So Tired....

Running around doing alot in Durham today and going to visit my fathers body. I am tired and will have to post my debrief from the lung cancer advocacy summit at a later time. I tried to visit Bo/Christi on last night but I missed them and walked right on back to where the patients are kept (the door was open and I don't know the Duke protocol, oh yea where is the security??? floor 9 with the Kennedy's).

My father passed today

The day began with much promise I would finish seminars, and the National Lung Cancer Partnership and be with my family tonight celebrating my daughters birthday. The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry; such is true for lung cancer patients too. My day to a dramatic turn from a simple short phone call I received from my mother at 1058 CST. The main message conveyed during the conversation was "your father has passed, he went into cardiac arrest.".... I had no response I said "I will be in Durham in a little bit, I am in Chicago, let me catch a plane to Durham" I got to Durham and the message from the conversation still was not true until I saw the Funeral Parlor van in my parents driveway, and many family members around the house. My father is gone, even though I am a grown man, I have traveled the world, and have a family of my own; your father for men serves as a security blanket and now I have lost my blanket. Over the next couple of days I will have to come to grips with the fact that my father does not have to suffer anymore, he does not have to hurt anymore, he can finally get that rest he so richly deserves. My father has worked hard on the bottom floor he has a solid foundation in those that survive him, his soul and spirit shall live on. It is hard to say goodbye, even as you have tried to prepare for this event for months, years now, you can never truly prepare for this, it is a flood gate of emotions.

5 years OLD

Happy B-Day Raegan, five years old and counting. Thank-you for keeping me young even though you, mommy and Ravyn or (R cubed Rhonda, Raegan, Ravyn) have caused me to loose my hair. Happy Birthday I will see you tonight when I get off the plane, we will have a Dora the Explorer marathon

Bo got the Transplant

Hey I know I haven't posted in awhile, been real tired in the eve since going back to work fulltime, I need to post more often, I have time now since I am out of town with this conference; enough about me I will post later but I am excited since BO got the transplant.
http://bovsbac.blogspot.com/

Memorial Day

Memorial Day was a great day we just took it easy today, spending time with my lovely family and reflecting on the freedoms we have as a nation; oh yea and to top off the day I shared a valuable teaching moment with my ladies. The lesson was daddy always wins take no prisoners, see the pictures below.... never under estimate the handicapped.....


R cubed (Rhonda, Raegan, Ravyn) huddle and plot all you want you can't beat me, nanny nanny boo boo (as Ravyn has now learned to say)
A professional at work, such grace, such form, autographs will sold on EBAY

Full moon, and half moon.

I am glad my feet were not hurting that day
No Raegan the lane is behind you

Strike

Getting my teeth fixed

I am going to get the rough crown smoothed out (molar #19) on Thursday so that my poor tongue won't take so much abuse, I hope I remember to take my 4 antibiotics 1 hour before my visit. (cancer / transplant patients and heart patients must take antibiotics at least an hour before any type of dental visit to help ward off any type of infection we may get due to cutting our mouth during any sort of procedure).

My tongue works fine

My tongue ain't sick, or at least no bi0psy will be taken. My tongue has a legion the the side of it so I went to an oral surgeon to get it checked out. I am relieved to know that it is just a bruise / tongue callus from rubbing up against a rough crown I have on my molar I think number 19 if my poor memory serves me correctly.

I am still bruised from the softball game as I did have one error and had a ball hit me in the wrist.

It is a week before the lung cancer advocacy summit in Chicago and I hope I am not getting sick.

I took an O2 (Oxygen) meter home to monitor my oxygen levels over night and discovered that my O2 during the night hovers in the 80% range while I am trying to sleep 97% of the time, so this means more test, a sleep study, and possible oxygen for me while I sleep.

I still taste that Barium

I had a pretty good visit with the transplant doctors. I have wrapped my test for my annual post transplant evaluation so I have established my baseline numbers. My breathing is coming along nicely I think given that I just had pneumonia 4 weeks ago, with the quick spirometry I am in the mid 80% for my lung functionality, on the real breathing test the PFT's done in the closed breathing chamber of (death as I call it) glass my lung functionality is in the mid 70% range. Obviously I have some work to do. I was disappointed with my six minute walk, I feel I could have done better so I am lobbying for a retest GIVE ME A MULLIGAN please, I walked about 420 meters (dodged to painters, and a military guy visiting his relatives) back and forth in the hallway at the SPA (UT Southwestern Hospital)

I still taste Barium in my mouth as I had some barium required test done, it still taste bad but I do not bring it back up like I did when I first had to drink barium 2+ years ago when I was first diagnosed with cancer.

Softball anyone

Softball pictures from the SouthWest Transplant Alliance Softball Game are below, my wife said I took the game to seriously, now would I do that......

http://www.nbc5i.com/news/16242318/detail.html

Pictures (Feb, March, April 2008)

The TCU women's Bball game (TCU -vs- Air Force) Senior Night

Rolling Carnival at one of the local malls; Raegan and Daddy date (note if you are over 220 don't go on this type of slide with a burlap sac b/c you will wind up on the concrete sliding on your rear.

