Family Gathering

So when I had chemo the first time, the first doctor I had explained I would do three treatments of chemo taking Adriamycin  and Cytoxan every three weeks. And then I would take three treatments of Taxol every three weeks. The first combination caused me incredible problems.  I had no idea I could be that exhausted. I could hardly move the third day.  One time I considered falling off the bed and crawling on the floor like an inch worm to get to Paul in the other room and thought that would freak him out. So I walked over and thought it was much easier not to get out of bed. Also smells were horrible, as were tastes. I could hardly eat. Toast was the easiest. It would slowly improve until we repeated this. Ugh!  I had been hearing that Taxol was the worst, that you ached all over. Though the first time I went through this I did ache so much.  I didn't think it was so bad.  It was like bad arthritis to me. Also, I made up for eating. I wanted tacos so much that I made and ate six tacos!  You would have thought I would have lost a lot of weight, but I moved like a slug so I did not lose weight. Of course, when I upped my taco intake, I did gain weight.

At the time Paul died, my cancer had metastasized to my neck. Stage IV.   I also had a couple of spots in the mediastinum (partition separating the right and left thoracic cavities).  They made it clear that anything done were for comfort measures only. So psychologically I was devastated.  They made a type of mask for my face to pin me down while I had radiation. I had a sense of panic each day I was pinned down, however the time in it was seconds. The only bad reaction I had from this was incredible itching. This was worse on my neck. I ended up getting the maximum dose of radiation and this is no longer an option for me.  

Three years later cancer had moved to a lymph node, about the size of a quarter. I now had Kaiser Permanente.   My doctor wanted to do the same chemo but I nixed Adriamycin and Cytoxin. I'm not willing to be that sick again. So I did agree to Taxol since my memories of that weren't so bad.  He also told me, in addition to being Estrogen Receptor Positive, I was also HER2 Positive.  This was a plus because the chemo drug Herceptin was for HER2 Positive Cancers and was amazingly effective.  So I'm taking the Taxol and I hurt really bad all over. I keep upping the pain meds (with the doctor's permission).  Every week I asked for more pain meds and was miserable through all this. It felt like my pain level just kept going up. The Herceptin was not a problem. It can lead to heart problems, but my heart is scanned every three months.  No problems. 

So when the cancer comes back another time, I nix Taxol. He said I would stay on what ever we do until I die or until the cancer comes back. Okay, if I'm not going to get better, I'm not taking stuff that makes me feel lousy. Why?  It doesn't make sense to me. I am doing the Herceptin.  As long as I feel okay, I'll do this.   I share this because I have been asked why I wouldn't take certain medications.  I hope this gives you an idea why cancer patients would refuse some meds.

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I went to a group run by Norma Neil on using pastels making abstract art at Art for Healing.  It was a lot of fun and relaxing.  But I needed to go home and lie down. I was going to go to the women's writing group, but my sense was that I would be in even more pain. I'm trying to get so much done. It is frustrating not to be able to do all these things I used to do. 

My class with Carol Bradshaw was focused on doing washes, using salt for different effects and how to take advantage of it. It is like looking at a Rorschach test which is an ink blot and asking people to identify what they see in it.   We were seeing flowers in what we looked at.  The rocks I tried to paint were pretty poor. Now we are painting bell peppers in a green monotone.   Carol sent me an email saying I'm doing the best washes yet. Here they are.

I had things I needed to take care of but I needed help in getting them done. I did as much as I could, but my back just gets worse and worse.  My grandson Billy helped me in getting a new hose for my propane barbecue and several other chores. It was a relief to have these all done.   Then I went to Visalia for the Helping one Was man Dinner. It was a smaller event this time but pleasant. The woman selected for next month sounded very similar to me. She also pointed out how people find it hard to believe she could be going through so much which has been the same reaction I got. 

I spent the night at Martha's home and we had breakfast at Susan's home. It was delicious and of course great company. I changed my hair appointment to not cut this short, but when I got there Lisa was not well and we rescheduled for next week.  I decided I needed to get home to get in a prone position. I did contact Kaiser through the Internet to renew my pain meds but for some reason it wouldn't allow it and said to call the pharmacy.   I do have an appointment at the pain clinic, but the earliest appointment is not until March 20.

