Wrapping Up the Week with Hockey and the Clinic

Welcome to Saturday also known as International Women's Day. Of course, realistically, every day is a woman's day to make of as she needs or wishes. But, it's nice to be "official" for one day a year - LOL. It's cool but not freezing cold, and we're going to be warm by the end of the day and have a warm Sunday too. It'll be good to melt Wednesday/Thursday's snowfall down a bit. That storm dumped a lot over us here in the Cities. 

Not my photo nor my area of the country, but 
isn't it simply beautiful? I adore the snow, but 
I'm not a fan of shoveling it or having DH pull 
it down from the roof. That's a LOT of work. 
Fortunately, we're getting nice, warm weather 
now, and it's melting quickly. 

Yesterday's appointments at the cancer center went REALLY well. They did another ultrasound to see if my underarm had accumulated any additional infection that needed to be drained, but it was clear and solid and the swelling will go down over time. Doc Emily was very pleased, and I was too. I was getting really tired of getting punctured with large-bore needles, even though I was always numbed beforehand with lydocaine (not my favorite thing at all). But I'm now cleared for Radiation Therapy, which starts on Wednesday morning. I'll also meet with the Chemotherapy doctor on Friday to get a feel for what will be expected when I move on to that treatment. 

All I can find out about Radiation Therapy is that it will 
leave me drained and exhausted. Well, I'll have to 
figure out a way to work with that because I still 
have a business to run and I can't stay home every 
day, even if I'm tired. 

The finals of the MN State High School Hockey Tournament take place today, with Stillwater Area vs Moorhead in the 2A game and Class 1A will pit East Grand Forks against St Cloud Cathedral. It's been a great tournament up to this point - some incredible goals and some incredible saves with lots of great skating from the boys. Fun to watch, as always. 

There's nothing quite like the MN State High School 
Hockey Tournament and I look forward to the games 
every year. 

Driving into the parking lot for the hospital yesterday, I was questioned about why I was parking there by a hired guard. They were scrupulous about keeping their lots for patients only, not people wanting to park and walk to the hockey games in the Xcel Arena nearby. I was rather glad to see that they were screening the cars. I was early for my appointment by almost an hour, but they had a quick opening in ultrasound, so I got called back almost immediately, and was dusted and done before 11:00 am. Totally wonderful - I was able to go home and get a bit of sleep. 

It hadn't occurred to me that people might park in the 
hospital's two ramps to attend the hockey games, but 
it made sense. The hospital is actually fairly close to the 
Xcel Center, certainly an easy walk if the weather is 
decent. 

So, I hope you have a wonderful Saturday. I'm going to the shop today and I'm quite sure I'll have a stack of computer work just waiting for me. LOL I hope you have a great weekend and I'll be back on Monday. Slava Ukraini. 

There's Nothing Like the MN State Boys High School Hockey Tournament

The Boys High School State Championship games are in full swing and they've been great to watch. They might not have the speed that the pros have, but they are awesome, and several will go on to play on college and sometimes also professional teams as they progress. It's dynamic, the audiences are packed and loud, and generally, it's what ice hockey is all about. 

People don't quite understand what a HUGE deal the 
MN State Boys Hockey Tournament truly is. This is the 
Xcel Center - it's where our professional hockey team 
(the MN Wild) play. It's packed to the rafters for a high 
school sporting event. There are scouts from colleges and 
professional teams in that audience, celebrities of various 
kinds, and the games are televised and extensively watched 
throughout the state and nation. It's BIG! 

I'm back at the Breast Center today for three appointments, all to make sure this infection under my arm is either conquered or taken one step closer to being complete. I think things actually look pretty good today, and maybe I won't have to be poked any more, but it's really not up to me. The weekend is coming up, and that's two full days without any clinic appointments or doctors. Being healthy enough so that I don't have to be at the clinic on Monday morning in pain ... highly recommended. LOL

If everything goes well this morning, I'll be out of 
here before noon and able to have a nice, relaxed 
afternoon. What to do with my time? Maybe work 
out on the treadmill, or maybe just some light 
housecleaning. Or ... maybe BOTH! Living on the 
wild side, that's me! LOL

I gave Chickie the day off yesterday. She's been working a lot of extra days to make up when I couldn't be there, and we actually had a day open for her to grab. If she hadn't brought the store keys home with her by accident the night before, I could have just texted her to stay home. As it was, she had to come in and give me the keys. She's now written a large note for the back door to remind her to leave the keys since this is the second time in less than 1-1/2 weeks that she's done this. 

