Yikes! Pink is so not me. Think I’ll take some food dye with me next Tuesday and get them to add it to the saline.
Ok, that’s me away to do some serious shedding before bed. Ever see that Garfield cartoon where he just sits there shedding and eventually disappears under the pile of hair…
Yes Gen, good luck tomorrow. Keep the sound of that flamenco guitar and the rhythmic beat of heels going, and you’ll sail through. We’ll dream of chardonnay and send it your way. :0)
No I haven’t been told when, the blood tests were scheduled on the basis that chemo starts the week after next. Wound still healing, still slightly open at top but improving apparently. I’ve to go and have a good soak in the bath tonight to see if that helps it at all - been keeping it dry for 7 weeks now!!
Re the early discharge Sal - everybody who went down in the morning went home same day except for a woman who was sick and a woman who fainted shortly after coming round. I went down after lunch and had the same effect as you - totally knocked out and was really groggy for a few hours afterwards, although not ill or anything. I did eat some soup but that was all. Jez came to see me in the evening and I couldn’t keep my eyes open. Bless him, he just sat next to me for the whole visiting time reading a book holding my hand while I slept (because I made him lol). I didn’t pee blue because I had node clearance hence no dye injected. Dang, missed that little treat.
I was up and about by about 9pm though and I was out of there by 10.30 the following morning so from op to going home was less than 24 hours.
I’ll have a word with the doc about mainlining wine through my portacath. Sounds like a plan. Well alcohol’s an antiseptic isn’t it? There must be health benefits surely…
Oh and no, I’m not rushing back to the office. That seems to be fairly well understood now! I’ll go in Thursday if I feel ok and if I don’t I won’t. End of. They’ve set my laptop up to be able to work from home now though, so I hope I’ll be able to deal with this as I originally planned - i.e. if I’m rough or low immune just work as and when I feel able at home. We’ll see how it goes… ;o)
Blue pee…yup was told about that and also that some women turn a slight shade of blue too…O.M.G. that will be me,I don’t want to turn into a beeping smurf ! Always thought that Father Abraham was a bit strange…am not ready to go to smurf land,now if you were talking smirnoff land ,that’s a different story lol.
Yup Scotia is fine for my alter ego,am sporting a very fetching set of burgundy toenails,the pedicure was heaven and have booked in for an indian head massage for next week,am going into pre-op pampering overdrive !
Am in for lumpectompy and sentinal node biopsy on the 23rd,am champing at the bit to get going,hopefully the snow will have gone by the time I come galloping in or I may slide right through and end up in no mans land !
Sandra x
Just a quick one to wish you well for tomorrow Gen. Good to hear you’ll not be going into the office afterwards.
THOUGHTS FOR TODAY
In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer.
My illness has taught me something about the nature of humanity, love, sisterhood and relationships that I never understood, and probably never would have. So, from that standpoint, there is some truth and good in everything
Did I tell you that the reason I am stuck here is that I broke my leg just over a week ago.My lymphodoema nurse recommended a trampoline to disperse the lymph-one bounce[must have landed awkwardly]on one leg and crack/crunch tibial plateau fracture with plaster from ankle to thigh.Thank heaven for the porch and the leg extension on the rocker.I’ll still be here as you all ride by.Good luck to all you people under attack by sharp knives and hostile Indians.
The Old Onexx
Youch, Horace, ooof! Well The Old One can rock away to her heart’s content. We’ll send down a bowl of stew at lunchtime, how’s that? Otherwise, I never asked, 2 years down the line, are you feeling confident, ok in yourself? You sound it and you’re looking great!
Like that quote Blackjack. Here’s one I made earlier…
“I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life’s realities.” Theodor Geisel
Lol! Scotia. In case of slippage, we’ll tie a rope from the saloon to the other side of the main street then Blackjack can lasso you in through the doors when you hit! On the blue front, you only get that if they go for sentinel nodes. They need to put the dye in to track to them. I’m still a bit blue on the boob, looks like Steel will have a blue shirt for the duration, but never had scary smurf moments.
