Bob

Thanks, Harry and Robbie.

Actually, I'm in pretty good health. Cholesterol, triglycerides and blood sugar are all normal. They ran blood tests for all kinds of exotic diseases which all came back negative. They just can't figure out why I am passing out (they've excluded seizures and TIAs for the time being) and then there is this damn lump in my chest. I suspect the two are related or else I have an arrhythmia which was not picked up in the hospital because they had me laying in bed all the time. I had hoped the cardiologist would send me home with a heart monitor so they could check for problems while doing my normal routine.

Anyway, it's great to be back. I see a number of new people have joined and Chris continues pushing ocPortal to be always better. I need to get a few things caught up and then install v9A.

Bob

Welcome back Bob! I was expecting to hear about a vacation to Tahiti, not about a stay in the hospital.  

sholzy said

Welcome back Bob! I was expecting to hear about a vacation to Tahiti, not about a stay in the hospital.  

Tahiti would have been more fun but I can't complain as I was a favorite of the nursing and care staff. One of the nurse's assistants brought me in homemade lumpia….TWICE. Definitely tastier then the bland hospital food.

Bob

I was terribly saddened to hear about your recent health problems, Bob. I hope everything will turn out all right for you and that you can soon go back to your routine with a lighter mind.

Wishing you good health!

Jean

Thank you, Jean.

Life is a journey and we don't always get to choose the roads that we travel, but we do get to decide how we travel them. I choose to travel this road with dignity. I have great confidence in my doctors (although I may bring in a different cardiologist) so I am not too worried. As I mentioned, a number of my mom's sisters have had nodes on their lungs that were benign so the odds are in my favor.

My step-dad had colon cancer (the same cancer that killed his father) a few years back and he has bounced back with all the vim and vigor one could hope for – more actually. He is my hero and I plan that even if it proves to be the big "C" that I make the journey with the same determination and confidence to beat it that he did.

I suspect that I will be around these parts nagging people for sponsorships for many years to come, something for you all to look forward to.  lol

Bob

good thinking Bob, I have COPD with has to do with lungs to. My father died an cancer to 32 years ago, so I know how to deal with it.

Glad you're back Bob. I hope you're health issues turn out non serious and I am glad you're keeping your spirit well.

BTW what is Lampia?

Thanks for your kind words, Duck.

Lumpia is Filipino egg roll with meat - very yummy when made properly. For some reason, they call vegetable egg rolls "egg rolls".

I thought is was very nice of the nurses' assistant to bring the lumpia in for me twice. I actually gained a pound while in the hospital.

Bob

Thanks for the 'memories', Bob.

I've had Lumpia in two different parts of the world, Singapore and The Netherlands (where it is called loempia - I think - Harry will be able to confirm).

Amazing how a simple reference to a simple food item can bring back a flood of memories about two distinct instants in time!

 

Fletch-

I've travelled a fair number of countries and have always been amazed how strong my recollections of the  food were and how great a trigger they were for other memories as well. My parents are less adventurous than my sister and me with regards to food and I feel they have missed so much.

Bob

Fletch  says: I've had Lumpia in two different parts of the world, Singapore and The Netherlands (where it is called loempia - I think - Harry will be able to confirm).  yes in dutch it a Loempia  hmmm  You can have more sort of these lumpia, from chinese to Filipian Dutch loempia.. I love this food mostly in the evening  

My sister dated a Dutch Indonesian boy when she was in high school. I first had loempia then but my real favorite was always satey. I like most southeast Asian food. Then again, I like food. lol

Bob

Just a heads up for everyone.

I just got a call from my thoracic surgeon's office and there has been a change in plan. I was originally scheduled to have a mediastinal biopsy tomorrow morning as an out-patient. After further reviewing the latest CT scan and since I have had two failed needle biopsies, the doctor wants to make sure that he gets enough viable tissue this time and has decided to do a more invasive thoracoscopy (VATS procedure) on Thursday which will require I be admitted to the hospital for 1 to 3 days. This should be the last surgery I have since the mass in my chest is in a very precarious place and surgery to remove it is a very last resort. Since I don't have a portable, I will be incommunicado for this period. I would normally just go buy an iPad but, since I have all these co-pays I need to deal with, I'm not thinking that to be a wise choice.

I will be working on the project almost exclusively today and tomorrow.

Bob

Thanks for the update Bob, hopely everything will go like planned. We will see you after weekend back here.  

Plague the sisters not too hard     

Harry-S said

Thanks for the update Bob, hopely everything will go like planned. We will see you after weekend back here.  

Plague the sisters not too hard     

I should catch up pretty quickly. It took me about a day to get caught up on everything the last time and I was unavailable for 9 days.

I hope to arrive back to a bunch of good ideas and, hopefully, additional volunteers who can help with the project.

I plan to work (on paper) in the hospital provided they don't have me on pain-killers. At any rate, we will get back on track quickly.

Bob

Best wishes, fella.

 

Fletch said

Best wishes, fella.

 

Thanks, Fletch.

I'm not too worried about the outcome as all my doctors are at 90% or better that I have lymphoma. They just need this biopsy to confirm things. I am just anxious to get the results, and if malignant, to have the mass typed and staged and to get on with treatment.

Whether it is malignant or benign, I will have to have radiation which I have had and tolerated well for a cancer I had 16 years ago.

If it is malignant, I am fortunate to have good genes. Several people on my mom's side of the family have had to have chemo for cancer treatment and they all tolerated it pretty well, even back in the day when the protocols were much harsher. I suspect I will do the same and that it will have little to no impact on my involvement here or working on my site.

Thanks again for the kind wishes.

Bob

I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers, Bob.

psydoc said

I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers, Bob.

Thanks so much.

I suspect i will make a very speedy recovery. I'd say that I will give the nurses hell but on my last visit (which lasted 8 days), two of the nurses who had been there over 20 years told my mom I was the best patient they ever had. I'll probably be even easier to deal with if they have me on pain killers.  :0

Bob