Remission

Sandy and I have seen her oncologist twice since I last wrote about her remission. We are happy to report that Sandy's doing well. She's had a CT scan and a couple of blood tests to determine the level of cancer activity in her system. The tests show that the cancer is under control. Her CA-125 score should be at or below 35. Her lowest score was 7.0, which was not long after she finished chemotherapy last summer. It is now 14.0, having crept up over the past year and a half. This might appear to be a problem, but the doctor said she's concerned when it doubles between readings. Nothing like that has happened so far. I figure that if it continues to go up 4 points a year it will be 2016 before it hits 35. I'm also hopeful that this will not happen, that she'll remain cancer-free.

The Best News

The best news is that Scot arrived home safely from his mission overseas on July 11th. His beautiful daughters were there to greet him, as photographed by their mom.

Ava & Reese Anticipate

She Spots Dad

Happy Reunion

To the Car

So Good to be Home!

 Having Scot home and safe is The Best News.

Riding with Scot and Ava

One of my most favorite times during my stay in Woodbury was a bike ride with Scot and Ava. Scot had attached a trailer of sorts to the back of his bike to accommodate Ava.

The Back Seat

She helped pedal, she had great balance, and she sometimes locked her knees against the frame and held out her arms as if she were on the prow of the Titanic churning through the sea.

Then we stopped at Colby Lake Park for about half an hour.

Climbing the Twister

Making Lobster Claws

Daredevil Daughter with Apprehensive Dad

Reaching for the Ground

Into the Tube . . .

. . . and Out

At the Park

Back Home

It was fun for all of us to share this time together!

The Elroy Sparta State Trail

For several years Ted and I had wanted to ride this trail. We had driven the three hours to the trail a few years ago, only to find that Elroy and the trail were flooded. The trail was closed.

This time we checked everything we could think of to prepare for riding the trail. This almost worked. When we arrived in Sparta we had to wait for a train to go by. Once the tracks were cleared I attempted to put my car back into Drive. The lever was locked in place. Cars behind me were honking impatiently. I had to rip the cover off the steering column to access a button that would release the shift lever.

Once that was done, we parked Ted's car in Sparta and drove mine and the bikes to Elroy. We bought trail passes and headed onto the thirty-two mile trail.

We expected the scenery along the trail to be as beautiful as you see when driving alongside the trail between Elroy and Sparta, but shrubs and trees on either side of the trail kept the view from us.
What does make the trail exceptional are three tunnels along the way. Two of them are a quarter mile long. 

The third tunnel is three quarters of a mile long. From the center of the this tunnel, you can't see light at either end. Because it's cool inside the tunnel and 85 or so degrees outside, it's raining inside the tunnel. Moderate rain. The floor is slick and bumpy, making riding impossible and walking somewhat tentative. The bike lights, bright as we thought they were, barely illuminate our way through the tunnel.

Walking through the tunnel is required, no riding. It felt like a long walk, but even with the rainfall it felt good to be out from under the hot sun.

Tunnel Entrance

Preparing to Enter

Going into the Light

Exiting Tunnel #2

The Finish

When we reached the end of the trail we agreed that it was a good ride and that we would not do it again. We celebrated that evening in an Italian restaurant in Mauston, happy to have finally met the challenge of the Elroy Sparta State Trail.

The Gateway Trail

Ted is the webmaster for the Gateway Trail Association website. He wanted pictures of the trail, so one day we rode the eighteen miles. We stopped people along the way to talk and to take pictures of them if they permitted.

It was fun for us and, we think, for the people and animals we encountered.

Laughing Horse

Happy Traveler

Taking a Break

The Multi-Use Trail

Along the Trail

Staying in Shape

Ted's Project

Our friend in Woodbury, MN planned to build a screen between his house and the neighbor next door. I drove to Woodbury to help him. 

First, we dug three holes with a manual post hole digger. Scot came over and did the lion's share of the work. Then Ted planted three ten-foot posts and cemented them in place.

It was hard work.

Ted's Shed

Hauling Lumber

Trying Not to Lose Fingers

Done for the day!

Day's End

Glad to Be Done for the Day

Days later . . . long after I arrived home . . . Ted got a little further along on his project.

Partly Done

A Sad Time

I feel sad to see a neighbor move away. Their kids are great kids, always riding up and down the sidewalk on their bicycles, sometimes stopping by to talk or goof around or play with the cat. Luke and Lexi and MaKenna and Madeline have become fixtures in our community and by tomorrow they'll be gone. 

We were looking forward to watching them grow up, to become young adults, to see how they branch out with their lives. But now they're moving away and their laughter will be no more in this neighborhood.

Madeline

MaKenna (in bucket) with Lexi

Lexi

Luke ("Bubba")

We'll miss them . . .

Blueberry Picking

Sandy and I like blueberries. I went blueberry picking a few years ago with friends and we all had a great time. Last year Sandy and I went and we picked twenty-two pounds of them.

This year the season started a little early, on July 7th or so. We arrived on Sandy's day off and went to work. It was hot. You could hear people talking to each other and to their kids, all having a good time, telling jokes or just enjoying themselves.

