Tom Faranda's Folly

2005

Well, a year that was really two tales. The first half was great – visits from friends we hadn’t seen in years (like Thom Hardy and his wife Mabvuto) – a great trip to Jamaica, where we had worked, met, and gotten married (our first trip back in 25 years, the introduction to Jamaica for our two sons, seeing people like Denis Hendricks and his family in Mandeville) – good school results for the boys.

And then I get this crazy Nephrotic Syndrome in July, end up in the hospital, and find out I’m have to go from “watchful waiting” with my lymphoma to aggressive chemotherapy.

But the terrible blow – not a shock or a surprise really, but terrible nevertheless – was my brother Paul’s sudden death at the end of September. After 40 plus years of really heroic struggle with congenital kidney disease and juvenile diabetes. He was and is a great example for the rest of us. For more on my brother, here’s the best I could do - Tom Faranda's Folly: Paul Faranda, 1958-2005

But “Hope Springs Eternal.” Paul’s probably sitting on his cloud strumming his harp and laughing at us all right now.  And there’s a good chance that in a couple of months my lymphoma issue will be behind me, at least for a few years.

And Joe and Tim are flourishing, and Brigid is doing well. So every reason to think that 2006 will be a great year. We will work like demons on the issues we think are important, have a good business year, see our friends, and have "a few beers, a few laughs, and nobody gets hurt.”

A little more on my January ninth hospitalization for three weeks

A few things to expand on from my last post.

I will be in isolation, but here's the set-up for the room: a desk, a built-in computer with internet access, a plasma TV and a DVD (not to mention, the bed and some chairs, cabinets, etc).

This all according to Dr. K. He told me after I asked if they'd finished moving the transplant service from the eleventh to the eighth floor. Yes they had, and those are the amenities.

Pretty amazing. I've never heard of any hospital with that kind of a set-up, even for private room patients (mine is not a private room - I will be the only occupant, but it is an isolation room).

I am not happy with the idea of needing morphine for several days in the middle of the three weeks. I am a minimalist when it comes to medicine and don't want to have to use the most addictive legal painkiller available. Hard to believe that mouth sores and a sore throat can cause that much discomfort. However the transplant service assures me that most people do need morphine, so we'll see. I'll certainly use it if needed.

I'm happy I got the OK to bring the dumbbells in for the three weeks - Dr. K said I could use them if I felt up to it. But now I have to come up with a dumbbell regimen that takes into account my always having IV's running into my port (below my left clavicle), as well as sometimes into a catheter that will be installed (probably near my right clavicle). And at times both will be running. I will have to do exercises where there's zero chance of me pulling out the tubing for the IV's. If I damage the port or catheter, well that would be a "dumbbell" move all right!

I asked Tim Thursday as he went to bed how he felt about my going into the hospital for three weeks. This was two days after we'd told Joe and Tim the news (see the post below. Tom Faranda's Folly: Telling the boys about my upcoming hospitalization). Tim said "I'm sorry I wont be able to use my paintball gun for three weeks. And uuhhh, I'm sorry I wont see you." Both Joe and Tim have been a little more clingy to me then usual, with Joe wanting to have a wrestling duel with me last evening. He doesn't do that too much anymore (being a sophisticated twelve year old!) so I take that as a clinginess symptom. And Joe, on vacation this week, hasn't tried to arrange any play dates -he's just hung around and either read or watched TV. However Tim - the socialite - has been out constantly, as is his custom.

I think things will go fine for the boys, though. They will be in school the whole three weeks, and we'll talk every day, so things will be cool.

I'll have to think of some incentive to get them to really perform well in school for those weeks - suggestions and ideas for an incentive reward program are welcome!

Just asked Joe "how do you feel about my being away for three weeks?" He said "Paaarrty! Sounds like a giant party to me. Vacation."

Well, that's a healthy response, but I better come up with a REALLY good incentive to get them to perform at school!

Date set - January ninth starts my Sloan Kettering three week stay

We met with Dr. Kewalrumani, today (after a two hour wait!) and things are now finalized, with my entering Sloan Kettering on Monday, January ninth.

