Nice Day in Des Moines

Well I am driving for Enterprise, drove three days last week and so far only one this week, I doubt I will drive again this week because I told them I wanted Thursdays off to go to chemo with Sarah. I don’t make a lot of money doing this but I don’t care about that, I want just want to have something to do a couple days a week so Sarah doesn’t get tired of having me under foot all the time.

Sarah is feeling great so she is ready for her next series of treatments beginning tomorrow. One of the nurses asked if she was going to having them each week for two hours or every two weeks for four hours. She is going to visit with the doctor about this. I leave those decisions up to her because she knows how she feels and what she wants. Therefore, we will see what it will be tomorrow. The last treatment she had of the two drugs, Sarah did not have the side effects she experienced after the other three treatments, and hopefully she will have fewer side effects with the next round of treatments. She is a trouper and continues with the positive attitude.

I took a couple of boxes we had here in the apartment, they have books and movies in them, down to the truck. I figured I could store them in the back seat of the truck and give us a skosh, (Brad, see there is such a work) more room.

The weather hasn’t been all that bad, we have had some cold days and some snow, 15 inches of snow, but all most of it is gone except the piled snow. I am in my optimistic mode now, it is the middle of January and so the temperatures will begin to warm up in February, which isn’t that far away, and then we have March where the temperatures get a bit warmer and before we know it we will be into May and warm temps. So I sit here at the window and dream of moving back into the camper, May 1 if not sooner and enjoying the warmer weather.

I have read several books since we have been here but I still have a few more I want to read it’s just doing it, I do procrastinate and I have to stop doing that. Oh well, I will get to them when I get to them.

Our phone contract is up and so I have to decide what to do. We have Verizon because of the coverage area and I do have a credit for a new phone so we will most likely stay with them but they tell me I have to go to the share program if I upgrade my phone, I am not sure that is something I want to do. So I have a bit of research to do, at least I will be busy and out of Sarah’s hair, so to speak.

That is all for now so, Dreams Do Come True

Des Moines 01/04/2013

Sarah’s test at the cardiologist all came back in her favor. She has no noticeable heart problem but to be on the safe side she is wearing a monitor for 30 days. This means she can continue with the chemo treatments and she had her last one of the two drug treatments yesterday and her immune booster shot today. She is feeling good now but by tomorrow the booster shot begins to wear her down along with the chemo drugs and she will be out of action for a few days.

Last Saturday she was feeling able enough to go shopping with Cynthia, they were gone for a few hours, did Sarah good, I watched football and read. I have been reading a lot but I have a bunch of books to read yet.

Monday, Dec 31^st, I drove the bus at Illahee Hills. For those of you who don’t know all of our history, we managed Illahee from May 2003 to July 2004 when I got burned out and we moved on to other 

opportunities. Anyway, they needed someone to fill in for the regular driver and so I accepted. I also drove Weds, Thurs, and will drive this afternoon. The pay isn’t great but I don’t do it for the money it is something different and gets me out of Sarah’s hair, well what hair she has left. The drugs are taking their toll on her in that department. She has taken to wearing hats to keep her head warm. She saw one on the TV show Castle that Det Beckett wore in one of the episodes, she wants one like it but can’t seem to find it.

Sarah heard a noise outside and on top of the parking ramp just north of us they were shooting off fireworks. I was local company sponsored fireworks show. We had an eye level view of it. The show lasted about ten minutes, pretty cool.

Tuesday, I did nothing but watch football, neither of the teams I wanted to win did but it was fun watching them. Wednesday I drove for Illahee, actually wasn’t much, I took a guy to the VA. Thursday Sarah had her chemo, the last of the two drug ones. I drove for Illahee again.

Today, Sarah received her immune booster shot and I gave blood at the blood center. I found that 50 years ago the government said I had O neg blood and now the blood center says I have O pos blood. I questioned that and was told the tests are more accurate today. Good thing I didn’t need blood all these years.

I am going to Illahee this afternoon to take some residents over to the sister facility for a Wii tournament. I will have to let you know what that is all about.

We have lots of snow on the ground and cold temperatures but they are calling for a warming trend the next few days, maybe some of the snow will melt, I hope so.

Until later, Dreams Do Come True.

Sarah Update

Sarah and I want thank Cairo’s for having us over for dinner Christmas eve and Cynthia for hosting Christmas day dinner. We had a great time at both places.

