Young Samson Loses His Hair

A couple of years ago, I wrote a blog post called Solidarity - to see if anyone else would shave their heads (donating their hair or not) to show solidarity with me and my hair loss 'adventure' soon after I began chemo treatments. Much to my surprise, there were quite a few of you that did just that and sent in pictures of your buzzed or otherwise-cut hair! The show of support from near and far warmed my heart and helped me feel a little less isolated with the beginning of my cancer journey. Thank you for that.

Joshua also wanted to be part of the crew that cut their hair, but he knew it wasn't long enough to donate - that, and I urged him to keep it long (so one of us could have some friggin' hair) and so he could eventually donate it to a great cause. And he did. About 3-4 years in the making, it grew quite long:

Oh boy! Look at all that hair!

He tried - unsuccessfully - several times last fall and winter to donate. It was still just a bit too short. This spring, he was getting antsy to cut it off.

So last weekend as he was getting out of the shower I said "How about we cut it off today?" And this was his expressive reply:----->

I took it as a "yes."   :)

And so the de-hairing Joshua project began.


But wait! First check out this short video of what we'd been contending with for some time. His long hair required more regular clean-up in our bathroom shower and floor. Eew! I'm sure we could have made several wigs with the drain catch hair by now:

Lookin' good.

As he said in the video, he was a "hairy mo' fo'!"

I felt privileged that he let me cut his hair. Just two years prior, he was the one that tenderly cut several ponytails of hair off my head and then gave me a buzz cut. I was up for the challenge and did a decent job, methinks.

Spousal bias makes me believe he looks great any way he has his head or facial hair. And it's true! As much as I knew I'd miss the long locks, it's like I had hubby v2.0 at first - how exciting! :)

Bye-bye, hair.
Hello, handsome!

Contrary to what happened when Samson lost his hair, Joshua seems to have gained new strength in embracing this drastic change. We all get attached to how we look, and it's both frightening and exhilarating when big change occurs. Whether the change originates from yourself or an external force, it's still something your mind adjusts to in some fashion.


We promptly filled out a hair donation form from the Locks of Love web site and sent his hair on its way to help out a child with long-term medical hair loss (stemming from any type of diagnosis). It filled our hearts to do something that we know will help another individual.

Getting packed up and ready to mail.

Joshua's new look.

Baby Did a Bad, Bad Thing

This is Tater (short for Tater Tot, because he looks like a fuzzy version of one). He is my mom's beloved Corgi. Tater stayed with us recently while mom was seeing incredible vistas (like the one below) and wildlife in Yellowstone National Park. 

Tater is an easygoing dog that LOVES to go on walks, likes to be in the middle of the action, and makes people of all ages smile. 

If Tater isn't on a walk or puttering around the yard, these are pretty much the Three States of Tater: 

So back to this quick story...

After going on a long walk with him on a warm morning, we got the brilliant idea to groom him. After all, wouldn't he feel cooler with a little less hair? Well...maybe we did just a little more than that. Enter Tater v2.0: the puppy revival!

Below this, you should see a video. 

Press the Play button to see Tater post-haircut.

Mom handled things like a champ. Whew!  :)

Lessons Learned*:

*somewhat excruciatingly

• Only groom your own animal.

• Dogs' coats are used to protect them from the heat, the sun, and bug bites.

• His hair will grow back.

• We can count on my Aunt Sandy and Jo for sound advice.

• Tater's ego does not depend on his looks.

• Research before doing something like this. Spontaneity can wait for other types of activities.

• Tater looks pretty darned cute now, if we do say so ourselves! 

Boerne (BUR-nee), TX

Last week I returned from a unique trip - one spent in Boerne, Texas! Jo was house/dog sitting and asked a handful of her friends to "come on down!" It was a great opportunity to spend some solid time with my chemosabes and appreciate the experiences we shared while there.

Here's a good ol' Texas-style roundup of some favorite pictures from the time there:

The day we arrived. A great view off the back patio.

Jo's charge: Oscar.
We liked calling him Oscar-doodle.
(The poodle.)

We made lots of meals together.

Check out the dishes! Mmm...

Goofin' off down at San Antonio's River Walk.

Steph and Liam strike a pose
in a display window.

Chit-chatting away at a coffee shop.

Got to sleep with someone besides Joshua. :)

Most afternoons we would snooze, email, read,
etc. when the energy low hit.

