Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

Greetings Loyal Readers,

It seems like it's been forever since we last met. Well, before you hear the latest and greatest about YFC, let's dive right into Mom's World (not to be confused with the 2 guys at right)...

Yesterday was a chemo day. Mom was joined by her sister Berba, who was making a repeat appearance as a Chemo Buddy (that's her at left...way to go Berbs!). Unfortunately, the news from chemo was decidedly mixed. Mom was able to have chemo; however, her hemoglobin level was 8.6 after tipping the scales at 8.85 last time. So Mom will go in for 2 pints of blood tomorrow. Yes, that's right kiddies, it's transfusion time again. Now, I know it sounds scary, but really it's not. In fact, Mom said that last time it didn't hurt a bit. The nurses just pump the blood through Mom's port and before you can say "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" 11x in a row *poof* it's all done.

Not too shabby, eh?

Speaking of shabby, how's your memory? You know that word from Mary Poppins that you just read, the one that's also the title of this post? Wanna attempt to spell it without looking?

Didn't think so. Coward.

Sorry, you didn't deserve that. Your Faithful Corespondent has been a bit on edge cause Mom has had some nausea and high fevers this week. She's also been getting fatigued pretty easily and the low hemoglobin count is undoubtedly a factor. So topping off the tank ought to bring Mom back to her sprightly self. Luckily for YFC she perked up for his birthday bash last Monday. That's right boys and girls, Your Favorite Correspondent just turned...well, let's just all agree that he had a birthday. He celebrated in high style at Hugo's Frog Bar with Mom, Uncle Rusty, Melvin and Nat (of the non-King Cole variety) in attendance. Of course #2 is going to get mad 'cause Nat's her new beau and she will undoubtedly accuse Yours Truly of making fun of him. But you know what? Second Best should have thought of that before she tried playing with YFC's tinker toys when he was 6! Ah yes, the old saying is so deliciously true...revenge is a dish best served cold.

Well kiddies, gotta cut this short. Just be sure to send Mom lots and lots of good vibes tomorrow so that she can get her mojo back. In fact, why don't you make sure those vibes are supercalifragilisticexpialidociously good? After all, Mom would do it for you...*

* - YFC learned the art of the guilt trip (not to be confused with a road-trip, which is infinitely more fun...unless, of course, you're the one doing the guilting) from Mom herself. Jewish mothers rock!

Love to all (but most of all to You).

Faithfully,
Corey

I'm back...

Dear Kriyananda, Rabbi, Family and Friends,

As the subject suggests, I am back to my old self. The two weeks since radiation were difficult, but they are behind me now. I am so grateful to be feeling well. It must have been the matzo balls at Roberta's house on Saturday and Uncle Phil's on Sunday which put me over the hump. Both were wonderful evenings as we celebrated our freedom from slavery with Jews across the world and our dear family and friends., The love I have felt from everyone has been so overwhelming, I am honestly speechless.

Not only am I celebrating Passover with family and friends, but it is a special day for me as I gave birth to my favorite son Corey 39 years ago today. We are going to have dinner with Papa (Uncle Rusty, Russell, etc.) Michelle,and her friend Nat, at Hugo's Frog Bar tonight..

What a glorious day when we are able to spend happy occasions with our loved ones..

This is a rest week. No chemo, no radiation, no worries. Life is good.

I wish you all love, joy, and bliss. May happiness fill every cell of your being.

Thank you for all that you have given me and continue to give me.

Sharon

Nausea -- A Funny Word to Spell But Not a Funny Thing to Experience

Greetings Loyal Readers,

Your Faithful Correspondent is back from Monterrey, the nacho cheese covered city (metaphorically, anyway). YFC mixed a little R&R with a little bizness, but we'll get to that a bit later. Before we get carried away, let's cut to the real star of the show, a little woman that YFC affectionately refers to as "Mom."

As Loyal Readers are well aware, Mom had TheraSphere radiation therapy 2 Fridays ago (that'd be April 5 if you really wanna know). Since then, Mom and nausea have gone together like peanut butter and jelly but in a far less delicious way. Almost immediately after returning home from l'hôpital (things sound classier in French, non?) Mom was attacked by a bout of nausea. Of course the nausea was just the beginning. Mom has also been feeling pretty run down and has been tiring more easily. Plus she's been running fevers and getting the chills. Though the nausea and fevers subside for short spurts, overall Mom's had a pretty icky (that's a medical term) week and a half.