Six days of high dose chemotherapy, the return of my previously harvested stem cells on day eight, and then we wait for my white blood cells to build back up to normal levels. If all goes well, I should be out around January 30th (or maybe a couple of days earlier!).

Dr. K went back over things, and it certainly seems that the second week will be tough, what with infections, and other nasty things going on. Evidently most people are on a morphine drip at that point, which tells you something about the pain and discomfort level. But it is a finite period of time - only a few days.

After discharge, I will have to cut back on my activities for two months. No large crowds, restaurants, etc. I asked him about going to the gym and he said "no." I suggested I could go at low peak times when their weren't too many people around, and he made the obvious point that people are using the machines, and dropping their germs off on them.

One of the main criteria for discharge is that your white blood cell levels be back to normal, but the WBC's are not the whole immune system. Hence the need to avoid infection, if possible.

Of course when you have nine and twelve year old children - well you can't avoid the possible infections they return home from school with, can you?

I feel pretty confident about the whole pending protocol. I keep reminding myself that the goal is to be symptom free from the lymphoma for five to ten years, the hospital stay is a finite time, and I have lots of people pulling for me and my family!

Pretty cool, really.

Latest Read - "the Armchair Economist"

I'd picked up on this book because the author reviewed another book on economics in the Wall Street Journal - and slyly slipped in a little promotion for his own book. So I looked his book up on amazon, read a few of the posted reviews, and bought it (second hand, of course).

The book was not great, merely all right. There are 24 chapters making varying points about economics, and they could be read independently or even in reverse order. The writing style is breezy and humorous, but the quality is uneven. Some very good chapters, with titles like "New, Improved football, how economists go wrong", and "the mythology of deficits". And also some real clunkers, like "Random Walks and Stock Market Prices: A Primer for Investors."

I was hoping this would be a book I could recommend to normal people for insight into economics (it's not called "the dismal science" for nothing), but I'm sure there are better books around.

DIGRESSION - The best short one volume book on investing and saving is still Andrew Tobias's book, "the Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need", first written over 20 years ago and most recenlty updated in January, 2005. 

Telling the boys about my upcoming hospitalization

Shortly after the Brusstar's left in the early evening yesterday (see post below) we called a family meeting.

We had refrained from telling the boys that the end of chemotherapy for me would be a fairly long hospital stay. We didn't see the point of burdening them, or giving them too much to think about way in advance, when we didn't even know the exact time frame ourselves.

Now whenever I suggest we have a talk or meeting, Tim will ALWAYS say "Am I in trouble?" and he was true to form yesterday. Joe's comment was "Is this bad news?"

After we settled down I assured them that the chemotherapy had gone extremely well. 99.99% of the bad cancer cells were gone, and the doctors were all extremely pleased. But now we had to do some additional therapy, to get the last "tough cells". Joe said "the last point 01 percent?" and I said yes.

To do that was going to require my staying in the hospital, but not just for two days, like before. I told them I was probably going to be in the hospital for about three weeks, starting in early January. Tim immediately said "Does this mean I can't use my paintball gun for three weeks?" and Joe said "Make sure you leave the password for iTunes with Mom!"

Sheesh! Here Brigid and I were concerned for months that they'd be upset, but the first thoughts are, paintball guns and downloading music! They didn't seem perturbed at all.

Which is good. I guess it means we've handled the past four months fairly well, for which Brigid gets full credit. Brigid thought after we went over everything with the boys, they might need some time to mull things over, and then ask some quiet questions. But 24 hours later, normal household situation, with nary a word about our talk.

Visit from the Brusstars!

We had a lovely visit yesterday from Dan and Kathy Brusstar, along with their three children, Joe, Suzanne and Mary Margaret. I have known Dan for about 15 years, and Kathy worked part-time for me, back when she was Kathy Thompson. And I am Mary Margaret's godfather.

I took a few pictures, and since since plenty of people visiting this journal know the Brusstars, I figured I'd post one. Now anyone knowing Dan and Kathy would ask the natural question, "Why in the world post a picture of Dan, when you could post one of Kathy?" An excellent question, and the only answer is "So I could also get my god-daughter in the picture."