Me in My Pickin' Hat

Hard at Work and Having Fun

Sandy picked faster than I did. I had taught her how to strip them off the highbushes and she took off at a fast pace. Her bucket was full of blueberries and I still had a ways to go. By the time both buckets were full . . .

To the Brim

. . . we had picked twenty-six pounds of blueberries. Our freezer is full of them.

On the way home, we stopped at a two-man jail in a small town called Gardner.

For No Good Reason

Ingenuity

Zoey and Jenna are friends. Occasionally, they stop by our house to talk or goof around or kill time. One day, Jenna declared that she loves the goose on our front porch.

 

Jenna had an idea.

Why not dress him up? Him? She gave him a name: Tom. After a little work on their part, this is what Tom looked like.

The next time we saw Zoey and Jenna they were in business. Nail Art. A woman across the street had encouraged them to paint fingernails for neighborhood women. I helped them come up with a flyer and later they came by to paint Sandy's nails.

Jenna at Work

The Finished Product

Catching Up

It's been over three months since the last post, so I'll catch up on what we've been doing, with more current events to follow in another post.

Sandy's roses looked beautiful and one day Zoey stopped by to pose with them.

Flowers & Ham

On another day, the little guys in the neighborhood discovered that a sprinkler could be used for more than just watering the lawn.

Learning

Practicing

When Sandy and I came home from some event one night, she opened the patio blinds and found a visitor staring at her.

An hour or so later, Sandy looked again. This little robin had not moved an inch. The next morning I prepared myself to find the little guy dead on the patio. But he wasn't. He had moved.

We think he was hatched in one of the three nests in our front yard and was in the process of becoming independent. We don't know where he is now, but it still cracks me up to see him staring at us from atop the chimnea. Fat little belly, male pattern baldness, head held in a Kennedyesque pose.

Settling In

As luck would have it, my pacemaker and my CPAP have nothing in common. Which means, I still have to use the CPAP to sleep well. I had thought the pacemaker would remedy this, but a few days after the pacemaker was implanted I found myself being very tired in the morning. Our good friend nurse Nancy of Woodbury advised me that having the pacemaker will not negate my need for the CPAP. It would have been nice not to need it, but I do.

Julie's shower in St. Paul was a success. Julie's future sister-in-law Tina did a great job of putting it all together and Julie was really happy with the results.

Sandy is feeling well, so life is going on as usual for us. We have only to think back on what we were doing last year at this time to appreciate how pleasant "life as usual" can be!

A New Lease

It's probably too early to be certain, but my pacemaker is providing me with energy I hadn't had in years. It was installed yesterday. My left shoulder is in pain. Otherwise, I feel very well. I'm anxious to go for a walk tomorrow to see how it feels. To me, it's like trying out a new heart.

Last night I didn't sleep real well, thanks to being in a hospital and to having my left arm in a sling harness to prevent extending the arm. Nevertheless, I did not have to struggle to breathe. I am hopeful that my heart rate increase from about 40-48 bpm to 60 bpm will negate my need for a breathing machine at night. Time will tell.

Even though I awoke at 3:30 this morning I have not been overtired today. I hope this continues!

Meanwhile, Sandy and I have our doctor appointments and are doing well. We're looking forward to Julie's wedding shower on the 24th and a dinner with family the night before. This summer promises to be far better than that of last year!

Just For Us?

This will be just for Sandy and me for the time being, it having been so long since the last entry. It has been a good run, all in all. On March 17th we saw Sandy's oncologist, Dr. Yamada. We learned that Sandy's CA-125 score is 9.3 (normal is anything under 35). That was good news!

In February, I went into the hospital because I'd had chest pains and shortness of breath while walking at my favorite trail, Perry Farm. We found nothing conclusive, but I did make an appointment with a cardiologist who'd given me an angiogram eleven years ago.

He gave me another one on March 25th, which concluded that I had an irregular heartbeat and no more than 20% blockage anywhere. I was told that blockage of 70% or greater would have required further action. The cardiologist recommended a treadmill stress test, which I took today. He determined from the test that the reason I have shortness of breath is because I have an extra heartbeat that disables the heart from filling with blood as it should. This denies blood supply from oxygenating body parts such as the lungs from providing needed oxygen when my heart rate increases during exercise (I apologize to any medically-trained readers for my ignorance regarding medical terms).

He will implant a pacemaker in me on April 14th. I expect that this will help my feeling less lethargic than I have been feeling and that I'll be able to push myself farther while riding my bike. I'd like to ride the Elroy-Sparta bike trail this summer with my good friend Ted.

The best news here has to be that my daughter Julie is getting married on October 16th in St. Paul, MN. Just to make it even better, she's marrying a really great guy whose name is Todd Bagby. I am very happy for and with both of them for having made such good choices.

Even if Julie were not my daughter, I'd say she's a great catch for any young bachelor. She's not only educated beyond all reason, but she has both work and life experiences that make her exceptional.

Todd is no less qualified for the working world, but he's also great with kids and gets along well with everyone else! What more could one ask for? He's a lawyer, as is Julie.

'Nuff said. As a long-distance parent, I could not be happier for them. And, frankly, for myself!

Scot, Heidi and the girls are in Wisconsin with Heidi's folks for Easter weekend. Julie and Todd are about to move to Richfield (Minneapolis suburb).

Happy Easter!