Gen, if you log in before you go, “Goooood, gooood, gooood, good vibrations!” Surfs up!
Does this mean The Accountant isn’t as bad as we thought? Mule is going to be sooooo disappointed. Definitely sensed a touch too much anticipatory glee at the thought of his capture!
Watch out for a quick chapter later on today for Mule for tomorrow.
Shedding is progressing well, sadly not from the back of my fingers. Wolf Girl is my other name…
Hi Riders
Fingers crossed for me this time tomorrow please, having radical mx (ie they’re planning to take all lymph nodes)so no blue bits for me either.
Just a thought for those enduring hot flushes - found black cohosh works for me: does not eliminate them but reduces both frequency and intensity. The research I’ve seen also suggests it does not act as a weak oestrogen, (unlike red clover, ginseng and dong quai)but via some other path, yet to be defined.
regards
Calamity Jane, busy packing saddlebags for the coming ride.
Hi New to this site but would like to become a strom rider. Just had mastectomy and reconstruction 7 days ago. Not doing to bad but feel like I have been kicked in the chest by one of our horses. Get my results on the 16th Feb to find out what therapy comes next and panicking incase it’s chemo. Any friends out their?
Wendie
hi wendie - I’m sure it wouldn’t have been one of our horses that kicked you - must have been them goddam injuns!! Grab a mug and have a coffee round the fire and bring a blanket to keep you cosy for our nighttime chat…
how are you feeling then? My op was lumpect and node clearence 2 wks ago and I heard last week that I need the chemo - its a grade 3 and had only gone to one node so I’m being positive…just got appt for oncologist for next thursday and then all will be revealed as to when I start…keep well, mary x
Howdy Storm Riders and sending good wishes to all with new trials to come.Remember Determination girls!As for me well after 2 years and 4months from dx I am feeling fine[if you disregard broken leg!].Confident…well I am triple negative so thats another story.All I can say is that here and now I am well.I had a scare with a benign cyst last year and every ache,every cough,every itch and gripe fills me with terror.But I think its that injun medicine man hexing me and I will resist him.For those new recruits who have been pressganged[mixed metaphor there]into our ranks I will say that however hard it seems at the beginning it can all be done.Chemo is hard but it is powerful and it is rarely overwheming.Keep imagining it as an internal army wiping out the enemy.Keep your nerve dear ladies it will pass.
The Old Onexxxx
Scotia, how about Cal, short for Caledonia. I used Caledonia for a while on another forum and loved it. Feel free to change if you want, it just popped up as an idea.
Calamity, oops, missed you were going in tomorrow. Who needs luck when you’re a Storm Rider. Know no fear and fear won’t know you! But LUCK anyway. Looks like you get your lightning strike tomorrow then. Remember when you wake up to carve a wee symbol on your saddle or belt or butt if you feel like it! 
Wendie, welcome latest Storm Rider. Defo not one of our horses that kicked you. Sounds like you’ve been bandit ambushed at the edge of the desert. Up onto your horse you get, grit those teeth, and start making your way through the mountain pass. Calamity’s already heading through, and I think Scotia’s not far off either. You’ve probably already picked up that a few of the Storm Riders are doing chemo - hence the abundance of bandanas in the saddle bags. If that’s the way you go, don’t worry, we’ll be here every step of the way.
Horace, I think I can imagine how you feel about aches etc. I’m too focussed on treatment just now to let myself think about that, but I know it’s something we all end up living with. Well, we never asked for the storm and we’re riding that, so I guess we can all handle keeping an eye to the horizon for gathering clouds for a few decades more! :0) Wonder how long this thread can get?
Four of the original Storm Riders are riding into town tonight. Look out for it. Wowza, Determination sure is going to get busy!
And not just determination. You wait weeks for one appointment and then two come at once. sheesh. Anyway got to go have a ultrasound on my overies (Sat can you believe) then got my first rads appoint for next Wen. Think its just for planning though. So its going to get really busy in determination over the next few weeks/months. Need lots of them there grits to build our strength up. By the way girls, only been on the tamoxifen 6days and hot sweats kicking in. Being a tight wad, I’m thinking of all the money am going to save on central heating and spending it on Meeeeeeeeeeeeee.