NY Times on genetic studies to cure cancer

Good article in the NY Times. It is a little technical. Slowly, Cancer Genes Tender Their Secrets - New York Times

The link will be free for a week. If you would like a copy of the article after that, email me and I will send you the one I have archived in an email.

Four weeks after chemotherapy

My last chemotherapy ended four weeks ago today. Here's my post from the day I went in, complete with picture. Tom Faranda's Folly: In Sloan Kettering for RICE #2

Of course, I still have a lot more to go - the big session, commencing in early January. Tom Faranda's Folly: All systems GO for high dose chemo and stem cell transplant

But I am feeling pretty good right now. In fact I feel much better then I look (which isn't saying very much).  I went to the gym three days running last week - Thursday, Friday, Saturday - and had good weights workouts on Thursday and Saturday. And my cardio is starting to come back. I used the ellyptical trainer for the first time in almost three weeks and didn't feel too bad. This is a big improvement on the prior two weeks, when I really had to curtail my gym activites - down to three days a week. Before that, I had been getting to the gym five to six days a week.

My cell counts I'm sure are still way off, but they must be better then they were. The shot of Darbepoetin on Thursday probably helped boost my red blood cells.

I will go to the gym later today, ride the stationery bike and have a weights session. Our meeting with the transplant service is this Thursday, and then I'll get the date for my stay at Sloan Kettering. I expect it will start at the end of next week.

NY Times: Doctors and "keeping hope alive"

From the NY Times - Doctors' Delicate Balance in Keeping Hope Alive - New York Times

This article will only be avialable for free on the Times website until the end of the year. I have archived a copy and can email it to anyone who would like it.

Benedict XVI first Christmas address

A summary from the Washington Times - Pope issues call to battle terror, poverty - World - insider.washingtontimes.com

NY Times article on municipalities healthcare cost obligations; Washington Times on aging of America

It's incredible, but very few state and local municipalities have ever done the actuarial studies needed to determine what their future liabilities are going to be to their retirees. Or put it another way, the future liability of the taxpayers of the state or local municipality.

This New York Times article focuses on NY City, but it's true for virtually all municipalities in the country. Huge Rise Looms for Health Care in City's Budget - New York Times

This article will only be available for free online for seven days and you may have to register with the NY Times (it's free and easy to do). I have archived this article, if anyone wants it sent to them.

The Washington Times has a very comprenensive article on what the aging of America - as baby boomers hit their 60's - means.   America's starting to look a lot older - Nation/Politics - insider.washingtontimes.com   

You may have to rgister with the Washington Times (also free and easy) and the article will be online for quite a while, for free.

Christmas Eve

Spending the evening at home with one excited nine year old, and a twelve year old who's a little excited. And Brigid who's prepping a turkey for tomorrow

Go here to track Santa NORAD Tracks Santa 2005

Merry Christmas!

A thoughtful Washington Post editorial - "Legacy of Courage"

The Washington Post ran this editorial yesterday - it begins: "HERE IS A STORY of courage, hope and love, though you have to go backward in time from this Christmas season of 2005 to get to those things." A Legacy of Courage   

Postings and comments from other mantle cell patients, their family, and their friends

A bit more often then once a week, I have received either comments or email, or regular mail, from people who have been touched by mantle cell lymphoma. It's been fmaily or friends who've mostly contacted me.

I am not sure how folks have found me - possible through the link at the Lymphoma Information Network. They've had a link on their website to this journal for about two months. I am pretty sure it wasn't through a goggle search. I typed in "mantle cell lymphoma" on goggle last night and I didn't turn up in the first one hundred links. (DIGRESSION. Beware of medical information on web sites! Much of the info is out of date. Even a link on the Sloan Kettering site about mantle cell, which I followed up on yesterday, was last updated in January, 2001. My physician friend Paul Novotny warned me when I first was diagnosed and I told him I was going to look up the disease online - he said "don't do it! A lot of the data is old and inaccurate." I took his advice and as usual he was 100% correct.)

