Round Four

We made the trip to Omaha yesterday and we've now embarked on "Round Four" of chemo. We have only two more treatments to go before we can go onto her next category of treatment... surgery. But first, more fun with chemo!! I make light of it, but there's really nothing funny about it. Cancer is a very serious deal and I think that going through chemo truly is a fight. It's a fight to keep it from dominating your life. It takes away your hair and makes you feel ill. And it can do much more than that. It can change your life style, your outlook on life, if you let it. That's why I call it a fight. And I know that I'm not the first person to make that comparison. I won't be the last.

Kay Yow died over the weekend. She was the women's basketball coach at North Carolina State. She had a 20 year fight with breast cancer. She was 66. She did so much for breast cancer awareness and I'm sure that her story will continue to inspire more and more people to act against this disease. Coach Yow was diagnosed in 1987. At the time, the men's coach at NC State was Jim Valvano. Coach Valvano was very supportive of Coach Yow at the time. But not long after that, Coach Valvano ("Jimmy V") would lose his own fight with cancer. His coaching friends and ESPN combined forces to form the Jimmy V Foundation that raises money for cancer research.

Don't Get Around Much Anymore

Ever hear the old song, Don't Get Around Much Anymore? I don't know who sang it first, but I know that I've heard Harry Connick, Jr. sing it. I don't remember the words, but I know that the end phrase of every verse is that title phrase. And that's pretty much been popping into my head from time to time these days. Tracy and I don't get out much these days. Quite often, of course, it's because of Tracy's health or not feeling well. But it's not all bad. Since we've met, it has been go-go-go. We like going out. However, even before we were married, we both talked about slowing down. Saving money, eating in, simple pleasures. So we are doing that a lot more now. Don't get me wrong, we do go out. In fact, last night we saw a good movie "Grand Torino". But this chemo thing has forced us to slow down, spend less, and stay home.

We've gotten into playing board games and Scrabble, playing cards when we have company, but mostly watching more TV. We've always loved watching The Biggest Loser together. And there are other shows that I love or Tracy loves to watch. Since we went to a movie last night, Tracy will get to see the recording of "The Bachelor". I don't really like the show that much, but I do get a kick out of watching Tracy react to the women on the show. Tracy's face lights up with an combination of delight and anticipation when those women start arguing with each other. The best comparison I can come up with is a kid on Christmas morning staring at the presents under the tree. Unfortunately, I'll miss watching her watch the Bachelor tonight, but hopefully I'll catch the low lights.

Looking Back on 2008

Happy New Year! It's been a very busy time in the Poppe household with work and everything that goes into the holidays. I personally had two weeks off, but spent time working my second job and household projects. I also spent a lot of time preparing for a teacher in-service session that I led today. One thing I am especially happy about is getting the leaves in Tracy's yard raked. Yes, that job was put off for awhile! But we were able to get that accomplished last Saturday before the cold weather came in (actually we finished it in some pretty cold weather). Tracy helped out. We didn't really plan it that way, but she pitched in after she finished vacuuming inside. I was glad to see her get some exercise and some fresh air. She wasn't had much of a chance to do that lately as chemo has definitely taken its tool on her. And then some.

Chemo is some nasty stuff. But it does its job. It saves lives.

2008 was a great year. Yes, as you know, Tracy was diagnosed with cancer. And my usually trouble free house decided to make a liar out of me... we replaced the air conditioning, water heater, garage door opener, garbage disposal. All in one year. And to make things even better, a mirror (wedding gift) that was hung in the kitchen above the range came down one day and almost hit me in the head. I felt it pass by my head right after I closed a cabinet door. While that mirror did miss me, it hit two control knobs on the oven instead. Long story short, the cost of the repair parts needed was absurd. So, the house will be getting a new range installed in a couple weeks! Tracy's always on me to make sure that I close the cabinets, but look where it gets me. It's dangerous closing those cabinet doors... and expensive!

So if you're wondering why 2008 was a great year for me, I guess I'll have to remind you of the one thing that trumps everything else.

I married Tracy.