Terry and I returned from Green Bay on 8 June. On 26 May Terry was called back to Green Bay because her mother was back in the hospital with pneumonia symptoms and she wasn’t doing well. Terry and her niece Lissa got on the first plane and arrived around 10:00pm. They spent the night at the hospital monitoring her mother’s condition. On the 28th Lu decided she had had enough and was ready to pass. Arrangements were made for her to go home, but she didn’t make it through the night, she passed quietly on her own terms.
Because Lu had been improving and we weren’t sure how she was going to react to being readmitted to the hospital I didn’t travel to Green Bay on the 26th. I was watching the 4 dogs, our 2 and our niece’s 2. Luckily, when I got the call our good friend Dagi offered to watch the dogs and get me to the airport. So I arrived in Green Bay on the 29th.
It was a loooong holiday weekend and the funeral was scheduled for Tuesday. The funeral was exactly what Lu wanted, limited, respectful and attended by all her friends and family. The rest of the week was taken up with paper work, appointments and inventorying the house. Terry was appointed Lu’s executor and will have to deal with all of that stress and administrivia.
Terry’s niece Lissa and her cousin Karen and her husband Dave were amazing through all of Lu’s illness. They unselfishly spent uncounted hours both at the hospital and nursing home making sure she was comfortable and her needs were being met. The 6 of us made up our close knit support group.
Amazingly, as I passed through the 8th week post radiation, chemotherapy my condition seemed to improve daily. I’m now eating almost everything and my ability to taste is back about 75%. I still have trouble with bread and other dry foods and need a lot of water to get through a meal. It’s still not entirely comfortable to eat, my throat still gets sore about ¾ of the way through the meal and I normally stop eating prior to becoming full. And I still have some issues with my tongue as well, but it won’t be long before I’ll be eating normally. Most of the thick stringy saliva is gone, except first thing in the morning. I sleep a little better, at least in longer stints. I still wake up with a very dry mouth and throat 3 or 4 times a night and have to drink some water.
Obviously, I didn’t make my business trip to the UK. I felt it was better to stay in Green Bay with Terry and help her get through the week. As it is it probably wouldn’t have been a good idea to make the trip anyway. The long travel time probably would have been too much for me. I believe now that in a couple of weeks I’ll be well enough to resume my travel schedule.
On the bright side the FIFA World Cup started and the US managed a draw with the UK. In my mind that was as good as a win. And of course Germany decimated Australia. Sitting at home watching on the big screen with a glass of filtered water was ok, but it brought back memories of many a night at O’Reillly’s in Brussels with my euro-mates swilling Guinness and watching the premier leagues. Maybe later in the year.
The last 6 months have been fraught with stress and frustration; I’m hoping the remaining 6 months will be an improvement.
That’s it for this update; hopefully, I’ll have better news next time.
Miller, out
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and the remaining months of 2010 will be a steady improvement with a lot of better things to come- for you and Terry.
ReplyDeleteYou just keep on trucking,Mister Nedbag,
and know that we are keeping the both of close in hearts, positive thoughts & prayers.
Hugs to you both,
Dagi & clan