Merry Christmas!

Hello everyone—that is, if anyone is still reading—and Season's Greetings (what a ridiculously meaningless phrase, no?) to everyone! I'm sorry it's been so long (15 days!) since I've posted any information about myself, but that's really because there hasn't been much new to tell. Mostly I've been doing my typical Christmas season stuff, which means sewing mittens and knitting hats, some of them even for other people, and baking cookies, and generally keeping myself busy way too many hours for someone with no job who's not on chemo, let alone someone who is on chemo.

It finally caught up with me a little bit last Monday when I woke up feeling pretty sick to my stomach. I took a Compazine and went back to sleep and got up at 11:00, when I thought I was feeling somewhat better so I ate two pieces of excellent banana-oat-blueberry bread that I'd just made the night before. They stayed with me until about 1:00pm, then forcibly ejected themselves from my body. I went back to bed. I slept off and on all day, had some ginger ale around 6:00pm, threw up again at 7:00pm, then watched a movie and went back to bed for good. I had a slight fever at the height of it—about 99.6.

Tuesday was to have been my infusion day, but it seemed like a bad idea to bring my bugs into the clinic, and also to add poisons to a system already taxed, so it was postponed (I had hoped to be able to skip it entirely, but no go). I felt pretty good though—no stomach pain, although I still didn't want to eat much—so I continued the last bits of frenetic activity I wanted to finish before the next day, then went to a party in West Seattle with Ian and several dear friends.

Wednesday morning, Christmas Eve, the day we were celebrating with my family, I woke up—not surprisingly—feeling a bit ill again. I soldiered through, though with the help of the stronger anti-nausea Zofran, and Ian and I prepared a breakfast quiche (lamb sausage, sharp cheddar, sautéed mushrooms and green onions), fruit salad, and eggnog lattes, and ate only about two hours after we'd intended. Mom and Marsh actually drove in from Hobart; when they finally made it home around 9:00 or so that night, they called and told us it had snowed another 10 inches while they were away! We had a few extra family members over for dinner, including Cousin S (lamb, potatoes, salad, Brussels sprouts, pecan pie, lemon chiffon pie). Mom and Marsh made it up their driveway after only about twenty minutes of digging.

Thursday morning, Christmas Day, the day we were celebrating with Ian's family, I woke up feeling much better. We served them French toast and bacon, and more of the cinnamon rolls Mom had brought the day before, as well as a fruit salad and eggnog lattes and mimosas, and I was actually able to eat a reasonable portion.

This morning I felt like one of those people who had to go to work at 8:00am, when my alarm went off in the dark and I hurried off to the clinic. I got 500ml of extra saline today because I'd been sick, and I do think it helped. It was certainly obvious that I needed it when, in the four hours I was there, I only piddled once.

In weather news, we've loved the recent snowfalls. The 4-Runner is an excellent, excellent snow beast, so if we wanted to go somewhere we could. If we didn't, however, the weather offered a perfect excuse. I felt worse and worse as the days progressed for all those people who really did need to be somewhere and really couldn't make it. But still—snow! On several days in a row! In the middle of the city! I loved it.

I really can't believe 2008 is already winding down. It's certainly been a momentous year for me in a lot of ways . . . and pleasingly calm for many of the same reasons. I certainly feel that I learn more about life with every breath. Be gentle with yourself, and be gentle with others. And ask for what you want—that's the only way for the universe to know.