This weekend, my brother-in-law Brian came Saturday and is going home today. We had a great barbecue in n Saturday with Shelley's and Jennifer's families with the girls boyfriends. Wonderful gathering, great food and talk. Today, we made a breakfast casserole and fruit salad. Shelley and Brian identified people in old pictured. Great time and hoping he come more often than every 4 1/2 years. Here are some pictures. 

Crystal and her boyfriend aren't in the picture, they left and Allysa's boyfriend took the picture

Brian, Paul's brother and Shelley

Kevin reading Harry Potter in a Hammock I just put up.
Great spot!

Shelley showed me a couple of stories my grandson Kevin did.  He's a writer! Here is one of the stories

Here's an article about planning ahead. 

http://www.pallimed.org/2015/02/10-practical-things-to-do-when.html?m=1

Here is a poem that is worth thinking about:

CRABBY OLD WOMAN

When an old woman died in the geriatric ward of a nursing home in Moosomin, Saskatchewan, it was believed that she had nothing left of any value. Later, when the nurses were going through her meager possessions, they found this poem. Its quality and content so impressed the staff that copies were made and distributed to every nurse in the hospital. One nurse  took her copy to Alberta.

The old woman’s sole bequest to posterity has since appeared in the Christmas edition of the News Magazine of the St. Louis Association for Mental Health. A slide presentation has also been made based on this simple, but eloquent, poem.

AND THIS LITTLE OLD WOMAN, WITH NOTHING LEFT TO GIVE TO THE WORLD, IS NOW THE AUTHOR OF THIS ‘ANONYMOUS’ POEM WINGING ACROSS THE INTERNET

CRABBY OLD WOMAN …

What do you see nurses? .. .. .. What do you see?
What are you thinking .. .. .. when you’re looking at me?

A crabby old lady .. .. .. not very wise,
Uncertain of habit .. .. .. with faraway eyes?

Who dribbles her food .. .. .. and makes no reply.
When you say in a loud voice .. .. .. ‘I do wish you’d try!’

Who seems not to notice .. .. .. the things that you do.
And forever is losing .. .. .. a sock or a shoe?

Who, resisting of not .. .. .. lets you do as you will,
With bathing and feeding .. .. .. a long day to fill?

Is that what you’re thinking? .. .. .. Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse .. .. .. you’re not looking at me.

I’ll tell you who I am .. .. .. as I sit here so still,
As I do at your bidding .. .. ..as I eat at your will.

I’m a small girl of Ten .. .. .. with a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters .. .. .. who love one another.

A young girl of Sixteen .. .. .. with wings on her feet,
Dreaming that soon now .. .. .. a lover she’ll meet.

A bride soon at twenty .. .. .. my heart gives a leap,
Remembering the vows .. .. .. that I promised to keep.

At Twenty-Five, now .. .. .. I have young of my own

Who need me to guide .. .. .. a secure happy home.

A woman of Thirty .. .. .. my young now grown fast,
Bound to each other .. .. .. with ties that should last.

At forty, my young sons .. .. .. have grown and are gone,
But my man is beside me .. .. .. to see I don’t mourn.

At Fifty, once more, .. .. .. babies play ’round my knee,
Again, we know children .. .. .. my loved one and me.

Dark days are upon me .. .. .. my husband’s now dead.
I look at the future .. .. .. and shudder with dread.

For my young are all rearing .. .. .. young of their own.
And I think of the years .. .. .. and the love that I’ve known.

I’m now an old woman .. .. .. and nature is cruel.
‘Tis jest to make old age .. .. .. look like a fool.

The body, it crumbles .. .. .. grace and vigor depart.
There is now a stone .. .. .. where I once had a heart.

But inside this old carcass .. .. .. a young girl still dwells,
And now and again .. .. .. my battered heart swells.

I remember the joys .. .. .. I remember the pain.
And I’m loving and living .. .. .. life over again.

I think of the years, all too few .. .. .. gone too fast.
And accept the stark fact .. .. .. that nothing can last.