We're all in a picture!
L to R: me, Liam, Oscar, Steph, Jo, Dakota

Texas critters.

Hurry and...pose!

Liam: photographer, swimmer,
sports fanatic, and wasabi-pea eater extraordinaire!

We've wanted to have some fun pictures taken together.
Liam did a fantastic job of it!

Ooh-la-la!

Hit the San An Trader Joe's on
one of our airport runs.
We stocked up! 

At a German restaurant in Fredericksburg -
even waters are Texas-sized!

Zentangling is serious business, people!

Taking a ride in the back of the golf cart.
Liam is driving.

We stopped the golf cart at a great vantage point.
A spectacular sunset!

Our last evening with Jo before going back home.

Bye-bye, Lone Star State.
We tried not to mess with you too much!

Why Not?

Randall Munroe created the webcomic xkcd (he's also a former NASA roboticist and a is programmer). In June 2011, his fiancée was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. Several relevant comics resulted - I plan to share more. For today:

My doctor visits aren't ever quite this entertaining - but I've done my best!

This would've been a GREAT approach to try...

Direct link to xkcd page with this comic.

...and if it worked, I'd have quite the stack of neck bling by now!

1 Year Out: My Surviversary

On April 16, 2012 I received my last chemotherapy treatment. In the cancer world, especially for triple negative breast cancer folk, this date is important. (If you'd like the short version of why it is, please read Q&A #4 in the Oh No, You Di'int! post.)

So this April 16 was when I passed the 1 year mark. I thought ahead about the date. How do you "celebrate" a day you look forward to getting to each year without a recurrence? It's a positive date if all's gone well, but also frought with haunting memories and hopes for the future. Another weird mental space to arrive at and sit with!

A creative idea came to mind: what if I had an artsy expression of words outside that could also be seen inside? What if the art and words also had to 'survive' in a sense - aging with time and seasons, but always hanging on to their original meaning and purpose? I liked the idea of a colorful bunch of words - kind of like a living version of one of my old quote boards. Really, this funky little wire bird ------->
led to the final idea = write words, thoughts, expressions, quotes, mantras, and positive affirmations on ribbons and hang them from a couple of trees in our backyard.

I happened to be in Oklahoma this year on my official surviversary date. Before I left home, I packed up some random scraps of ribbon and a few Sharpie pens for a project to give a positive nod to an important day. My aunt, grandma, uncle, and mom all participated late at night just before we turned in for the evening. And here's what we did:

Some of the ribbons we wrote that evening.

I love being able to see the ribbons in the trees both inside and outside our home. They'll receive a beating weather-wise, and I think that's neat - kind of like Tibetian prayer flags. Their messages remind me of the important things in life. They remind me to keep my head in the game. They give me warm fuzzies on days when my spirit wanes. They're beautifully imperfect: like life. They get tangled up into a mess and then fly freely other days: like me. They're great. Such a simple project and something I'm wanting to expand and add to any time the spirit moves me!

The ribbons in our bare aspens. 

Ribbons are hidden amongst the aspen leaves. 

Some of our view from the bedroom.

Do you want to contribute to my surviversary project? If you do, I welcome it! Feel free to drop by to create one/some, drop 'em off, or send long ribbons with your own writings.   :)

I think it's sweet we held hands like this the whole time.

To honor the 1 year mark with Joshua, we met with Ann Martin of Mile High Healing Vibe, who provided us with a personalized gong bath! The vibrations resonated throughout our bodies and it was a really neat experience to receive sound together. Ann even had chilled sparkling cider and dark chocolate for us afterwards.

All in all, the way we nodded to the milestone felt great - not grandiose, but honoring an important passage of time.

Earlyish 2013 Pictorial Roundup

Much more than 2011 or 2012, this year has been full of fairly 'normal' happenings. I've been enjoying the nice change of pace and focus.

Physically, I'm still noticing that my energy level is not up to 100% (from where I was before the BC journey began), but I can tell an increase in my overall stamina as each month passes. It's a privilege to "just keep livin' " and I'm doing my best to take it all in!

Here are some highlights of this year so far:

*click images to enlarge pics*

January: 

Snowshoeing at Mueller State Park.
That's right - we stayed out past dark. Risky business.
Returned to the car at nearly 6:30, temp: 17F!

I enrolled in a beginner's stained glass class.
Only two students: me and Seth. Our instructor, Jennifer, was GREAT!
Hope to do some experimenting with stained glass in the garage this spring/summer.