Sarah was suppose to get her fourth and final treatment of the heavy duty drugs yesterday but she has been having heart problems, pounding pulse, chest pain/soreness, so the doctor delayed the treatment a week and set up an appointment for her to see a cardiologist.

So today we saw, quick wasn’t it, Dr. Advani, MD PhD. She is a cardiologist and a pharmacologist, I asked her about that and she said her parents didn’t want her to be a doctor but agreed to pharmacy school. She said once she got in she was able to get her parents to agree to medical school. She was very nice and ordered a stress test, echocardiogram and a heart monitor. So if the test were ok today Sarah will get her fourth treatment next Thursday and then on the 11th she will begin the weekly Paclitaxel chemo treatment. Otherwise everything is going good for her.

We had another fire alarm this morning, it seems the generator has a short in it and it fired up but the vents to expel the heat didn’t open so it set off the alarm. They have someone coming in to fix the generator.

I had a note from the Kenny & Angela Harper,  www.rvlifeisgoodtoday.blogspot.com, thank you for the note. I thought about staying in the camper but felt with Sarah and the treatments we best not do that. If we had gone south to do the treatments we would have stayed in the camper. So the good thing is I don’t have to go out if I don’t want to, except to take Sarah to treatment, so it hasn’t been that bad.

Not much else is going on so until later, Dreams Do Come True.

It is COLD

Ok, someone has it out for me. It is 26 degrees outside and 35 mph winds, gusting to 50 mph. I am so glad we aren’t living in the camper.

Last night was a rough night, someone set off the fire alarm, each apartment has one in it, and ours is right above the bed, very loud. Since I use a CPAP when I sleep it is necessary to have electricity, twice the power went out, five this morning I gave up and didn’t use it anymore.

I am always amazed at the “stupidity” of news reporters who go out in hurricanes etc.; well I have to say Iowa has a “stupidity” factor also. This morning on the local news shows they are talking to the state troopers and DOT guys who are saying stay home don’t go out unless you have to. So what do you see on TV is the reporter and photojournalist driving down the road giving a stall by stall report of the weather. Ok people, what part of don’t go out if you don’t have to don’t you understand.

So I don’t plan on going anywhere today, I am going to stay in and stay warm. I finally bought a winter coat for myself, I needed one.

Here are two pictures taken from our apartment:

This isn't exactly the dream we wanted this winter but it is the one we have been dealt and we'll make the best of it. 

Dreams Do Come True

Update, 12/18/2012

Ok, short update and to curtail rumors that I don’t cook, here goes.

Sarah is feeling much better and is eating better. Today we ventured out to the RV dealer where our camper was at for repairs, they were done with it. Almost $900 later, none covered by our warranty policy, we were able to finally get it over to the storage site and get it stored for the winter. (Thanks to Mike Cord for taking us out to the dealer and going with us to the storage site.) That being done we headed back to the apartment.

It is a crappy day out with a weather watch, up to eight inches of snow in some places, so I don’t plan on going anywhere for a couple of days. I still don’t have a winter coat, maybe this weekend or I could wait until after the first of the year and get one on sale.

Anyway, we got back to the apartment and I was able to get the truck into the parking garage under the building so it will be in out of the weather. It will cost but I am much more at ease with the truck inside and not in the elements, I wish I could have found an indoor place for the camper.

Now this may come as a surprise to some of you but I like cookies, no, I really do, so we had some cookie mix and I thought to myself, I can do this, so here is the proof.

Even Sarah says they are good. I currently have a meatloaf in the oven; I love meatloaf, so this proves we don’t always eat out.

As of yet we have not turned on the heat in the apartment, we even open the patio door occasionally when Sarah gets hot. I guess living on the sixteenth floor has some advantage, except the heat is included in the rent.

Sarah’s next chemo treatment is the 27^th so she will be able to enjoy Christmas, we are going over to Cynthia’s for Christmas dinner we are cooking a turkey and the trimmings.

Thank you for all your thoughts and prayers and Christmas cards they are much appreciated.

Until later, Dreams Do Come True

Update 12/14/12

The laundry is done and Sarah is sleeping so it is a good time to do an update of what we have been up to, not much really but here goes.

Thursday, the sixth, we met Norma Cairo at the new Hy-Vee store in Urbandale. This store is something to see, it is huge, doesn’t have furniture and the like as I have seen in some stores especially down south, but it is big. They have an area set aside where they do cooking demonstrations and classes. A dietician/chef, who works for Stoddard Cancer Center, her husband is the seafood manager and a chef at this Hy-Vee, put on a class for cancer patients once a month. The purpose is to get the people eating nuitrious food and help with other dietary questions. This time is was seafood with risotto and squash soup. Now I like squash, up to a point, but the soup was to sweet for me, but the risotto and seafood was great.