So open your eyes, people .. .. .. open and see,
Not a crabby old woman .. .. .. look closer .. .. .. see ME!!!

Remember this poem when you next meet an older person who you might brush aside without looking at the young soul within.

We will all, one day, be there, too!

PLEASE SHARE THIS POEM
The best and most beautiful things of this world can’t be seen or touched. they must be felt by the heart.

Thank you so much for reading.  I was thinking of writing some of the experiences that Paul and I had traveling.  Some are very funny, some just different.  Let me know what you think of that.  Traveling with Paul was a wonderful thing.  I loved it.  And, there are some great stories to tell! So I will see you next Sunday.  I hope you have a good week.           Rachel

Finding the Humor Wherever You Can

When I was going through so much, I just wanted to cry, and I did a lot of that. But, underneath all this, I was also finding humor within me and what was happening to me and around me.   I had outpatient surgery at a free standing clinic for mostly eye surgeries where I had my left breast removed. I became aware of what was going on when I was sitting up saying I had a lot of pain. When they asked me how was the pain on a scale of one to ten, I said three because I didn't want to exaggerate my pain (though three was not even realistic!)  Well they all ignored me and did not want to give me anymore pain medication. I was so angry, but I put myself in that spot.  They brought my husband Paul in and when he was there, they showed him these two plastic balls filled with blood.  He immediately fainted and they pushed him into this armchair, put him on oxygen and broke an ammonia ampule under his nose. He kept saying "I can't, I can't". They just wanted me out. So I said to Paul, "Please take me home.  I want to get out of here."  Paul took me home and felt overwhelmed with what he had to do. He had to "milk" the blood to clear out the tube to measure how much blood came out before emptying the contents so we could check when the blood was slowing down.  A friend of mine who was a nurse,Stephanie,  came over to show Paul how to do it.  Paul had been sitting in the living room fortifying himself with a drink. Later when I called to Paul to help me with this I put out my hand to turn the bedside lamp on. Paul says, "No, I think this is better done with low light."  I had pinned the tubes to my underwear so the weight of them would not pull down and hurt more. I needed to pee and Paul helped me to the toilet.  Each move I made I felt the pull of my muscles which pulled on my skin making the wound from the mastectomy hurt more.  When I was getting off the toilet, Paul pulled my underwear up so fast, it pulled into my butt crack. I looked at him thinking 'What are you doing?' Paul said, "You don't like a wedgy?"  I would say I certainly didn't feel sexy then. 

Later, when my hair started falling out, I went to a salon to have my head shaved. My hair prior to the shaving looked very patchy. I thought that looked worse than my head being smooth. Paul was away doing a contract job in Macao, so I was on my own for two or three weeks. When I went into the bathroom and passed the mirror, I always took a double take.  I never did get used to the person I saw in the mirror.  I tried, but it wasn't how I saw myself. I felt like she was a stranger. 

The American Cancer Society had a class on how to put on makeup when you lose all your hair (and I mean ALL your hair). I felt I had to draw on a face because there was little to distinguish the front from the back.  I wanted people to know I was facing them. They discouraged eyeliner for fear we would get it in our eyes.  I felt my eyes disappeared with no makeup with no lashes or eyebrows left. They gave us each a box of makeup complementary from makeup companies. 

So when you live with uncertainty, it helps to live in the here and now, do the things you want to do and have a sense of humor to help keep it balanced. 

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I had lunch with three friends, Janet, Lisa and Charmaine at Narducci's which is a bar/restaurant that the owner got angry at the manager  and closed the place.  She recommended her restaurant  Pyrenees Cafe to a man who has a show checking out hole-in-the-wall places to eat. Well, obviously it is open again. Pretty tasty and the price is reasonable. The music is too loud, but you need to remember that it's primary purpose is a bar. I liked the pickled tongue but I prefer it more garlicky. So it might be a matter of taste. Next time we'll go to Pyrenees Cafe. I want to check out how all of them do their pickled tongue.  That's the key to me. 

I actually had two pictures to show at my class. She liked them. She saw them as playful. Her recommendation for my butterfly picture was to make the flower petals look more separated. (These pictures were in my last blog). This class, we worked on washes again, but this time sprinkling salt on them, deciding which salt.  We are also painting rocks using the salt to give the stones a porous look.