Here's a link to another web journal dealing with a person undergoing therapy for mantle cell. Journey Through Cancer I received a comment on my December 15th posting from one of her children, Lia, and we've exchanged emails. And Lia gave me permission to publicize the journal.

The journal is about her Mom, Faye, who is currently nine days post- transplant.   However she's had an aellogenic stem cell transplant - her brother was her donor. Much trickier than what I'll being doing, since I will simply have my own stems cells put back into me (an autologous stem cell transplant.) The goal in my transplant is to simply rejuvenate my own immune system, which will be brought low by the same chemotherapy we hope will clobber the last of my MC. The aim of Faye's tramsplant is to creat a whole new immune system (from Faye's younger brother). I believe the goal is for the new immune system to attack the MC. Very tricky.

So feel free to check in on Faye, and also say a few prayers for her and her family. Nine days post-transplant, and it's looking like she's about to turn the corner!

Got my "Darby" shot today

Darby is the short name for Darbepoetin, the red blood cell stimulating medication. My dosage was upped to 300 mg.'s (from 200) and the plan is to give me the shot every two weeks. This will probably pep me up.

I am feeling a bit fitter the last several days. But my endurance is still bad - still getting puffed going up the stairs, and have to cut back on the cardio in the gym. However Tuesday and tonight I did essentially all of my workout on the weights, and my back has felt OK for the last two days.

My Christmas shopping is done (with thanks mostly to LL Bean's and Amazon) and Judy and I have been scrambling to wrap up some work things before the end of the year, and before my pending stay in Sloan.

Also, finally got DSL in the house. I felt no urgency to get it, and (rightly it has quickly turned out) felt it would be a further distraction for the boys. You know, Play Station and TV aren't enough? However we got Tim an iPod for his birthday and downloading from iTunes almost requires broadband, so we broke down and got it. The cheapest plan we could from Verizon. So far it works well and it certainly speeds things up.

Christmas Party at Colleen’s

My friend Colleen Murray and I go back a long ways. I met her in 1975 when we were both teaching at the Catholic grammar school in Croton. I taught there for two years – math and science to grades 5 thru 8. The second year I was there, she was named principal.

I left for Jamaica after my two years, where I taught high school. Colleen actually came down for a visit with two friends, meeting my then girl-friend/now wife Brigid.

After my four years in the Caribbean (two Jamaica, two in the Cayman Islands) I came back to New York, and through an amazing coincidence ended up living only a few doors from the school I’d taught at. This is because it seemed the only place we could find that would take a dog, was a two family rental, at 109 Grand Street. (DIGRESSION – When I left for Jamaica, I was single, had just turned 26, and shipped two hundred pounds of stuff down – clothes, pots, pans, etc. When I left the Cayman Islands I had just turned 30 and shipped two thousand pounds of stuff back to New York, not including the wife and her big german shepherd, Feisty. There is some eternal truth buried in there.)

Colleen actually ended up with one of my wife’s german shepherd’s puppies (a litter born on Grand Street, after a forced marriage), a beautiful white shepherd she named Buffy.

Anyway, Colleen has always held a good-sized Christmas Party for her family and all the people she’s taught with. This past Saturday was her 29^th annual party. The faces have changed a bit, and some of the original crew is no longer with us, but it was a great time. Really excellent.

The home front deal was I went by myself, while Brigid stayed with the boys. Tough break for Brigid, who loves Colleen’s party (in fact loves all parties, and is much more in demand then me!) so I’ll have to make it up to her.

Some of the talk revolved around my lymphoma and chemotherapy, as well as around Colleen’s own recent surgery for cancer. Not exactly pleasant topics, but we both actually yukked it up quite a bit. Besides the company, the wine, food, and brandy alexanders were excellent.

Here’s a nice picture of Colleen – except for what appears at first glance to be a bird’s nest growing out of her head. It's actually a plant behind her. I’m not good enough with photo software to figure out how to eliminate it. Too bad Colleen, I'll have to try again next year.

Of eyelashes and eyebrows; backs and pain

I must admit, I really look like hell. Tim commented the other day "Dad how come around your eyes it's all dark? And you know your eyelashes are all gone." I said "No they're not." And he said "They're all gone on the bottom." So I checked in the mirror and he was right. Still had a few left on the top lids, though.