We're thinking/hoping/praying that the nausea and the fatigue are side effects of the radiation working its magic. And why shouldn't we think that? The TheraSphere are often referred to as seeds. Jack (of Beanstalk fame) traded his cow for 5 magic beans (which are really just large seeds) and look what happened...big tree grows, boy climbs it, steals some giant gold, everyone lives happily ever after. Well, perhaps giant wasn't so happy. Nevertheless you're missing the point: Mom has her own magic seeds growing (or perhaps more accurately glowing) inside her, so ya gotta figure that the giant beanstalk in her tummy is sapping up some of her strength. Of course this really begs 2 questions: 1) when will this all be over and 2) who's the giant?

Let's take the questions out of order, cause we can dispense with query #2 rather quickly. The evil giant (YFC added the "evil" part there, but everyone knows that giants are evil) is undoubtedly YFC's little sister, Melvin. In fact just the other day, Mom heard her exclaim:

Fee! Fie! Foe! Fum!??
I smell the blood of an Englishman.
Be he 'live, or be he dead,
I'll grind his bones to make my bread.

Pretty harsh words from Sis. Now of course, YFC isn't really English, though he has been accused of being an Anglophile (as "-philes" go, it's definitely one of the better ones). Let it be clear: YFC does not condone bone grinding of any sort, especially when it's his bones in question. Guess my Sis has let sibling rivalry get the better of her.

Again.

Let's not dwell on Melvin's shortcomings, so let's hurry onto question #1. The radiation from the TheraSphere lasts for about 2 weeks, so we're thinking that Mom should be feeling better by the weekend. Mom had an appointment with The Cotton Troll today and Le Troll gave Mom a little feel-good medicine in her chemo cocktail to take away the nausea (as cocktails go, YFC is much more fond of Campari and Soda, but hey, to each their own).

Friday, Mom gets a cocktail of another sort...a blood cocktail. Mom needs to have a transfusion because her hemoglobin was low (8.95 for the medically inclined). This is the first time Mom has needed a transfusion, thankfully she just needs to be topped off a bit (she'll stop in for a quick pint). My Darling Sis (that's her on the left, getting ready for a hot date) graciously offered to suck the blood from an unwilling victim, but Mom decided to go the hospital route all the same.

Mom's appointment with Le Troll was otherwise uneventful. It's been a l-o-n-g day at chemo, but you know how it is when you start with cocktails, it tends to stretch everything out quite a bit. Not a bad thing when you're with a captivating dinner companion, not a good thing when you're at chemo. Still, it has given us a little more opportunity to spend more time with the latest Chemo Buddy, Gloria. She has been put through the rigorous Chemo Buddy initiation test by correctly answering all 5 questions right. Now, don't let the fear of standardized tests prevent you from becoming a Chemo Buddy too. After all, the questions are pretty simple.

Here's a sample question:
Who is Mom's Favorite Child?
a) Corey
b) Not Michelle
c) Both Corey and Not Michelle

Now if you'd actually visited the website (instead of being a Lazy Mazie and just reading the e-mail version of le blog), you'd immediately recognize that it was a previous poll question. So feel free to visit the website and start studying today.

Incidentally, Monterrey was very nice (thanks for asking). YFC spent a little time hanging out in the mountains of Monterreal (about 2 hours outside Monterrey, 1.25 hours if David is driving) -- very relaxing. He even got to ride an ATV (all-terrain vehicles if you're not familiar), which is mentioned not to brag, but because YFC's Dad will wonder how he could have done so without a helmet (note picture to right). It hit 100°F a couple of days on the trip, which was a nice change from the dreadful Chicago weather we've been having, but you know what? It still felt very good to come back home.

YFC certainly has prattled on a bit, hasn't he? Ah ha -- that was a trick question! Why are you nodding your head in agreement? Well, Your Faithful Correspondent can certainly take a hint. Guess we'll be cutting this a bit short. Hopefully we'll be bringing you a special update soon.

Wishing you a fabulous week...

Faithfully,
Corey

Warrior Woman Wins

Dear Kriyananda, Rabbi, family and friends,

I know I was named Warrior Woman but I wasn't quite prepared for the battle with the Theraspheres on Saturday. Apparently I wasn't paying attention to the nurse who explained the side effects, since I didn't have any after the first procedure. But it seems as if the radiation builds up, and is a little harder on the body each time. The important part is that as the day went on, I began to feel a little better. Thanks to Robert who spent the afternoon with me and took me outside so we could get some fresh air.

I am feeling stronger today and I want to thank everyone for their prayers and kind wishes. I am going to leave the fun and humor to YFC who should be returning from Monterrey on Wednesday. Michelle returned from Taiwan Wednesday night so she could be at the hospital on Friday. Mom and Aaron were there also.

Hopefully, I will feel well enough today to see my beloved Kriyananda at The Temple of Kriya Yoga. So my dears, I am going to try to go back to sleep for awhile and rest up for a busy day.