February:

Joshua suffered SEVERE back pain most of Jan/Feb/March.
Official diagnosis: "cervical radiculopathy" at the C6-7 area.
He promises to write a blog post about his pain experience.
He felt like a zombie.
A lot was gleaned from this medical journey.

We visited Taos and stayed in an earthship.

March:

Raised a lot of greenbacks for the TNBC Foundation.
The Ta-Ta Times raised over $3.000 in donations and
 was in the top 10 fundraisers for this event - WOW!

*March simply doesn't exist in photo documentation, apparently. 

April:

Went to 9News with gal pal Stephanie for her interview taping session.
She is a BC warrior.
Click here to hear her interview and see more visuals of her journey.
She's got sparkle through and through!

Six weeks after Gramma Birch's total knee replacement surgery,
I flew to OK, rented a car, and knocked her socks off.
Don't worry - mom stood behind her 'just in case.'
It was SO fun to see the look on her eyes when she realized who was at the door!

Also got to see other family while in Oklahoma - and meet Emery...
the newest addition to the plentiful Bull family.
Brian must really love her...a pacifier in his mouth?!!
And homemade (by Nolton!) sweet biscuits for strawberry "shortcake." Mmmm...

Celebrated my 1 year surviversary!
(One year from the last chemo infusion I received.)
A big milestone that we nodded to on the day of. That's another blog post to come...

May:

We made it to Ithaca!
Had lots of fun adventures with Adam and Jeney -
including a naughty ice cream licking session. :)
A separate blog post with more pics from this trip to come.

We visited an earthship while in New York!
So nice of the owners to meet with us and let us tour their home.

Gerda came back from Cali to empty her storage unit.
A great excuse to have people over! We all used to work together in a past life.
Joshua made green juice - we played with the fiber ball!
And mandatory beers after everything in the storage unit was 'all gone.' Yay!
Loved having girlfriends over - lots of laughs, great discussions, and moments made.

These pics were discovered when emptying Gerda's storage unit.
Left: Gerda in all her glory.
Right: Gerda's mother, Rosemarie, hauling plants at their German nursery.
I love these photos.

Stephanie took a long-awaited dream vacation to Scotland with her older brother.
While she was gone, Jo and I had fun with her kiddos.
We went to soccer practice, played games, shot hoops, cooked, played "Jell-O" in the car,
made sure homework was done, and occasionally mitigated sibling spats.
Heidi and Liam have seemingly boundless energy and are delightful people to get to know.  

Yours truly is upping the ante on her exercise regimen!
Maintaining a healthy weight is important for many reasons -
including my overall prognosis.
Encouraged by a long-time friend, Rach, I'm using the Couch to 5K in 9 weeks jogging program.
Curious? Click here - and yes, there's an app for that!

No Words - Take 2

Well, I'm not quite sure what happened with my last post (user error!), but the link for the video wasn't the one I meant to link to! Glad I was stalking my own blog this morning and noticed. :)

I meant to share this video - PLEASE watch and listen:

Clouds - by Zach Sobiech

No Words

There are no words to describe the powerful message in this song and this magnificent young man, Zach Sobiech. Please watch and listen:

What will you choose to do today? 

Would you choose to live the same manner if you knew your days were acutely numbered?

Mantra: immune system

A fellow BC warrior shared this mantra/prayer with me while I was going through chemotherapy. I understood it then, but I appreciate it even more now that I know more about cancer, my immune system, and how both work in conjunction with each other. The correct balance of the two is of utmost importance!

"Please restore my immune system's memory 

to attack and destroy 

all cancer cells in my body."

Leapin' Lizards!

I feel like I'm flying the coop every time I leave the state!
It's exhilarating and nerve racking at the same time.
Armstrong Redwoods State Reserve - 2012

Three weekends ago I semi-secretly flew to Oklahoma to shock the socks off of Gramma; it worked! (A few chosen pics from that trip to come in a future post.)

Hip, hip...hooray! Time to get geared up again for the next trip: Joshua and I are headed to NY to visit Adam and Jeney in their neck of the woods. This is a redo from an attempted trip there last year that didn't pan out.

Lymphedema sleeve and gauntlet? Check.

Compression tank top? Medical ID bracelet? Check, and...check.

Everything smushed into a carry-on to avoid baggage fees? Check!

Let's GO!