Another picture from the carnival as we are on the haunted house ride.

Raegan and Ravyn Easter 2008
Raegan and Ravyn Easter Baskets
James hanging out at the Spa (UT SouthWestern Hospital) during my annual evaluation, my bronch and before the fevers 4/10/08
Post bronch the fever is brewing, and I am on the happy medicine (I can not be held accountable for anything I said.

Raegan, Ravyn, and cousin TeTe at the zoo by the elephant exhibit. I was able to walk the whole zoo.

Another zoo shoot, outside the horse / Long Horn pin, I walked the whole zoo but at this point everybody was hot hot hot and bothered.

Another zoo shoot can you guess what exhibit we are near????

Feeling Good

I feel GOOD, I think I am rounding the curve now since the transplant, it has been about 14 months now and one week and my body does not feel like I have been going through two / three A Day football practices with each practice starting off with county fair, followed by hills, one on one, and topped off with bull in the ring. Sorry young bucks you all don't have to do such drills you can only read about them.

The softball game was on Saturday, I could not take it deep like I expected to all that batting practice for nothing as I had no power at the plate. The game was fun though, I made it around the bases was pushed by the speed demon behind me and his young legs

I was feeling so good that on Sunday I grilled out, and did not complain about the neuropathy in my feet once.

Am I leveling off and reaching the new norm since transplant????????????

PreGame

Saw the pulmonary specialist in Fort Worth today, it was really great to seem him and find out how he was doing, I am glad I didn't have to do a six minute walk with/for them the last one I did for his office was pretty painful and broke me (last summer at the height of my battle with CMV, and the staph infection).

I have not given much thought to what my pre game meal will be as I prepair for the 14th annual South West Transplant Alliance Softball Game. I am worried I am not pumping enough fluids into my body I don't want to dehydrate out there on the field of dreams; on the other hand I don't want to have to much on my stomach and be known/remembered as the only guy in the history of this CHARITY softball game to through-up while in the batters box. I will keep you posted.

Work is picking up and I am really happy with that I am expecting to be officially labeled as a full-time employee again any day now. I am working with another group now too on new project(s) so that is always good too as new task keep the technical juices flowing.


I was laughing with one of my classmates from SMU at work today, as we were joking about how me being an ex-athlete (side note I am still an athlete I can work a TV remote and scroll through the stations at World Class speed) I have doctors notes that excuse me from most physically demanding things, (i.e. cutting the grass). We were talking about our yards and how I can't / have been STRONGLY advised against any and all yard work due to the pollen, bacteria, and fungi in the grass and soil (they aren't good for heart or lung patients). Basically he was asking for help on his yard my response was NO my doctor(s) say NO.......
got doctors notes like a fat kid in gym class
or
like a fat kid getting out of gym class

X-Ray Thursday

Had a set of X-Rays taken today in preparation of my visit with the pulmonary doctors on Friday. A funny note is/was that it seems like regardless of the hospital / medical facility and regardless of what I am having done (X-Rays, lab work, breathing test, picking up new medicine) I seem to know the professionals by name and have a personal relationship with them. Have I sunk so low, am I Norman the burger eating kid with the note that allowed him out of gym class??? oh well if I am that kid now at least I get great parking.......

X-Rays (more Radiation)

x-rays of the chest on Thursday

Pulmonary doc. visit on Friday I intend on asking him the following question:
why did he present my case to lung txp centers as a treatment for my lung cancer?

I will be real busy this coming Saturday:
blood work on Saturday Morn.
Transplant softball game in the afternoon
skin cancer screen on at UNT Health Science Center

oh yea got to get a mothers day presents too

Cancer doc visit (Cinco De Mayo)

Cinco De Mayo

I discovered a new route to the hospital due to traffic jam(s) in Dallas this morn.; I had a good walk to get to the cancer building and it would have been fine until I caught a cramp about 200 meters in front of the main entrance; I had to drag my limp leg into the clinic... who knew that you have to stretch before walking now.

Lab Work today 2 sticks, 3 tubes, 2 bruises.

lungs sound good, need CAT scans w/ contrast 4 times per year... that will be a fight I let the cancer docs and the transplant docs duke out; (contrast is hard on your kidneys as if the transplant meds aren't bad enough).

Busy day

Had a very busy day today, I started out in church kind of nervous because I don't like being around big groups of people in a closed in environment; that holds true for (church, work, hospitals, stores, movies ..........) you get the picture.

Took a little batting practice today, I have noticed that my hip on my back leg is real tired the day after batting practice.

I cut the grass / WEEDS in my front hard and on the side of the house, as the guys don't come over to cut the yard for another week.

Cancer doc visit in the morning.

Still coughing up crud

I feel like I am getting another cold/ bug coughing up crud, tired often, but I can't sleep. Most of the stuff that I cough up happens in the A.M. I think it is just crap that builds up in my lungs overnight.