Lots of updates....

I am going to split up the updates. I have a little bit of everything. More problems with my health, bragging rights for my Nicole, and lots of feelings of hope and despair all in a couple of days. So hang on if you like this. I think I will separate them so you can choose to to read them or not based on what you read my blog for.

Health first:

This one will be about my health. Just when things were doing okay and I had a few good weeks too..... bummer. I decided that I was really glad I had all the visitor's when I did because it is going to be a while I think before I am going to be in the visitors mode due to some new developments and schedule changes. First the chemo keeps getting postponed (we are into several weeks delay already and now Monday may be a delay again). It all depends on what Dr. Te wants to do about my drain. We ended up in the E.R. again tonight because my drain wasn't working any more and we called the Dr. on call and he told us to go to the hospital and have it cleaned out. As most of you know (if you followed the early blog) I have a drain tube coming from the lung cavity area on the left side of my chest. We drain the fluid that has been being generated by the cancer into some pressurized bottles and it saves us from having to go to the hospital every couple of days to have it drained. It has been a tremendous blessing to have it as an option and now we are finding out it is really new technology. No one at the ER has any experience with it and they don't stock any parts or anything for it (that the ER people could get their hands on tonight. The doctor (she really tried hard) said as she learned more and more about it, said she was actually amazed that it had worked this well this long...... great news. But it stopped working properly last night. We tried it again this morning and same results. Thus the doctor told us to go to E.R. again. I guess since I really enjoy going to that place so much, I delayed it as long as possible.

We finally went over and signed in at about 4:00 pm. It was the first time that we went into the ER and they didn't rush me right into a room because I looked so bad walking in the door. To sum it up, after much effort on the nurses (and doctors) part they were not able to make the tube that is in my chest work and get cleaned off. We assume that it has gathered a lot of protein "stuff" around the tube inside and has blocked it off. We can get stuff in through the tube but something blocks it from coming out. Weird eh? As we all learned a little more about this tube and drain bottle system we also found out that the company did everything to make sure you had to get all the parts and pieces from them. Apparently it is so new that most of the doctors and nurses there have never seen it or dealt with it, and they don't have all the things they need in the E.R. to deal with problems like we bring them. So now I have wait till Monday for Dr. Te to schedule another operation to replace the tube. Which will probably mean that Chemo could be moved back again (It currently is scheduled for Wed.) Also the surgery on my throat is for sure going to need an update (or follow up tweak). It is almost gone again (my voice) but I am pretty sure it can be fixed better with a little more stuff. Man this week has really taken some interesting twists and turns. (Note: Total time in E.R. to find out I get to come back on Monday?? Only 6 total hours tonight)

Well that is the medical update....... Next I will do the kids update. (Some of you might not want to read on so please do if so only if you choose.

Oh, one funny side note I have to add about my best friend Tim Park.... I told my wife that after the comments I made on the blog about him, the first thing he would say when he say me next (but maybe not in this order) "ARV...." (that is my nickname from him) ..."YOU PICKER"...... and then he would say "I'M GONNA KICK YOUR BUTT". And just to let you know that our friendship is still secure, those were the exact words he used when he stopped back on his way home from Vegas. I told my wife that was what he would say and she laughed so hard she had to stop doing whatever it was she was doing. Tim (or Roy which is our nickname for him) is so predictable..... I mean consistent....ya consistent.....lol. Those of you that know Tim at all, are probably laughing pretty good and nodding your head and saying.... yep...... that's Tim. And now he is really going to "kick my butt"