I had an MRI this week on my lower back which I broke two years ago. I still have pain here. I had been asking for other pain Meds. My primary doctor had looked up the write up on the PET scan and said that it had recommended an MRI which had not been done. I think she was checking to see if the cancer spread.  Well it hasn't, which is very good. She is referring me to the Pain Clinic for the possibility of getting Methadone to control the pain better. 

After this test, my friend Barbara and I went to the Auto Club to hear a talk from a tour company Trafalgar. Barbara and I decided to take a trip to London, Ireland and Scotland. We put it off until April or May of 2016. I need to save enough money. Being that I don't know what will be happening then, I will get insurance for trip cancellation and health as I have for most of my trips. It becomes more important as time goes by. 

I'm going to have an endoscopy at the beginning of March because I have had ongoing stomach pains which I have taken Tums to relieve the pain. This has caused more problems recently (I have overdosed on Calcium!) and now I am taking OTC Prilosec to cut down on the Tums.  Whenever I'm going to have surgery or a procedure which might include cutting, I let the Anticoagulation Clinic know because I can't take Warfarin for five days before the procedure. So I was contacted that I will have to have two injections a day of Lovenox which I will do myself during this time and about the same amount of time after the procedure. I did this initially when I developed the blood clot, but made it clear then I wasn't willing to do this ongoing.  So I'm thinking "It's very short term!"   Ugh!

There were no issues at Chemo this week. I usually read sitting there and play games on my iPad. 

The heating element in my oven for baking broke.  This is the original oven and they don't make ovens this small anymore. It is built-in which would require cutting the cabinets and fashioning a new cabinet to accommodate a new oven. I'm not willing to pay for that now so I bought  an oversized toaster oven from Black & Decker that is a convection oven, broiler, toaster and warmer which works for me. I had to move cookbooks to make room on the counter. It was very reasonably priced. 

I will be giving a talk for a fundraiser for Avon in Visalia March 7, 11 am to 2 pm. My daughter Shelley and my friend Janet will be going with me. It's at the Lamp Liter Inn. The cost is $25. Here is a promotion of the event. 

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=1614453522106840

There was a very interesting documentary on PBS Frontline entitled "Being Mortal" based on the book with the same name by Atul Gawande. We have the belief that being competent is being able to fix it. But they can't fix old age and dying. It is very difficult to have the discussion about death and dying while holding out the hope that you will be the one to beat it.  I downloaded the book to my Kindle and will read it. It was highly rated. Listening as well as talking is important. Need to ask what it means to the person going through Cancer.   Doctors generally feel like failures when they can't cure it.  Too bad, because there is a lot they can't cure. Here is the connection on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Being-Mortal-Medicine-What-Matters-ebook/dp/B00JCW0BCY/ref=cm_sw_em_r_awdcod_81p3ub1F1T0YG_im

Here is a recent picture of Conner. He is really cute and growing like a weed!

So I'm seeing the cutest pictures of dogs that cuddle, well my kitties cuddle too!

Daisy trying to reach my face

Pepper pulled herself up after sliding backwards off the chair

Well thank you for reading.  I hope you have a good week and I'll see you next Sunday.  A lot is happening this coming week (what's new?)                Rachel

