said, "Santee" and when I shared that I had lived in South Carolina, having been stationed at FT. Jackson, Columbia, she said, "the further south you go, the better off you are."  OKAAAAAAYYYY.....

Sandy told me a guy sitting at a campsite had insulted Truman, calling him "fat"...Sandy told him that Truman had gotten into the cat's food and had gained a couple of pounds.  The guy said that it looked like "he wants to eat cats."  HUH?   Sandy said, "well, he did attack a fisher cat" and the guy fell silent.  Later he commented that Truman looked like a vicious dog...Sandy told him, "yes he is."  And that's the last we heard from that guy.

We drove back through the ruts and pot holes to the main road and agreed that the other campground was more our speed. 

Now we are planning another trip back up to Berwick on the 14th, bringing Rocky to practice and see how he handles all the activity.  We will be driving the three hours up, spending a couple of hours and driving the three hours back.  Yesterday it took longer because we got caught in beach traffic on I-95.  Hopefully it won't take as long next time! 

And to think Jack used to drive from Ogunquit to Gampel Pavilion to see a game, turn around and drive back to Ogunquit in time for work!  And he did that for EVERY home game!   I realize even more what a huge fan he is.

All that riding made me sleepy and I'm still feeling it today.  Think I'll see if the Sox are on...I have to go to the Sun game tonight to cover it for sportspage.  I have a couple of hours before I have to get going.  Might as well watch some baseball.

Later!