Hope everythings gone well for you today Gen. And all the very best of luck for you tomorrow Sal. be thinking about you and you’ll be home and resting before you know it.
Same to all the other ladies havingh their ops in the next few days. Very best of luck and rest well around the camp fire afterwards.
Cassey xx
Excellent that you’ve got your first rad Casey! I think it will be planning and not treatment, from what I’ve heard. No one told me about the tamoxifen hot flushes! Sheesh, does it never end? 
How are you feeling overall now that you’ve got treatment almost started?
I’m feeling a lot more confident about the fight, thanks Carole.
Casey, Mule, Blackjack, and PonchoCat neared the end of the ridge. They’d camped the night before, sheltering in a rock outcrop. Blackjack had fed the horses from what they carried with them, and the others had set the camp fire, Mule cooking up beans and coffee. Blackjack had settled down next to her horse, and the others had rolled themselves in blankets round the fire. All had gazed up at the clear night sky, lost in their own thoughts. Before they were Storm Riders they had been women with hopes, dreams, plans for the future. Now they rode the storm, heading for a future changed but so clearly still ahead. Mule rolled over in her blanket, setting her face towards the town. Tomorrow she’d drink to the future in Determination.
They woke with the dawn and started the climb down off the ridge. It was a scree slope, so they dismounted and, leading the horses, started the careful step and slide downwards. They were making good progress, the horses were calm, when PonchoCat stumbled in the loose material, falling against a sizeable boulder.
“Look out Mule,” she shouted. Mule glanced round and saw the boulder rolling towards her. She nimbly jumped out of the way and watched it bounce ahead.
“Careful there.” she shouted back, and turned to the slope again. She stepped forward and the scree moved suddenly, pulling her right leg away from her. She let go the reins and toppled backwards trying to get her footing, but the scree kept sliding. She fell and rolled, getting her legs caught in her coat, rolled again and managed to stand, but she was half running, half carried by the scree and had too much speed going to stop. Too late, she saw the fallen tree. “Ooooh, shiiii…” and she hit, managing to twist herself round so she fell backwards over the tree instead of breaking her knees.
The others watched as she disappeared over the tree, and didn’t get up. Fast as they could they reached the spot. PonchoCat held the horses, and Casey dropped to her knees.
“She’s breathing,” said Casey, and started to investigate for broken bones.
“Here, put this under her,” said Blackjack laying out a blanket. “She’ll freeze before she comes round.”
“Help me turn her over then.” Said Casey, and the three of them carefully laid her back on the blanket just as her eyes fluttered open.
“Oooof, where am I?” Mule muttered, and tried to sit up. “Aaooow!” she yelped and clutched her side falling backwards again. Casey ran her fingers down Mule’s side.
“If that’s not a cracked rib, you’ve got a heck of a case of indigestion, Mule”.
“Casey, you know about steam engines, not broken bones.” Replied Mule.
“I know a cracked engine casing when I find one. I’ll strap your arm to your side, and we’ll head into Determination and get the Doc to fix you up. Here I’ll help you.”
“I can get up myself,” grunted Mule.
So the three of them lifted her up, and while the air turned bluer than the sky above they managed to get her on her horse. Even more carefully they finished the descent down off the ridge.
Not long after, four Storm Riders crossed the town boundary into Determination.
“Howdy,” said Casey, tipping her hat to an elderly woman rocking in a chair on her porch. She had a blanket over her legs, and cup of steaming hot coffee in her hand. Her eyes were scanning across the prairie to the mountain pass and the desert beyond.
“Howdy there yourself, young ‘un.” She replied. She glanced at Mule. “You can stable your horses out of the cold with the blacksmith over there, and the Doc is a few houses past. Saloon is about middle way up the main street there. You four look like you need some rest.”
“Thank you ma’am,” said PonchoCat, and the four turned their horses in the direction of the blacksmith’s buildings.