Much love to all,
Sharon

Another Big Day Coming Up

Greetings Loyal Readers,

Today is a very special day because Your Faithful Correspondent has another interactive posting for you. But there's a catch -- by reading any further than this paragraph you must do exactly what YFC says, no matter what. You're intrigued, no? Perhaps just a bit scared? But why? You know that YFC loves you and that he wouldn't put you in harms way. Surely you're up for it. Heck, you're up for any challenge. After all, you've probably saying to yourself, "Self, these last few days I really feel fantastic. I have increased energy. I feel more positive. And my general outlook on life has really improved. Not to look a gift horse in the mouth, but I wonder Self, what gives..."

Well, wonder no longer my Loyal Readers for Your Faithful Correspondent comes bearing the answers to all your queries. That sense of inner well-being you're feeling has to do with the fact that #2 is approximately 7,459 miles (or 12,004 kilometers if you're into that kinda thing and you know you are --you cheeky little monkey) away. A certain someone who writes a certain blog sure feels good about it. After all, nothing says relaxation to YFC like having a good bit of distance between him and his baby sister (say oh, a minimum if 12,000km or so). Melvin is in Taipei visiting her best friend Ting and her goddaughter Zoe. You'll hafta guess which picture is Taipei and which is a picture of Ting and Zoe but my Loyal Readers are universally brilliant, so figuring out which is which will be like shooting fish in a barrel (not that YFC is advocating barrel-shooting or the senseless slaughter of fish. Your Faithful Correspondent stands for many things, and abstention from violence is right near the top of the list). Now, if truth be told Zoe is a little more grown up than she appears in the picture, but if a certain parent got off her certain body part and sent more pictures to the aforementioned certain blogger, then my Loyal Readers (and your loyalty is truly commendable by the way) wouldn't have to rely on looking at stock photographs.

All good things must come to an end, dontcha know? Melvin returns from her vacay on Friday. Now what's so special about Friday that she'd interrupt her brother's bliss? Why it the day Mom has her next procedure of course (don't look so surprised, if you'd been paying attention you would have known that already). Yep, this Friday is undergoing Round 2 of radiation treatment. The basics will be the same as before, except that last time they targeted the left side of the liver and this time they're targeting the right. In case you need a refresher on the mechanics click away... That's right kiddies, those links are actually pretty useful and they're provided at absolutely no cost to you. Why? You know it's always about love with YFC.

Now that we're feeling all lovey-dovey, let's come full circle for a moment now. Remember when YFC promised you an interactive posting and we made that little deal? Well, as you know, Mom is going to have more radiation Friday because the tumor in her liver has decided that it doesn't want to get any smaller. Somebody needs to put that ol' cancer bully in its place and that's where you come in (that's right, YFC is talking 'bout Y O U). So if my Loyal Readers could possibly say a kind word or two to the Big Guy Upstairs that would be greatly appreciated.

And speaking of appreciated, Mom still gets a lot of positive energy from reading your cards and e-mails. Thanks to all of you who continue to send her good wishes. Not only does it mean a lot to Mom, but to Melvin and YFC, as well.

Finally speaking of YFC, the fact that 1.5 is coming back in town poses is a frightening prospect. Accordingly, Your Faithful Correspondent will be heading to the lovely town of Monterrey (think Cleveland, Mexican style). Unfortunately it's only 1318 miles/2122 kilometers (we've already establish the fact that you like that wacky metric thing) away, so Sis is still a little close for comfort. Still, YFC will be visiting his amigo David (that's him, at left, making the traditional balloon presentation to YFC), so fun and excitement awaits.

Wait. No really you need to wait. Look there's a blog being written now, can you just hold on a bit? Oh all right, what is it then? You wanted to tell YFC that you're still trying to picture Cleveland, Mexican style? Oh all right, once again it's YFC to the rescue..sigh...think about a large industrial city, the kind that...oh dunno...might have it's main river catch on fire. Repeatedly. Now picture that same city topped with gobs of nacho cheese sauce, the kind you get on ballpark nachos. That's Monterrey.

Getting back to matters at hand...Oh what now? Nachos are really more Tex-Mex than Mexican? Look, YFC needs to finish up this posting. If you really feel the need to discuss this issue further (read this as "don't even think about feeling the need"), feel free to leave a comment on the blog.

Your Faithful Correspondent will try to have his first international posting next week. With any luck, he'll be able to bring you lots of great pictures from Mexico.

Now YFC has been very patient with all of your incessant interruptions, (what got into you today?). Be a dear and remember to say some kind words to the Big Man and always remember to THINK SHRINK!

Faithfully,
Corey