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Category Archives: Experiences

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A roller coaster week

The PolyBlog
February 12 2023

Why am I blogging at 3 in the morning on a late Saturday night / early Sunday morning? Because blogging often helps me organize my thoughts and get them “out of my head” so I can focus on other things. It’s not a long post, don’t worry. The last month has been interesting for progress and pauses on progress on various projects, so maybe it’s more that the month has been a roller coaster and this week just accentuated the variability. I’ll talk more about the month later, but this week was enough on it’s own.

I started off sick. The previous week, I seemed to be fighting something. I had a bit of a scratchy throat at times, a bit of a headache, I was more tired than usual, often sleeping after supper, even though my stomach and other stuff seemed fine. I wasn’t sure what it was as I generally felt “okay”, but the sleep was more unusual in style/form than incidence.

Friday afternoon, I started to crash and all weekend I was sick. The only thing that helped was sleeping. Some bit of flu, no COVID result, all good. I was off Monday and Tuesday from work, which was part of the coaster ride, trying to keep some big projects going that my team is leading, while trying to make sure that my being off wasn’t going to delay them. I worked a couple of hours each day, but was otherwise down for the count.

On Wednesday, I was back to work and we had some good news to celebrate at home. Andrea’s latest bone marrow results are in, and while there are three elements for her type of cancer to indicate “status”, she previously had already passed two of them with flying colours. The last test / element was to see if her bone marrow was cancer-free or not. TBH, most of the time, people with her type of cancer do NOT get an “all clear” sign for this element. There’s almost always SOME residual signs of the cancer in the bone marrow. Andrea’s results? All clear. Which means three green lights = full remission. We were expecting “ALMOST full remission”, but there was no caveat on the results. She hasn’t heard “FULL” from her doctor yet, but as her sister said, “Be the unicorn!”. The one that gets a full remission diagnosis. She still has some pills to take as part of the protocol, and three more tests in the next five months, but then she’s “done” everything for now with the hope of a very long wait to potentially have to have another round when it comes back. We’d like to dream “IF it comes back”, but well, that’s not a realistic dream for this type of cancer. It is generally “ALMOST always” coming back at some point, anywhere from 3 to 10+ years. We’re obviously hoping for a new record. Go Unicorn, go!

Unfortunately, our excitement was tempered by the news that Andrea’s aunt had been taken to the hospital with abdominal pain that ended up being quite serious. Extreme surgery later, she was in an ICU; more complications, back to surgery, back to ICU. And then the reality that she was not going to recover from this experience. She passed away on Thursday around lunch our time. We did not see that one coming. She was 73, and far too young for us to lose her. I know, cuz my dad was only 69 when he passed. Hey! There’s a thought! Maybe her and my Dad can play some card games. That would be a hoot. 🙂

And just for fun, I’m still sick, Andrea has gone off to Peterborough for the night, there’s other stuff going on around us in the family for nursing homes and things, we had a leak in our dishwasher that dripped into our basement onto the freshly patched drywall area we just had done, we’re planning for a large bathroom renovation project, etc.

Not my favorite week by a long shot. And I keep expecting to break a rib every time I cough. I don’t even REMEMBER buying a ticket for the roller coaster, I don’t even like rides. How’s your week been?

Posted in Experiences | Leave a reply

Not sure Darwin awards should apply to freak storms

The PolyBlog
May 22 2022

Ottawa was part of a big storm that swept through the area yesterday. Lots of property damage and five people died. One was killed in a trailer when a tree fell on it, two more were killed while out walking and got hit by trees, and then there were two that people are claiming were obvious morons and hence worthy of a Darwin Award. I’m not so sure I would cast a vote for them for such an award. The logic seems almost unassailable at first blush. The risk of thunderstorms was forecast, and then in late afternoon, an emergency … Continue reading →

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Simple medical appointment, complex reaction

The PolyBlog
May 22 2021

I have diabetic issues, which is a fancy way of saying that my bloodwork bounces around between not-diabetic, pre-diabetic, and diabetic. I have trouble saying I’m diabetic at times because I feel like a bit of an imposter saying it. Like I’m over-claiming my issues. But what it means is that I should be doing regular bloodwork to check my A1C numbers. When COVID hit, I was a bit behind on my bloodwork and was due for a new “update”, partly as the resident doctor I was normally dealing with at the family centre was no longer available, and I’d … Continue reading →

Posted in Experiences | Tagged bloodwork, Covid, health, stress, tests | Leave a reply

Posting when you don’t feel like posting

The PolyBlog
February 16 2021

My blog is often my creative outlet, a way of making sense of the world. Taking an issue, wrestling with the details, framing it a certain way, putting a personal stamp on it. It is also stress relief. I talk through some of the things that are bothering me, a monologue with myself that I share publicly. Sometimes they provoke reactions, likes on FB or a comment or two. Many times they don’t. While I would love to have thousands of people hanging on my every written word, I write most of the time for me. A diary of sorts. … Continue reading →

Posted in Experiences | Tagged experiences, goals, life, mental health, peace | Leave a reply

Two steps forward, one step back

The PolyBlog
February 13 2021

I’ve posted already about trying to wrap my head around likely wearing compression socks for the rest of my life, etc., but quite frankly, I’m doing more “compartmentalization” of it than anything. I need to get through wound care first. On the positive side, things seem to have “clarified” as to what was going on with the leg. As I mentioned previously, the area that is affected is an area with a bunch of scars from when I was a kid. Whenever I skinned my knee or scraped a shin, it was likely that leg. I lead with it, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Experiences | Tagged health, mental | Leave a reply

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My Latest Posts

  • I’m afraid of the impact of whiningMarch 22, 2023
    I try to be open to other people’s views, particularly if it is diversity-related or age-related perspectives. I don’t always share their views, but I try to understand them and be open to the insights they provide, use them to better my own thoughts and actions. That isn’t some altruistic endeavour or that I’m a … Continue reading →
  • A roller coaster weekFebruary 12, 2023
    Why am I blogging at 3 in the morning on a late Saturday night / early Sunday morning? Because blogging often helps me organize my thoughts and get them “out of my head” so I can focus on other things. It’s not a long post, don’t worry. The last month has been interesting for progress … Continue reading →
  • Deadlines, dominoes, and delaysJanuary 30, 2023
    As most people who have read this blog from time to time already know, I’m big on time management techniques, various options for to-do lists and tracking tasks. I like to set ambitious annual goals, and then monitor them throughout the year. Some years turn out better than others. Whereas many people set resolutions and … Continue reading →
  • Curated: We Need To Talk About Professional Jealousy – Electric LiteratureJanuary 20, 2023
    I occasionally like to share online articles that I like, and you’ll see sporadic posts entitled “Articles I Like” throughout the blog. But honestly, Curated is probably a more accurate title. I recently found an article by Benjamin Schaefer on the website Electric Literature, although I was led there by ThePassiveVoice website. The article is … Continue reading →
  • Schrodinger’s computer purge (part 1 / 3)January 15, 2023
    So, I’m a techno-wannabe-geek with elements of hoarding in my DNA. I find it hard to dispose of working computer parts, long after I’ve outgrown the need for them. Some “saves” are practical and some are not. And like Schrodinger’s cat, my computer purge is both real and theoretical at the same time. A. Network … Continue reading →

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