Ten minutes later Mule headed towards the main street. “Hey Mule,” said Blackjack, “Doc’s this way.”
“He’ll be there later, I’m getting a drink.” And Mule strode on, boots crunching in the snow. Casey grinned. “Mule by name, Mule by nature” and followed her friend towards the saloon.
PonchoCat pushed open the doors and eight well worn boots sounded the fact that the Storm Riders were here.
“Took you long enough.” came a voice from a table off to the right, and Steel lifted another spoon of stew to her mouth.
“Steel, you made it!” laughed Casey. “Where’s Riviera?”
“Doc’s looking after her for a day or so,” replied Steel, “but she’s doing fine.”
“Bartender, five beers for me and my friends here. We’re mighty dry,” and Casey slapped some coins onto the bar.
“Make mine a martini,” said Riviera as she opened the door and moved across the saloon to the rest of the Storm Riders.
“A what?” asked the bartender, looking pretty confused.
Blackjack slapped Riviera on the shoulder and pushed a bottle of beer into her hand. “Drink the beer Riviera, you can explain the martini to him later.
Six Storm Riders turned round, hats pushed back on their foreheads, and leaned back against the bar, looking out of the windows as the snow started to fall again.
Mule raised her bottle, took a long swallow, shook her head slightly and sighed with relief as the beer slid over her throat.
“To Determination,” she said, lifting the bottle towards the street.
“To Determination” came the collective toast, and they drained the bottles and had the bartender set up another round. Well, five beers and a rather odd martini.
Encore, Enchore, Carole I dont know where you get your strength from but you are certainly an insperation to me.
Glad to be of assistance Casey! Hope you like how I’m writing you so far. Let me know if there’s anything you want included down the line. We’ve literally got months to go with this, and longer to get to the Border. I’m going to run out of ideas!
Howdy Stormriders
Tube well and truly inserted. I’m sore and bruised but unbeaten! Those pesky critters in Determination will need to do more than that to lay me low. In case anybody else gets sidetracked by this skirmish in the future here’s how it goes:-
Local anaesthetic and slight sedation, but I was fully aware of what was going on and the sheet WAS over my head but I could see out of the side and was watching the clock. Whole thing took about 45 mins - tube starts in the vein in my neck then runs out to just under my right collar bone (you can see and feel the tube running under the skin from neck to port, most odd) where the port is and from there it runs into my heart. The port just feels like a lump at the moment and is covered up by a dressing at the mo. So I have a cut on my neck and can feel the tube when I swallow (feels like there’s a piece of elastic running down my throat) then 2 cuts on my chest from where the port went in, and a few stitches.
It didn’t hurt. I could feel sensations of pushing and pulling and being stitched was a bit freaky because it felt as if he was sewing up old leather, I have a tough hide!! I only had about half of the sedation they’d got ready in the syringe and the whole thing has a sort of dreamlike quality to it now - I know we had a conversation at the start that I can only remember snatches of and I did have my eyes closed at times so maybe I did drift a bit during it. I was sensible enough to walk across the hospital afterwards though to get a chest x-ray to make sure the tube was properly positioned in my heart, back to the McMillan Centre to have the canula taken out, pub lunch then home for a sleep.
Now I’m sore and a bit multi-coloured, sore to swallow and to turn my head, but that’ll pass in a few days and then I should be spared the canula jabbing for chemo and needle sticking for blood tests. I’m having bloods done on Monday, so it will be inaugurated then.
So that’s me. Another battle fought and won. Best of luck for Calamity and Mule tomorrow. We’re all right with you ladies, as you’re wheeled down to that theatre we’ll all be riding along that corridor alongside you and we’ll be watching your back every second.
The Riviera Kid x
Howdy back Storm Rider. You rode that lightning like you were born to it. That doesn’t sound like the easiest of procedures and you walked it! Are you sure he wasn’t stitching you to your saddle? Well done and here’s a huge HUG! Ahem, of course Steel did that without any of the others seeing. Sleep it off and take it really easy.
Steel