So I just checked in the mirror a minute ago, and I counted three eyelashes - one on the uper left lid and two on the upper right! The sole survivors! My eyebrows are also looking very thin (I know, some woman would like thin eyebrows), and I have dark circles above and below my eyes.

But the big thing is - as everyone including the Docs have pointed out in the last week - I am really pale. And I mean REALLY pale. This may be tied in to my low hemoglobin, I am really not sure.

But at least my back issue is clearing up. Went to the gym yesterday and after warming up on the bike, did about 85% of my weights workout. Cut back on the amount of discs I used on the back machine - by about one-third. I have found that if I tweak my back, but don't get back spasms, it's all right to go back to working the back after two to three days, but using lower weights. I should be able to work back up to my usual weight amount (that's only nine and a half discs on the nautilus back machine) by the time I go into Sloan Kettering for the three week stay. My thinking on this (and it's strictly my theory) is that keeping the back muscles strong (the little muscles that come off the spinal discs) may not prevent the odd back tweak or sprain, but will keep me from getting back spasms.

Anyway, that 's how its' worked for the past two years I've been using the back machine. Some back pain at times, but no back spasms and the pain has quickly cleared up.

On another physical point, my endurance is still way off - I get puffed climbing a flight of stairs carrying my laptop. A sure sign my blood cell counts are still low.

I had a great time at a Christmas Party last night, hosted by my friend Colleen Murray. Will post about it - along with pictures - in a day or so.

The Laffer Curve - Can tax receipts rise if taxes are cut?

Here's a link to one chart and a four paragraph blurb BuzzCharts: Jerry Bowyer on the Laffer Curve and the Tax Cuts of 2003 on NRO Financial showing how "supply side economics" works.

Cut taxes, the private economy grows, and that spurs additional tax revenues. What could be simpler?

NYT's John F. Burns on the Iraqi election

NY Times foreign correspondent John F. Burns has won two Pullitzer Prizes, and he is a great reporter and writer. (In 1986 the Chinese claimed he was a spy, and expelled him.)

Here's his column in the Times today:Freedom From Fear Lifts Sunnis in Iraqi Election - New York Times

Robert Kennedy, environmentalist - unless it spoils the view from the Kennedy compound in Hyannis Port

This is a a riot. Kennedy writes an op ed in the NYT explaining why he's against wind turbine farms at sea where they could be seen from Nantucket, Cape Cod, and Martha's Vineyard.  An Ill Wind Off Cape Cod - New York Times

An environmentalist, just Not In My Back Yard.

All systems GO for high dose chemo and stem cell transplant

We met with Dr. Zelenetz (the lymphoma guru) this morning. The tests I'd taken in the prior eight days - PET and CT scans, echocardiogram, lung function, bone marrow - are all good. So it looks like start date for the high dose chemo and stem cell transplant will be the first week af January.

We will see Dr. Kewalramani (Dr. K) on Dec. 29th for the final dates and more on the game plan. Dr. K will be managing my case for the next three months, as he is the transplant specialist.

I asked Dr. Zelenetz a question I'd been wondering about since one of our last meetings, when he said that the chemo I've taken had destroyed 99.99% of the cancer cells, and now the high dose chemo was needed to destroy the "tough" and "hardy" buggers. My question was "If the high dose chemo is going to destroy the toughest cancer cells, why didn't we just go straight to that protocol, since it would also kill the weaker CA cell?" His answer was "Because of the high volume of cells, you need the earlier protocols. Otherwise there'd be too many CA cells." Made sense.

My hemaglobin is still low at 8. So they will be giving me the Darby injection every two weeks (next one, next Thursday) to boost my red blood cell count. Of course this is the reason for the fatigue and poor cardio performance in the gym. And it is standard with this chemotherapy. I suppose it's also the reason I look so pale. Having almost no eyebrows or eyelashes doesn't help either.

And the tweaked up back (scroll down and see yesterday's post) is better. I will go to the gym tomorrow to ride the bike and do some stretching. Hopefully it will be almost gone by the end of the weekend. No back spasms, so that's good. 

