A Day Off

The Crumpet Shop at Pike Place Market

This morning I took my car in for maintenance to take advantage of my day off. I took Lady with me so that we could have adventures.  We dropped the car off at Honda of Downtown Seattle and took off for Pike Place Market.  Since it was only a little after 10 am vendors were just starting to set up and it was pretty quiet.  We walked through the market and stopped off at The Crumpet Shop for some tea and a crumpet with butter and strawberry preserves.  Yum!  Of course I had to share my crumpet with Lady with her big brown soulful eyes.  We sat outside for some prime people watching.

Lady looking bored as I take her picture at The Crumpet Shop

Then it was time to take the bus home.  I got our Orca Cards out, paid our fare, and off we went for a quiet afternoon in West Seattle.

My breast doesn't hurt anymore

My breast doesn't hurt anymore. I don't know when it stopped but I can be hugged and I can reach high above my head. It's amazing. I think I expected the pain to last for months if not forever. Even the incision arount the port is healed. There's a little tenderness when I lie on it but not much. After round #1 of chemo I was really sick but I feel pretty good now. I have my next chemo in two days; it's time to get sick again. I can do it, especially after I've found that I'm not nauseous and fatigued all the time. I'll have a few days of awfullness and then I will begin to rise again. I was talking to God just after my last chemo and told him that I didn't think I could do this chemo thing if I was going to be sicker than a dog all the time. You see, I thought that was going to last forever too.

I think the most difficult part this whole thing is keeping hope alive when I am at my sickest. I need to know that the Promised Land comes after the Desert. It helps to know that God understands my despair. The Psalms are so helpful in expressing pain. One that has helped me is Psalm 55. It starts, "Listen God to my prayer; do not hide from my pleading, hear me and give answer. I rock with grief..." (Psalm 55:2-3a, NAB). The Word of God does not sugarcoat pain. Life is good now but it's back to the Desert in two days.

I've got a couple more book recommendations. The first is In the Company of Cheerful Ladies by Alexander McCall Smith, another installment of the #1 Ladies Detective Agency. Mma. Ramotswe's no-good ex-husband shows up and tries to blackmail her. He doesn't know whom he is dealing with.

The second is Juliet, Naked, by Nick Hornby. Annie's significant other Duncan is obsessed with Tucker Crowe, a 1980's musician who abruptly ends his career after a trip to a bathroom bar. Duncan oversees a fan website dedicated to Mr. Crowe who hasn't been heard from in over twenty years. Annie posts on the website, Tucker e-mails her, and the fun ensues.

If I have to be on medical leave, I might as well have fun.

Keeping busy

My new knitting supplies

It has been one tough week. Last week Saturday I was all dressed and ready to go to work. I took Lady to the mailbox and read the mail while walking home. We started going down the hill to our house when I slipped in the mud. The first words out of my mouth were not worthy of a faith and family blog. I made my way into our house, my pants covered with mud. I had twisted my ankle and in the process broke my upper fibula. My husband took me to urgent care where they took x-rays of the lower leg, taped up my ankle, and sent me home on crutches. I told the doctor that my upper leg hurt but he didn't pay much attention to that. I think he saw me as a "garden variety sprain" and looked no further. My ankle got better daily but my leg hurt like crazy. One night our cat stepped on my bone while I was in a sound sleep and I practically went through the roof. I went back to my doctor, had an x-ray taken of my upper leg, and low and behold, I had a spiral fracture of the fibula. I should be in a lot less pain in another week or so and completely healed by six weeks. I don't need a cast because my leg muscles hold my bone in place. I'll continue to hobble along on crutches and watch Netflix DVD's and on-demand.

My injury gives me a lot of time on my hands. I'm off work for a couple of weeks so I'm taking up the hobby that saved me when I was unemployed, knitting. It's one of the only things you can do while watching TV and still feel productive. It is also very relaxing. Mind you, the only thing I know how to knit is long scarves or perhaps blankets. I probably should get some knitting books like Stitch 'N Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook or Knitting Without Tears: Basic Techniques and Easy-to-Follow Directions for Garments to Fit All Sizes but I don't think I can read, watch TV, and knit at the same time.