Life in the Fast Lane

I was thinking about when I found the lump in my breast in December of 1999.  Paul and I had gone to visit my daughter and her family in Texas.  I slept poorly in the hotel room we got.  The mattress was a foam mattress and I was trying to find a good position.  I ended up sleeping on my stomach which is not the way I usually sleep.  When I awoke, I felt very sore, I felt my left breast and felt a lump.  I never had noticed anything like that before.  I didn't bring it up until we were at another hotel by the airport the night before leaving.  I told Paul and he felt it.  He was very alarmed and accused me of ignoring it.  I told him I wouldn't do that.  He said, "You need to see the doctor as soon as we get back".  It was actually kind of strange.  He was very upset and became angry I think because there was nothing he could do to fix it.  When we got back I called right away and had a mammogram the following day.  I could sense there was an issue because the technician became quiet.  She left the room and when she came back she said the doctor wanted another test.  I don't recall what it was at the time, but I laid on a pad with water below.  My breast was in the water.  So somehow they took pictures this way.  I was called the following day by my doctor who said he wanted me to see the surgeon that day.  I have to say this was all freaking me out, but if you were to look and hear me, you would think I was very calm.  I had a lumpectomy the following week on a Monday.  I was told they didn't get it all and that I needed a modified radical mastectomy.  The thing that really sticks in my mind is how dysfunctional I became as I was going through all this.  I didn't think clearly and I was an emotional basket case.  Though I did find humor at times through this whole process,(I'll share some of that next week}, my baseline was fear, anxiety- on the verge of hysteria.  I felt I was going to die anytime and I didn't feel I had the energy or the head to handle problems.  I felt I needed a social worker (I'm a social worker) to help me deal with problems.  Really, I was always very good at doing this, but when it is yourself, all that goes out the window.  I was amazed at my inability to deal with all this when I was quite good at doing it for others.  So I really do understand when people are going through all this in the beginning.  It is very frightening and overwhelming.  I thought cancer was cancer.  I had heard some things, but never learned it.  When it is you, you finally start to get the idea. Also, I really didn't want to know that much about it at the time.  It was like the more I knew, the more it is real.  Ugh!

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I was invited to join a group of women called WeSpeak: Women's Story Circle.  In addition to sharing ourselves, there was drumming, dancing, stretching and writing. There were many women from teen to late 60s. So I joined at the second meeting. This is a safe place for women to open up with much support from everyone. I think this will make me braver in sharing what I go through, because I'll hear how others see their experiences and I expect I'll pickup on the universality in these experiences. My only concern is over committing myself because I physically hurt much more if I don't work in enough breaks. Everybody was okay with me sitting on an ottoman while they sat on the floor and when exercising that I did much less than they did. The woman who was leading the exercises said using my imagination by seeing myself doing the moves would help me.  So we put in a word to complete a sentence about ourselves and then it be came a poem. This is mine:

I am honest and caring.
I wonder what's around the corner.
I hear purring
I smell Cedar.
I want to travel.
I am honest and caring.
I pretend I feel well.
I feel happiness.
I touch my kitties
I worry about arguing.
I am grateful to read.
I am honest and caring.

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So I returned to my art class with Carol Bradshaw having lightly drawn the pictures. I ended up having this really neat tool called a ruling pen. Where my lines are very uneven and shaky, this allowed me to put it on more evenly. Wayne, my fellow student, figured it out right away. Carol said you can use with paint too. You can make you lines with different widths. It would be great for doing grass. So I finished applying the mask so it wouldn't run into other areas. Carol cautioned that it would make a hard line and to keep this in mind.    I should have drawn the buildings using a ruler, but it makes it very much mine without the straight lines.  Here is what I have done. 

Boats at the Marina

Butterfly and Flower

I saw an optometrist through Kaiser.  I didn't know that Kaiser Permanente paid some of the cost.  The exam was covered.  I have cataracts, but they aren't bad enough for surgery.  My right eye can't be fully corrected, but it will be an improvement.  My eyesight has gone downhill quite a bit, but there is nothing major going on.  I had Radial Keratotomy around 1987 to correct my vision.  It did help a lot, but there are problems with stability after the surgery.  She felt that was probably the reason I have problems now.  My vision prior to the surgery was 20/800, so I don't feel bad that I had the surgery.

My Red Hat group met at Chef's Choice Noodle Bar. There were seven of us. One thing this allowed was for us to share as one group.  We were very open with each other about what we were going through. It is good to have people where we can do this.  Our next meeting is at T L Maxwells. My granddaughter-in-law's mother Dainette will hopefully join us next month. 

I figured that I had so much to do this week that I couldn't stall. It is amazing how much time the little things take to accomplish.   Well that was a good idea and I probably need to be more like this.  I would get a lot done.