Tweaked the ol' back

Yup. Few things worse then low back pain, and the exercise machine I've been using to keep low back pain away for two years, let me down this AM.

While using the machine, last repetition on the first set, I got that sudden rip all across my lower back. Stopped immediately, rested for a few minutes and then went home. I took a muscle relaxer called Skelaxin, and kept ice on it all day. It's pretty stiff and I am walking a bit funny, but at least no back spasms. So with a little luck, back will be OK in two or three days. The no back spasms is key. Will have to be careful not to do anymore damage (like slipping on ice, or wrestling with nine year olds).

I probably did two dumb things to cause this. My back was already a bit sore (don't know why) this morning, and I used the machine anyway, AND I personally have never liked doing weights in the morning. The other thing - last week I'd only gotten to the gym three times, and two of them were really only half sessions. That's my worst week since chemo started. Perhaps that was also a contributor.

Seeing Dr. Zelenetz the lymphoma guru at 8:30am tomorrow. After that, no more dates at Sloan Kettering until December 29th, when I see Dr. K. the transplant guy. Of course they may come up with some other tests to do between the two dates!

Technology outlook and Microsoft v. Google

Here's a pretty good NYT article summarizing the future for web-based technology and business services. Can This Man Reprogram Microsoft? - New York Times

This article may only be free on the NYT website until Dec. 18th.

Brigid's birthday today!

Today is Brigid’s birthday. She loves the fact that she was born on the same day as the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. AND, that Tim’s birthday falls three days earlier – on the Feast of St. Juan Diego. For non-aficionados of Catholic feasts, Juan Diego was the Mexican peasant who Mary appeared to at Guadalupe. If you’re interested, go here – Our Lady of Guadalupe: A Guide for the New Millennium - December 1999 Issue of St. Anthony Messenger Magazine Online

Or here.Guadalupe | Our Lady of Guadalupe | www.sancta.org

Now Brigid is a great girl. And among her MANY great attributes is one that not every one realizes – she is very tough. Very tough mentally. In fact the toughest 103 pounds anyone is likely to come across. She lived quite well on her own in Jamaica while teaching for five years, she’s been willing to get arrested and do jail time for her beliefs, and she’s put up with me for 26 years. And now she’s handling my lymphoma and treatment with great aplomb. Joe and Tim are crazy about her, and so am I!

Previous variations on "BUSH LIED"

A short op ed from the Wall Street Journal December 11th.

OpinionJournal - Featured Article

Here's the title and first paragraph:

None Dare Call it Conspiracy

We've been hearing variations on "BUSH LIED!!!!" for at least 60 years.

BY MORTON KELLER
Sunday, December 11, 2005 12:01 a.m. EST

Variations of "Bush lied" have been part of the political scene ever since America plunged into its permanent overseas embroilment in the Second World War. Reviewing that record won't settle the current dispute over how and why we got into Iraq. But it should remind us that George W. Bush's accusers are hardly walking in fresh snow.

Good news on stem cell collection

I had my first stem cell collection today – an auspicious day to start given the weather. I drove down to Sloan Kettering this morning through the heart of the storm, arriving a few minutes to nine, almost an hour late.

Now the good news, really good news, is that I don’t have to go back for further collections. I got a call from Kelly – one of the RN’s running the program – late in the afternoon. The total cell collection goal is 5 million, and they had collected 13.5 million cells. It sometimes takes up to five collection sessions to reach the 5 million goal, but I am done after one. My appointments for Sunday and Monday are both scratched and it means I also don’t have to worry about going to Sloan for possible collection appointments on Tuesday and Wednesday.

So suddenly my trips to Sloan next week go from a possible four days, down to Monday afternoon/evening, and Thursday morning. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings are freed up for me to catch up on business.

The actual collection process is pretty interesting. IV’s are put into both arms – the right arm is for outflow of blood into a machine with a centrifuge called (I think) a Kobe spectra, and the left arm is the inflow arm. After the blood gets centrifuged and the cells separated, back it goes into your body via the left arm. You have to be very careful about not moving the right arm, but the inflow arm you can use, as long as you don’t overdue it. You also can’t get up while the session is underway – you are lying in bed. When I asked about trips to the bathroom, the nurses said, “use the bottle”, which was a big motivator to head to the bathroom before getting hooked up.

