Week 4 - It's Breast Cancer

Yes, breast cancer but stage 1 and just a 3mm (1/12 of an inch) cluster of cells. After a bit of surgery and radiation, the oncologist says I'll be 100% cured. I'm going to hold her to that.

The start of the week was lovely with and I spent time avoiding TV, which meant lot of knitting, streaming and yarny things. Wednesday was a Lincoln day and I had a nice lunch with my work peeps, thrifted and ran errands but was home in time for tea and reading in the sun. Then the phone rang Thursday morning at 8:10.

It was my doctor, who has never called me in all the years I've been her patient so I know it was bad. They'd found cancer in the biopsied samples and within hours I had an appointment for the next day with an oncologist in Lincoln. Helen went with me and the doctor was lovely. She explained that they'd take out the cells and a few lymph nodes then a month after that I'd start radiation and would take hormone blockers. She really did use the words "100% cured" so I left feeling pretty positive. They set up an MRI and an appointment with a surgeon then Helen and I left for a yummy lunch at Copal. After a quick stop for kitty litter, I headed home so I could get busy.

Anne, Rene and I were leaving for Palm Springs first thing Monday so I had things to do. I ran errands in Wahoo on Saturday then got busy with laundry, packing and changing litter boxes, interspersed with lots of reading and talking to friends and family to tell them my news. I did some knitting and crocheting (!) too, finishing my January challenge socks too. Aren't they fun? The bright colors were a new year's gift from my friend Lori at the start of 2024.

By the end of the day Sunday, I was ready to go and was looking forward to a week in the sun not focused on cancer. I was bolstered by my oncologist's words (there's something I never thought I'd say - "my oncologist") and would deal with next steps after enjoying a week of fun with friends.

Week 3 - Fun vs. Biopsy

It started out as a quiet winter week, which works for me, but got busy later. I got some stuff done in the house and got out of town 3 days before the cold set in on Sunday. And a biopsy - no biggie.

I made some progress in the laundry room, finally getting the culled Christmas stuff back under the stairs where it belongs rather than in middle of the room where it's been for years. With all that put away, I went through the totes that weren't Christmas related, which were mostly ebay linens that I moved into the the ebay room. There was a tote of pictures from my mother's trips with the church group over the years. Since she took the pictures and so isn't in them, can I throw them out? Time to check in with my sisters.

In clearing out the laundry room mode, I brought up all my amaryllis bulbs that I'd put down there in the fall. I gave them a little love and put them in front of my slider so hopefully will have some flowers soon.

Between all this laundry room work, I did a bunch of cooking. I made my cousin's apricot jello mold (took that to knitting), Lacey's sausage/potato soup and cheddar biscuits. Most of these last 2 and a small container of the jello mold went to Darla, whose husband broke his leg and is awaiting surgery. 

Darla's office was my first stop on Wednesday when I went to Lincoln for lunch with Dodie. Afterwards I went into the office to visit but the accountants were leaving so I had a long catch up with Layton, which was nice and killed time until meeting Rene and Anne at Granite City for Rene's birthday dinner, which was my 2nd yummy meal of the day. I had a nutrition program at the hospital at 6:00 and when I realized I'd be there super early, I opted to park at the Danish cemetery that's on my way home and knit while the sun set. How pretty is this! I can't say I learned much that I didn't know about nutrition and I took the boxed lunch they provided home to eat later. It was a long but fun day.

There was more fun in store on Thursday. Anne is a big fan of cone yarn and after both of us having failed to hear back repeatedly from a woman in Fremont who had some, I'd found someone else and we were meeting her in way north Omaha to buy some. We started with breakfast at a new to me place I'd seen on Facebook - AJ's Cafe. They're known for their pancakes and they were huge and delish. We then met the woman only to find out that she'd bought all the yarn from the woman in Fremont, who had repeatedly not responded to her too but finally did. What are the chances? Anne bought a bunch and I bought a few too (why?) plus some non-cone acrylic for my sister. I was back home in time to eat my boxed lunch from the hospital program and be back there for a biopsy at 2:00.

I've had  calcifications they've been keeping their eye on for years and have had to go back for extra mammograms a few times. Now it was biopsy time. It was ultrasound guided and I felt nothing. I was home in time for tea and reading on the bench outside because it was in the 50's. I'd finished A Gentleman in Moscow, which I loved, earlier in the week so was back to Atomic Habits, which is a slog. I really want fiction for my reading. Oh well. The sun was gorgeous. When I went back inside, I start Nr. 24 about the Norwegian resistance in WW2. It's worth the watch.

The gorgeous weather held for one more day so I did my laundry and hung it on the line on Friday. I then pulled all the shelves out of my fridge and cleaned it all. Stupidly, I didn't mark where the shelves were and so struggled mightily to get them back in the right places. The back wall of my fridge had iced up and bulged in and there was no pushing it back even after the ice melted so the shelves are wonky. It took many tries to get it all back in correctly and I threw out lots of old food but it's all shiny and clean so it was worth the effort. Cross that off my to do list, where it's been for a long time.

After spending Saturday morning chatting on the phone, it was my 3rd time getting out of town in one week. It was spinning week so we did our regular Fremont run before and after our meeting, which is always fun. The temps plummeted on Sunday so I hunkered down, doing one of my favorite winter things - making homemade Boston baked beans. Unfortunately I over salted the water so they were salty but still better than canned. I had some yarn sorting fun that afternoon and made a delicious dinner of pumpkin ravioli with cream sauce.

That's a busy week for a retiree! Three trips out of town, making a big dent in my project list (I'm calling the laundry room done but there are some book shelves in there yet to go through) and some cooking, reading and streaming. I'm not worried about the biopsy and am hoping for an all clear next week. Cup half full you know.