skippyhawk

Just got back from the doctors office where I got 2 ltr of “juice” because I was so dehydrated.   I have to go back Friday for two units of blood to try and raise my energy level.  I am not sure what I am supposed to do with all of this extra energy but I guess doing a couple of loads of wash would be OK with Sue.

The bad news has oficially arrived.   We are no longer going to do anything to fight the cancer.  We are going to “sign up” for Hospice care Friday.  At this point the care will be provided in our house with the option of moving to the hospital.

There are a lot of you that I would like to see but I am not going to be able to because of the dificulty of getting around.  Any, and all of you are welcome to come here.  Yes, Sue has approved that statement.

Things really haved moved a lot faster than what was anticipated.  My posts and comments will be slowing down I am sure.  I still have a good attitude but my  sense of humor is suffering.  Hang in there with me.  We know what is coming soon, but we can still have a little fun.

Love you all,

 Bob

Does anyone remember the old Saturday Night Live routine “the weekend update with Chevy Chase”? I just remember the Count/Counterpoint with Dan Akryod and Jane Curtain. . .Jane you ignorant sl–!!! (Kelly and Ryan got Bob the DVD of 1st season of SNL and its truly a riot!)

Anyway, the Valentines and Stephensons had a pretty good Saturday. We talked about a lot of issues, wants, don’t wants, cried a little and even laughed a little. Bob went on an outing with Kelly and Ryan to Dairy Queen. It appeared that both the Munchie man and the “baby” needed ice cream! Now, Bob would like to have a motorized scooter instead of the wheelchair, but I told him he needed to master the manual one before he gets a motor! Max would never recover!

On a serious note, we decided that we will use in-home Hospice for Bob’s continuing care. Many pros and cons for both Hospice and hospital, but we feel Bob will be much more comfortable at home with his big screen and his recliner. I hope it will make it easier for friends and relatives to visit also. We also talked about the step after hospice but that’s too new and raw for me to discuss right now. Just know that we are going to be doing what Bob wants. If you aren’t familiar with hospice, and I hope you aren’t, there are many good web sites available. One I found very helpful is hospicenet.org.

He goes to the doctor on Wednesday and I hope he gets more hydration. That has seemed to really help his alertness. He has also decided that being macho man and toughing out the pain is stupid, so we are giving him the max pain relief he can have. As Bob said, getting hooked on pain killers is probably the least of his worries.

Thanks for all the caring you are providing us. I’ll update more after the doctor’s visit.

Sue

Things are progressing rather fast, actually much too fast for me. Today I went and got a wheelchair for Bob. Last week I was making fun of the weed and “cripple sticker” and today he has a wheelchair. Now he just told me he wanted American flags put on it and baseball cards in the spokes, just like when he was a kid! He may be sick but he still has his sense of humor. (The fun part is that our 70 lb. dog is scared to death of anything that has wheels!!!!)

Doctor’s visit showed that he was very dehydrated, so they pumped him full of saline solution for an hour. He also has been having chills without a fever which is not a good sign. The doctor asked us to discuss what options he/we wanted for continuing care. This weekend Bob, Kelly and I are going to have the “talk” we have been putting off.

Our main objective now is to keep Bob out of pain as much as possible. The drugs make him sleepy, but then the pain is manageable so that’s a good thing. Please continue to comment on the blog, call or visit. He faithfully checks the blog when he’s awake.

I want to thank everyone who has commented on the blog, visited, called, offered and provided food/wine, help and prayers. It is very heart warming to know that so many good people care about us.

I’ll do another update in a few days.

Love,
Sue

Caution:
Do not believe anything Bob says, does or writes. . . .

With the various drugs that Bob is taking for pain and with his new munchie drug he seems to be on a perpetual high. Now I’m not saying this is a bad place to be, I’m just not used to it. I guess this is payback for the last 15 years when Bob has had to be my designated driver when I have over indulged in the grape!

This morning at 4:30 A.M. he got up, got dressed went downstairs, let Max out and set off the security alarm. If you have never been awaken by a horn with a siren going, you haven’t lived. This means the security company has to call and then you have to explain that everything is OK, you are just stupid and you forgot to turn the alarm off and what the secret code is. When I asked Bob why he was up, he said that it was 8:30 and he wasn’t tired anymore. He said this while he laid down on the couch and promptly went to sleep.

He is sleeping a lot (yesterday about 23 hours) and can’t seem to get his days straight. The good news is that when he is awake he eats. His cravings has been Mac and cheese and fruit salad. Very easy to provide. Paul and Annette came by today with lunch and he actually sat at the table and ate with us.

Have a Happy Easter and stay warm. I’m going to let Bob hide his own eggs and then let him hunt them down!! OK, I’m a terrible person!

Sue

Picture this scenario . . .

Went to doctor’s today to determine a new course of action that will keep Bob out of the hospital. First item on the list is that Bob lost 10 lbs. in a week.

No appetite and nausea.

Dr. “Have you ever smoked grass?”
Bob “Are you with the federal government?”
Dr. “No but I can give you something that will cause the munchies”
Bob “Can I smoke it?”
Dr. “No, its a pill called Marinol that’s a cannabinoid ”

So we get the prescription filled and these are the possible side effects: drowsiness, dizziness, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, clumbsiness, changes in behavior and mood, difficulty with memory etc. Does this sound like the 70’s or what?

Seriously, I’m taking the side effects from the Walgreens info! Now I ask you, besides alcohol what else causes these side effects??? Marijuana!, so yes, we have little round pills that must be kept in the refrigerator that contains THC. Haven’t had the munchies in a long time. This is a warning that if something is posted on this blog that makes no sense you know Bob is munching.

Lots of other things were discussed. He will not be starting chemo again, so chemo sabe is officially gone. Will stay on the blood thinners forever. Took some blood tests today to see if his red cell count is low and if it is low enough he will get another unit of blood tomorrow. This should help with the fatigue and shortness of breath.

And last but not least, Bob got a “cripple sticker” as he affectionately and politically incorrectly calls handicap stickers. So all he needs now is a tan Grand Marquis to hang it from and he is officially old.

Bob will be checking in tomorrow so stay tuned to see how the munchie medicine goes.

Sue