My friend Janet and I went to La Costa a fairly new Mexican restaurant in town (In it's new location in the Icehouse).   We talked a lot.  Though our politics are on opposite sides of the spectrum, we can connect (and quite well I'd say) because of the similarities in losses.  But it is much more than that.  We have known each other for many years and we are just very comfortable with each other.  By the way, the food is quite good.  They have lots of seafood, but there are other dishes you would expect in a Mexican restaurant here.

So my namesake Rachel had a baby shower yesterday in Visalia.   What a wonderful event!. It was great to see her and her sisters Libby and Lacey.  They all look fabulous.   They look a lot like their mom when she was their age.   I didn't get to talk much with Marykay, but we will set up another visit to Livermore in the not too distant future.  Her mom Marykay is a very good friend of mine and I gave her one of my pictures. I have two of hers on my wall.

Standing on left Lacey, Libby, Sitting on left Jordan,
Rachel,  and Johnny (the boys are Lacey's)

At back, my friend Marykay, her daughter Lacey and Lacey's best friend.
Marykay looks fabulous.  This family has great genes!

Rachel, My namesake, and the honored one!

I went to spend the night at my friend Annemarie's home in Hanford.  We went to an Indian restaurant there which was quite good!  They have meat dishes but really quite a bit of vegetarian and vegan food.  This morning we went out for breakfast talking more about working in the prison, our friends and getting together later.  So we have set a date to get together with Lynette, Marc and Mimi, but they don't like to plan way ahead.  For myself, it has to be on the calendar or I probably cannot go.  So we will be letting them know a week or two ahead of the event.  Also Annemarie and I will see if we can go to San Diego and visit her sister.  I haven't been to San Diego in quite a while.   

No picture of Conner this week, but Meagan did go in for an ultrasound. Meagan is 27 weeks along with Kason.  So she had an ultrasound and I find it amazing how clear the picture is of his face!

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This is quite good.  It is very true that what you saw as important changes as your life changes.

What Was Once Important Is Now Meaningless

So it has been a very full week.  I liked all I did and feel a lot was accomplished.  I hope you have had a good week, and I'll see you next Sunday.            Rachel

How Perspective Changes with Time

When I gave that talk in Visalia I said "I have a different view of what I went through now. That was 15 years ago and it was fresh". Yes it was. I was overwhelmed with all of it. I didn't think very clearly, as I have said I was self-absorbed and I was hurting psychologically.  I easily broke into tears.  I felt like the world was going on as if nothing big happened when it did to me.  I realize now I was grieving the loss of what I thought I had- good health. I feared dying. I was amazed at how little control I had over what was happening to me. This by the way was the same way I felt as I was losing people important in my life. Before all this loss I really did feel I was in control of my life and was so struck that there are limits to this.  I thought of myself as strong, knowing what to do, pretty much what to say and then BOOM!  That's over with. I also found myself forever changed and there was no going back. That is true, BUT, the intensity of the change lessens with time and by allowing yourself to grieve.  I am changed by all that I have gone through.  It is now a part of me.  But in the beginning it seemed so stark, so black and white.  Now I see it as more integrated into me that though I am changed, it is more subtle.  I also think the further you get away from pain, the more you will probably return to what you did before, unless you remind yourself about the lessons learned.  Some lessons are worth holding on to like - you can't control it all, you never know what will happen so enjoy yourself when you can, say the important things to people before it is too late.  There are many more.  If you think about it, you'll come up with some.

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So the concert through the Bakersfield Concert Series was excellent.  It was Alex Depue playing "fiddle" and Miguel de Hoyes playing guitar.  There was humor and the sound was top notch.  It was a combination of American and Mexican music and beat.  I bought two CD's.  They had four or five for sale.  All of them sold at the concert.  If you are interested,  you can buy the remaining concerts (3 left), you can pay $45.00 for all of them at the next show which is Windsync on Sunday March 1 at 3 pm at the Rabobank Theater.  In addition, there is a pre-concert put on by the kids at local schools.  This one was from College Heights Elementary School which had a full band and a Mariachi band.  They were 5th and 6th graders and two 4th graders.  Very good.  Kudos to the director of the band and all other staff who support them.  It was hard to believe they were only elementary school children!

College Heights Elementary School Mariachi Band, Director in in the back on the right.