I did buy a couple of crab cakes, made by the chef, and cooked them that night, they were great.

Sarah & Cynthia did some shopping on Friday, I bought a coat but then split up with them to go find a warm up suit to wear in the apartment, I couldn’t find one my size, that is to say the inseams on all of the pants that fit me were 32 inches and I take a 30 inch. Is it my imagination or is that the trend to have the pants bunch up at the top of the shoes. Anyway I did get a pair of sweat pants to wear so I accomplished half my goal. The other thing I bought was a winter coat, not expecting to need one in the south, I bought it at Sears.

Sunday was a trip to Costco. We wanted to get a vacuum cleaner, the one they have in the apartment wouldn’t pick up a piece of tissue. We found an Electrolux upright with a $50 discount on it and it works great.

Monday we met Cairo’s for dinner at American Legends in West Des Moines. They have good food; we have eaten here a couple of times. We sat and talked for a while; their dog had surgery on its back and wasn’t responding to therapy like they had hoped, but yesterday they told us things were improving so that is good.

Tuesday I went out to Illahee Hills, they had called a few days before, to ride with their driver and fill out paperwork so I could sub for him as needed. This will give me something to do and maybe I won’t eat so much. I am hoping to hear from Enterprise Car Rental, I applied there also to drive part time for them.

Wednesday was another treatment day for Sarah, she handled it well, they have changed the drug for nausea and it seems to be working the best with fewer side effects than the other two. This one does make her sleep a bit more but I don’t think that is bad.

Today we did the laundry. I dropped the basket with the bottle of laundry soap, liquid, and the lid broke on it so the laundry room floor is clean and fresh smelling.

I had a call today telling me I won a bunch of gift cards from some online seller, I have no idea who or what the site is, but they wanted to know my age and I said I was retired. The woman kept asking me what my age is and I said I am retired and I wasn’t going to tell her my age, she hung up. Not sure, what it was all about but I was being ornery about not giving her my age. Maybe I should have just to see where the conversation was going.

Well that brings us up to date on what we are doing.

I still love our view; I watch Mercy Hospital’s helicopter come and go. Cool! The hospital is upper right past the parking ramp.

I hope everyone has a Very Merry Christmas and a Glorious New Year.

Dreams Do Come True

Des Moines, IA 12/4/12

We are five days pass the chemo treatments and Sarah is feeling better, says she is still tired but otherwise the post treatment feelings are getting better. I guess this is the way it will be for these drugs, two treatments down and two to go, then the doctor changes the drug and it is weekly for fourteen weeks.

Last Thursday I went to an interview for a shuttle driver position at Enterprise car rentals. I filled out the paperwork and Erin, the logistics mgr, said it would take a week or so to do all the background checks. The job isn’t high paying, $7.25/hr for up to 25 hrs per week, but it will buy the groceries and give me something to do especially when Sarah isn’t felling up to doing anything.

Friday and Saturday, we didn’t do anything; these are the days Sarah begins to really feel the effects of the treatments, nothing drastic, just plain tired so we don’t do anything.

Sunday I went to church, Sarah wanted to go but didn’t feel quite up to it and I am not comfortable with her being in crowds this soon after a treatment. The chemo lowers her immune system and I don’t want to risk her getting any disease.  That afternoon we did go out to Cynthia’s, she wanted my help in putting her patio furniture away, it didn’t take long to do that. We had lunch and Sarah was feeling tired so we came back to the apartment. It is funny, I can’t quite get myself to call this home, even though we will be here a while, it is just another place we have landed for now.

Monday, yesterday, I went out to Shorewood RV, here in Des Moines; I dropped the camper off a month ago to get the washer fixed and the rig winterized. I talked to them on Friday and the girl was telling me they were having trouble with the inverter. I told her there is nothing wrong with the inverter. So I drove out there to see for myself what was going on, evidently the tech figured out his problem and they are suppose to finally get to removing the washer and getting it fixed. We’ll see what happens; I truly miss the efficiency and professionalism of the Excel service center. I hope they can fix the washer but even though I told them I was in no hurry to get the camper back this is a bit long.

Today I have done the laundry, changed the bedding and will go for a walk with Sarah in a bit, so I do keep busy but I do like to drive so I am looking forward to working for Enterprise.  

Until later, Dreams Do Come True