Make This Weekend Count

Thank you all again for the prayers and well wishes!  I am nearly full strength after Wednesday night's surgery.  I have the green light to take off the dressings and shower later this evening (first since Wednesday morning), so that is exciting.  I am working from home today because I still hobble around a little bit and due to the placement of the stitches (right at the bend in the thigh when you sit down).

As if this isn't more real, next week is when things will really start to ramp up.  I have my benchmarking MRI scheduled for next Wednesday, and my final chemo consult on Thursday.  Now the big question for me is when will we start treatment?  I would imagine it will be very shortly after that, because they want the MRI to be taken as close to the beginning of chemo as possible.  This could mean I might have to enjoy the beginning of the college football season being pumped full of medicine at Crawford Long in Midtown.  I wonder how the tailgating scene is there?  Am I allowed to bring a flask?  Do they have Peachtree TV (the Dawgs will be aired here)?  So many questions..

I have begun reading Lance Armstrong's first book, "It's Not About The Bike", and I must say, I am really enjoying the read.  It is interesting to see how he went from a reckless and cocky young athlete to a very humble and grateful man after his battle with cancer.  While I hope I have never been labeled reckless and cocky, I will attest that cancer is a very humbling experience.  As I talked about in an earlier post, most of us take our good health for granted, so in a way we are cocky regarding our well being.  I have heard from a number of my friends who have taken a greater interest in their body after I shared how I detected my tumor, and I must say, I was really touched to learn that I might have helped friends in some way shape or form. 

Another way this disease humbles you, is it makes you realize that arguments and petty differences between friends are so stupid.  I know I had lost touch with a longtime friend for nearly a year until I made my diagnosis public.  Since then we have caught up and will remain friends for years to come.  There is just no reason to hold grudges or not communicate with friends for silly reasons.  I hope that all of you will think about if there is someone who is/was close to you that isn't so now because of a trivial reason, and then reach back out to them and reconcile.  There are much better ways to spend time than to be bitter or mad towards a good friend.


I hope everyone has a great weekend, and I will hopefully have some decent stories to report on Sunday.  Thank you all for reading, and of course thanks for all the prayers and support!

Michael