Radiation therapy starts on Wednesday if everything 
checks out OK today. I'm looking forward to that next 
step, and hoping it won't wipe me out too much. I know 
that it is cumulative, and exhaustion is often mentioned 
as a "side effect". 

So, I'm planning on taking things easy today, at least as much as possible. I have plenty of food already made, so I don't need to cook or shop. I'm just going to be a slug today (and maybe hit the treadmill later today because I really miss it!). Have a wonderful Friday and I'll be back to wrap the week up tomorrow morning. Slava Ukraini. 

Scheduling, Messaging, Communication and Hockey - LOL

I had a rather annoyed message on my phone late yesterday. Apparently the nurse associated with Dr Emily (the doc who has been treating me post-surgically) had been attempting to contact me to schedule yet another underarm procedure. Frankly, I'm a bit bewildered, so I'll be contacting Dr Emily this morning for further explanations. The last aspiration we did earlier in the week was quite successful, but the procedure isn't something I want to keep coming back for again and again, and it's going to start bumping against my radiation therapy again too, which has already been pushed back a week once. 

The dance of healing is a complex dance with many 
different parts and partners. I'm trying my best to 
wend my way through carefully, but if I don't need 
a procedure, I'd rather avoid it. So, I'll try to reach 
my doc today for more explanation. 

It's a complex dance between departments, treatments, and one patient of hundreds. I can understand how and why things might be missed or overlooked, which is why I'm totally keeping on top of it to the best of my ability. Every morning I go onto the electronic chart and print out my appointments. Right now I have Dr Emily scheduled for tomorrow morning and yes, supposedly it is for another breast aspersion. But I just had one on Tuesday, so I'm confused as to why I would need a second one in three days. I'll be calling her office today for more information. Otherwise, I'd just have an office visit and catch-up with Dr Emily instead, which seems more sensible to me at this time. 

I like Dr Emily, she's been awesome, but I 
think we're duplicating a procedure here 
that doesn't need to be done two times in 
three days. 

DH is all about setting up appointments with an attorney at the Brokerage that we use. That's also important. We haven't really done much about end-of-life arrangements or dispersal of assets, and that needs to be codified and official. There's nothing like a life-threatening disease to get DH off his ass and into gear. And, of course, as soon as he gets an idea into his head, it's "Full Steam Ahead, Katie Bar the Door". Everything had to be done as of yesterday ... SO not going to happen - LOL. But I did go into my accounts and get the amounts I have it each one so that I can flesh out ideas on where I want my funds to be put if I die. It's a good idea to have these things legal and official. 

When we first moved up here, I was working for minimum 
wage as a clerk for the Hamline Law School, and DH was 
beginning work with his Dad in his Dad's business. Fortunately 
that job paid well. We lived in his Grandmother's home - she 
had been put into an extended care facility. So we were rent-free, 
but we also arranged to purchase the house over ten years. We've 
come a LONG way since those tentative beginnings. 

Finally Aearwen and I had a chance for our weekly chat. It's been what seems like FOREVER since we were last able to catch up a bit. We've been chatting every week for years now, though, and we understand that if something comes up - like my cancer stuff - we'll just pick up from where we left off when we chat the next time. I always look forward to these conversations. They're easy-going, life from the other side chats, nothing earthshaking, just catching up with each other and our lives, ideas, values and goals. It was wonderful to hear her again, instead of just exchanging emails stating schedule conflicts - LOL. 

This is SO true. In this day and age of cell phones and 
instant communication, friends are indeed right there, if 
needed. I'm blessed with wonderful friends throughout 
the world and they brighten my darkest days by just 
being small rays of sunshine - so needed and necessary. 