The centrifuge machine isn’t very big and is right next to the bed. And of course it has a digital readout telling you everything you need to know. My session took exactly three hours, to the minute.

Kelly let me have a good look at the machine after I was done. The actual centrifuge is housed in at the bottom, in a kind of closet or drawer. It isn’t very big – looks like a large pot with an arrangement at the top, to allow for the tubes that hold the blood.

Kelly also told me the machine was invented in the 60’s by a scientist (Kobe?) whose daughter had leukemia, resulting in her body producing too many white blood cells. So here’s an example of a technology innovation for one situation, which also solved a problem for other needs. 

I headed out of Sloan a little after one o’clock. The Sun was shining and the streets were clear, although wet. The drive home was under an hour, quite a change from the trip in.

So an excellent result, with up to four collection sessions eliminated. And as a bonus, Dr. Reich, the hematology Dr., had come in during the session to tell me she’d just read my bone marrow done by Dr. K. on Wednesday, and it was completely clear of mantle cell and CLL. This was expected, but still good to hear.

Tim Faranda - nine years old today

My younger son Tim had his birthday today. He actually started celebrating last evening when my mother was up. That’s when I took the picture below.

Now Tim is a real boy’s boy. Which is to say: very athletic, quite funny, sassy to the point of being fresh, and a bit of an underachiever at school. (This may not be everyone’s definition of a “boy’s boy.”)

Tim had his “breakout” game in basketball last weekend. He just started to play in the CYO league, and it was his third game. He suddenly figured things out, started to get rebounds, played defense and scored five points. Five points may not sound like much, but it is a third grade team, playing on a full-sized court, and the whole team only scored 11 points (which is two more then the other team scored).

Tim had very good football and baseball seasons this past year, and could end up being one of those all-around high school guys who “letter” in three or four sports. Do they still give out “letters”? Am I dating myself? Need some help here!

Anyway, he’s a great kid and he had a great birthday because he got an iPod. His parents are still trying to figure out if they were crazy to get that kind of a gift for a nine year old (and his older brother is a little miffed about it!) but he really had never gotten a big gift, and Joe has a laptop, so there you go.

Of course Tim now wants to load the thing up with tunes from this guy “50 Cent.” That wont be happening on my shift! 

Two eventful days at Sloan Kettering

Yesterday, Tuesday December 6^th, I met Dr. Kewalramani (henceforth to be referred to as Dr. K!) who will be the lead physician on the high dose chemo and autologous stem cell transplant which is the next and last step in my chemotherapy treatment.

The MSK stem cell and bone marrow transplant service is evidently a separate department. Dr. Zelenetz will be handing me off to Dr. K for the prep, the actual hospitalization, and the following two months after the hospitalization. Highly specialized stuff!

Because this is an extended post, I’ve tucked it away. Click just below to read the rest!

One week after RICE #2

It’s Monday morning and I got out of Sloan a week ago, last Monday evening. Things are going almost identically to how they went after RICE #1. Pretty fatigued three to five days after the chemo, and then gradually feeling better.

I went to the gym yesterday in the late afternoon, rode the bike for about 16 minutes to warm up, and then did the full weight session and some stretching. Of course a bit breathless, so I took more than my usual 40 to 60 seconds between sets.

This week I am seeing the transplant physician Tuesday afternoon, and having my first “cell collection” Thursday morning. The collection is for my stem cells and works something like this: IV-type things in both my arms (no use of the port for this), blood goes out one arm, into a machine that separates the cells, and then back into me through the other arm. I’ll be sitting on some sort of couch for the three to four hours this will take. Not exactly fun, fun, fun.

Looking to put in a pretty full session at the office today.

Latest Read - "The First Salute"

I finished Barbara Tuchman’s book on the American Revolution, The First Salute, a couple of days ago. It’s not up there with her very best books (The Guns of August, A Distant Mirror), but I really enjoyed it.