Barbara and I went back to Zaikai's and picked some other dishes.  They were great also. Highly recommended for the quality of the food!

I got a call from my bank because of suspected fraudulent use of my credit card. This happens often enough to me!  One charge was at a Target in Brooklyn Nee York.  So I have to destroy my card and they will mail me another one.

I saw my primary doctor after blood tests and urinalysis about several issues. My back can hurt a lot and even take days to calm down when it is particularly bad.   I also have stomach pains but I've had it for years. I'll be having an MRI and an endoscopy to see if anything more is going on.   I'll also have a MUGA scan at the end of the month which determines force of blood through the heart.  That is a concern while taking Herceptin.  I even made an appointment with a optometrist through a Kaiser program.  I don't have to pay for the exam and if anything bigger is happening, they will refer me to an ophthalmologist. The other issues were relatively minor with ideas as to how to deal with it.

While there for my annual appointment, my doctor said she found a lump in her breast and had a lumpectomy.  She will have radiation starting soon. She isn't sure if she will have chemo yet.  Wow!  That was bad. I gave her a hug and said I'd be thinking of her. I wondered out loud why it seemed that cancer was on the rise. She didn't know but said DNA is very fragile.

I found another Mediterranian restaurant in Bakersfield called SKK Mediterranean. This restaurant started in Italy (over 50 of them) and 2 in Canada. This is the first one in the United States. The most expensive item is $10. The plates run $8.  Adding a soda or ice tea runs $1 with the meal. They also give you fresh oranges to put in their juicing machine for a tall glass of orange juice at $3.50. They have three different sauces- hot, magic and garlic, all flavorful. They are in the mini-shopping center at California and Real Road. They have been open since August and are a wonderful addition to our community. It is fresh and healthy!  They are at 3621 California Ave, 661-328-0200. It's casual. There are tables but they probably do more takeout.

My art class with Carol Bradshaw was good as always.  I told her I was feeling intimidated by doing watercolor, but I decided I didn't have anything to lose, so I did work on another hot air balloon.  It isn't quite done.  Also my classmate Wayne Perman has been working on his watercolor.  I mentioned last week what he had done and he gave me permission to share it.  I think his is excellent, but Carol's role is show us what we can do to improve our pictures.  She is always on the money!

My Hot Air Balloon

Wayne Perman's picture of Japanese Fishing Boats and Fishing

Then in class, we each worked on different projects using watercolor again.  I picked boats on water.  The picture is actually pretty big and Carol suggested I break it up doing perhaps three pictures out of the one.  Anyway, here is where I was attempting to have the colors of the boats reflect in the water.  I had started to draw the buildings above, but I'm going to use my lightbox because I cannot make the lines of the buildings straight.

Practicing Reflection in the Water

I met with four of my friends - Sherry, Tina, Etta and Valerie at Sherry's home yesterday.  We each made something for the meal which was quite good.  It was also really nice to get together.  We have all matured and realize that it is what is in us that really counts- our feelings, character, caring for others, honesty, etc. (Well of course!  We are a lot older than when we started meeting!)  So we are going to keep meeting.  Next time will probably be in May.  I look forward to it.

My granddaughter-in-law Meagan had gone out of town with her grandmother Sharron and was missing her son Conner.  This is such a gentle picture of both of them.  I love it!

Mother and Son

My friend Barbara Long sent me a message that her dog Tavi died.  She was in a lot of pain and very sick, so she had her put to sleep.  This is so painful.    She lost her other dog Patti in February.  Our pets are family and we feel it.  I know I have.  I've invited her to come over to watch the Super Bowl and just take it easy.  We are very comfortable around each other.  She is bringing homemade soup and picking up a pizza that will work for her vegan diet, but also bring vegan cheese we will put on it before baking.  I have a slight cold and want to stay home to let myself heal.

Well, it was a good and busy week.  I hope your week went well.  For those watching the Super Bowl, which team are you rooting for?  I've decided to support the Seattle Seahawks.  I'm not betting, but it just makes it a little more interesting if you commit to a team.  Have an excellent week and I will see you next Sunday.                 Rachel