So, have an excellent day ahead of you. I'm going to try and have a "normal" day to the best of my ability. I'm going to work, I'll work for the day, I'll come home, re-heat dinner, and relax in front of the TV. The Boys High School State Hockey Tournament is now on - some of the best hockey of the year. We'll be glued to the TV for the rest of the week, watching whatever games we can catch. It's always excellent to watch, and some of these kids will be the stars of the future in professional leagues. Have a great Thursday, I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Post 5000!, Ants and the State High School Hockey Tournament

It's Post 5000 today! I'm absolutely amazed at that - I never was one to keep a diary, but I keep posting on my on-line blog, day after day, year after year. It's not always lengthy, and often there's nothing much to say, but somehow when I sit at the keyboard in the early morning hours, words flow and another post is made. I should have checked the date of my first post, but that would take quite a lot of digging. Still, it's worked into a nice routine for me - a way to sweep out the cobwebs of my mind and share with friends both near and far. Thanks for coming along with me on this journey. Now to start the next 5000 steps - LOL. 

Thanks for bearing with me through my 
many posts over the years. I think a few of 
you might have been with me from the 
beginning, others having joined later. No 
matter when, no matter who, you're welcome. 
Thank You! 

We're deep into the Boy's High School Hockey Tournament and we've broken attendance records. Now ... keep in mind that this is HIGH SCHOOL sports. They usually pull in parents, maybe a few friends, but not much else. Except this tournament, which has been held for more than 60 years, pulls in fans, scouts, and even Sports Illustrated (who updates their feed hourly during games), It's even televised, and I always have it on while the Tournament is running. 

Remember from a couple of weeks ago when I pointed out 
empty seats in the Xcel Center and promised there wouldn't 
be any for the State High School Hockey Tournament? 
Well, here's proof. This is from the first day of the games, 
and look around. Not an empty seat in the arena. That's 
the Boy's State High School Hockey Tournament. 

So, we set an attendance record yesterday for the quarter-finals. We had 19,765 people for the two afternoon games, and 20,208 people for the night games. That's more than 40,000 people total for a High School event! This is why it's such a Huge Deal for us, and for a rarity, we don't have a snowstorm to contend with and the temperatures are absolutely mild. We can usually count on snow for the tournament, but not now, in the Winter that Nature Forgot. 

So, we had ants similar to this in our pantry. We cleaned and 
cleaned, packaged and repackaged, and I hope we got them 
all. I had three ants this morning - two on separate shelves 
and one on the wall. We'll keep a sharp eye out for these 
critters. 

I had the tournament on in the background at the shop, of course, and came home to find DH watching it at home. Then ... major shift. DH put his soup into the bowl, opened a new package of crackers and added them to his soup. DROWNING ANTS!!! Probably more than 50 of those tiny ants that love to haunt pantries were in his SEALED package of crackers and dying a boiling death in his hot soup. Of course, the soup was toast, the crackers immediately went into the garbage, and DH started an ant hunt. 

We're on the hunt now. We're determined to keep this 
under control - ants outside, people inside. I'm glad 
we don't have pets - it could have been much worse if 
they had been trotted around to other parts of the house. 

We pulled everything off shelves, pulled all of the items on the floor out. We tossed out food items that probably should have been tossed earlier by their dates, we cleaned, and cleaned and cleaned. The pantry is a walk-in pantry, but really, only one person at a time can fit in there, so while DH cleaned, I quickly ate my dinner. Then I unfolded boxes, cleaned like crazy, and he finally relented and sprayed along the base board throughout the pantry. I found a few stragglers last night (less than xix), and three very slow stragglers this morning, but I think we got this nailed. We might pull everything out again on Sunday for a second deep cleaning, but The Great Ant Purge was successful. Now to make sure to keep it that way. We still can't figure out how ants could have gotten into a sealed pack of crackers, but maybe it was good that they did. It could have been even worse. 

The best thing about Lent is baked/broiled salmon on 
Friday nights for dinner. I adore it, and it's so easy 
to make. It's one of my favorite meals of the week. 

So, today's a "Day Off" and I'm making "Ogre Juice" and then I have a lovely piece of salmon for my dinner. It's the best part of Lent - salmon for dinner on Friday nights. We have an appointment with our accountant on Wednesday night, so I'd better make sure I'm totally ready with all of the tax stuff too. That's on this weekend's agenda. I think I have everything, but I'll have to double-check. So, on that note, I'm calling this done and dusted. I'll be back tomorrow, for the final day of the State High School Hockey Tournament. Such fun! Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.