The title refers to the “first salute” that the new American flag received. It was given to a ship flying the red and white stripes entering the harbor of St. Eustatius (controlled by the Dutch) in the West Indies, on November 16, 1776.

This is not a standard history of the Revolution. The beginning of the book focuses on the West Indies, and she gives an extensive history of the Dutch and their history and involvement in Continental politics. And she ties this in with the Revolution. Also, there are several long biographies of key people who we don’t often hear about in histories of the fight for Independence. Like the English Admiral Rodney.

The last third of the book is about the build-up and final campaign, culminating in the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown. To trap Cornwallis, a hundred things had to go just right for the allies (Colonies and the French) with no margin for error. Astonishingly, they did. And it helped that British leadership was inept. 

While the book’s chronology is somewhat confusing, Tuchman’s narration and writing are wonderful. A good book if you are looking for some of the overlooked aspects of the Revolution. I mean who knew that Admiral Rodney’s prostate problem was a decisive element in allowing the French Admiral de Grasse to seal off Cornwallis at Yorktown? Who Knew?

Wikipedia online encyclopedia dishonest? Say it ain't so!

Here's a scary article. I mean if you can't can't trust the internet... !?!?  Wikipedia is "the biggest encyclopedia in the history of the world"   Snared in the Web of a Wikipedia Liar - New York Times

I have actually used Wikipedia, and found it to be pretty decent. And it's obviously begin used by lots of people - if you do a google search for atopic, ti's frequesntly near the top of the list.

Friday night - four days after RICE #2

Thursday and Friday were quiet days – the fatigue was in play! Did get to the gym this evening for a brief bike ride (14 minutes - just to warm up) and then did about 75% of my weights program.

As always, felt good after the gym.

Tim reminded me that he had to watch me give myself the injections Saturday morning!

My two boys are very different. Tim was going on this evening about buying a “paint ball jacket” and “paint ball pants” (Yup, we’re crazy. Tim convinced us to buy him a paintball gun six months ago. He can only use it to shoot at some targets in the backyard, with our supervision. Joe enjoys it also). Presumably so he can take part in paint ball battles or competitions. Nyet.

Meanwhile Joe (seventh grade) tells me about a debate he had in class today.  Whether industrial workers in the north were better off during the Industrial Revolution, then slaves were in the south. Hmmm. Pretty good question! Typical Joe kind of question – he didn’t think they were.

The Prez and Iraq

Henninger’s column, in the Wall Street Journal, entitled “What, Me Worry?” on why the administration has offered feeble defense for their Iraq policy, while getting clobbered by the Dems opposition.OpinionJournal - Wonder Land

As a bonus, here’s Sen. Lieberman’s op ed in the WSJ a couple of days ago on Iraq.  OpinionJournal - Featured Article

Death penalty and other killing

From the Washington Post, after the 1,000 execution in the U.S. since death penalty was reinstated in 1976, an article on the declining support for execution (good!). More in U.S. Expressing Doubts About Death Penalty

And here’s another column with another twist on killing, off NRO.  A jarring comparison.National Review Online (http://www.nationalreview.com)

Three days after RICE #2, fatigue sets in!

The fatigue pattern from RICE session #2 is very close to what it was for RICE #1. Here's what I posted 72 hours after RICE #1 Tom Faranda's Folly: Nap time.

The pattern is very similar. This morning I worked out of the house for a couple of hours, and went to the office for an hour in the late afternoon. Otherwise I took it easy. No gym today. After the first RICE session I started to perk up around day seven, so I expect it will be about the same this time. Will try and get something done in the gym tomorrow.

I am not having any trouble giving myself the injections of Filgrastim (Neupogen). My soon-to-be nine year old, Tim, is dying to watch me do it. He'll have to wait 'til the weekend to see!

The immigration conundrum

A pretty good editorial in the Washington Post yesterday - Let the Debate Begin -- Again

Times: NY State Repugs have problems

The Republican Party in NY State sold out on their principles years ago. And when you have no principles, here’s what happens.G.O.P. Dispute Over Pirro's Bid Grows Fiercer - New York Times