Wednesday.... waiting for rain...

[grammynmaggie]

Good morning everyone my title says it all finally Central Florida is getting some rain except for us along the coast.... well habitat of humanity came spent 4 hours here two trips.... they would not take the big honking TV that weighs about 300 pounds... big mirror that since it wasn't in a frame they won't take it strange... they did set the TV out by the road for me someone will take it maybe a couple someone's will take it was going to take more than one person to lift it.... then I went to my favorite hot dog stand for lunch while they were in between trips .... then later in the afternoon they came went over the contract with me line by line we had a realtor fix up the contract for us they weren't on commission for the sale of the house or anything they just were hired to make up the contract ....I am satisfied that all is well with it... closing will be on or before July 15th ... I'm anticipating around mid June... that is fine with me because I still have things to do...B safe....donna

[Colliemom]

Good Morning Donna and all. Whew, big night up here last night with the finale of the Voice. It came down to the closest finish in the history of the show, between our lcal gal and another finalist. In the end she was runner up, but doesn't matter as she has a huge career ahead of her and it was an amazing accomplishment. It brought out huge community support and just exemplified what this community has known all along, that it's a caring, supportive, area to live in. Smiles, hellos and "have a nice day" are common here no matter where you go. We may have long winters, but I wouldn't trade it for the world.

O'Sharon, that was quite some trip you were on even if it was a quick one. All the memories and son bonding too. Donna, glad you have the stuff out of the house and the contract finalized. Tina, I won't bug the dealer on my trailer. They have done repairs and other things for me in the past and even spur of moment things and I have not had to wait long unless for an ordered part. This is a busy time for them. They have a big storage lot there and a lot of those people want their rigs dewinterized for summer now that our weather has moderated, , plus getting newly purchased rigs ready for customers and other repairs. They are a small dealer with big volume service work. I have never purchased a rig from them, so those customers are going to come first. And having the holiday weekend coming up, is making it busier. They will do right by me, just requires patience.

Rainy day here, so think I will take a ride to Petoskey and return cable DVR box for regular HD box before my year of free trail is over. Never dorecordings and not paying for that service. So have a nice day all.

[BirdbyBird]

Sue, did you at least give them a date you needed it by?

[BarbaraRose]

Good late morning!

Have the day off and most of tomorrow. Cloudy today but warming up to 65*, then mid 70's (finally!) for the next week or so. Will work on the camper and my little Jeep today. Tomorrow will be sunny and I think I will take a hike at the lake and park preserve just down the road from me. Have never been there but heard it is very nice there.

I have 4 days off next week from Memorial Day thru Thursday so am thinking about renting a cabin up in Northern MN for a few days. Camper isn't ready to travel yet but I am! Surprisingly, there are still cabins available up there for those days.

Just found out the house I am living in is not airconditioned. Good thing my room is in the basement where it will stay cooler on the hot days! This is the most poorly built house I have ever seen. It isn't very old but looks like it was just thrown together with the cheapest materials possible. Oh well, I only need to live here for a few more months.

Hope you all have a good day! Sue, hope you get your camper back in time for your trip. Hoping that it starts raining along the coasts of Florida soon!

[JudyJB]

Another day of a combination of resting and getting caught up on some stuff. At least the wind is down and it is sunny. It was so windy yesterday, i had to close one of my slides because the awning over it was shaking so much I was worried it might tear. Still chilly, however. Am going out to dump my tanks and stop by the visitor center to find out why they have rock fence posts around here. Then Friday am heading west into Colorado. Won't feel like I am really "out west" until I am in Colorado and New Mexico!

Also got to check a couple of my outside storage areas that tend to get wet in the rain, and we had a LOT of rain earlier this week. I bought some more drill bits and will drill a couple of small holes in one so it will drain. I found 3/4 of an inch of rain in that bin last weekend. Luckily, I have everything in plastic bins or wrapped in plastic, just in case.

Glad to see you are finally seeing the end of all your cleaning out and getting rid of the house, Donna. That was a huge job.

[chalet05]

Judy, I don't know how much time you have, but south of I-70 down Hwy 83 is Monument Rock National Landmark. A bit of gravel road off the main road, but you might ask locally if you are interested. Kansas is so pretty right now - at least on the east side. I've never questioned why the rock fence posts - just figured they had plenty of limestone to use! Will be interesting to see what you find out.

[MandysMom]

I know it's late but wanted to update. We learned yesterday that the tiny spots in Mel's chest on the lining of the chest cavity are growing, still small but UCD has no clue what to do, having done all sorts of testing. Rather than fight insurance on drugs they are unsure of, we are considering traveling to another major center, perhaps M D Anderson of Houston, a very long trip. Mel is still not in distress breathing wise but they don't want to try to needle his chest yet because of that and risk of infection or lung collapse. We are worried but not ready to give up just because UCD has no clue due to the rarity of this tumor ( like under 100 cases worldwide). We hope to find an answer while it's still small.
Do we have any members in Houston? This is not how I planned my next road trip! Your thoughts and prayers appreciated.
Velda

[Rufflesgurl]

Velda - prayers for you and especially Mel. He has been so fortunate to have your help. Have heard good things about MD Anderson in TX. Could be a good RV adventure!

Linda

[BarbaraRose]

Have you considered Mayo Clinic in Phoenix AZ? Mayo is considered one of the best hospitals in the world.

[Azusateach]

MD Anderson misdiagnosed Sharon Souter, and it cost her valuable time and ultimately her life when she had a pancoat (sp?) tumor.

There's City of Hope down here. A friend's daughter had an osteosarcoma in her leg and was initially treated at Cedars Sinai, but ended up there because they were on the leading edge of treating tumors like hers. She's healthy and has been cancer-free for 5 years.

There's an RV park about 10 miles from Duarte that could work if you came down here, too.

[JudyJB]

Have you done some internet searching on this tumor and who is doing research on it? And can't the doctors suggest somewhere for a second opinion?

I have heard excellent things about MD Anderson, by the way. Good luck, wherever you go.

[MandysMom]

Mel was diagnosed 4 years ago and it's been constant research along the way. Unfortunately as good as that sounds, thus tumor type is simply so rare there is very little out there. I remember the first time we met with the surgeons and I brought with me the little I had found on search. I pulled mine out just as the senior ENT resident pulled hers out. Guess what, we each had printed the same stuff and they agreed there isn't much. With still under a hundred cases worldwide, it's tough for us and tough got Drs to figure out what to do. We had he very best surgeon to operate the first time, who performed a miracle in the rebuild of his palate, but no one knew or thought there were some cells already traveling. But we had no choice but operate because it had eaten a tiny hole through ino his mouth with no obvious symptoms before that. What few reports are out, to this day say this is a slow growing indolent tumor quite survivable. So much for that.
As to where we shall go, in multiple places, M D Anderson is rated #1'cancer center in the nation for 27 years running. However it's not just go to a big cancer center, it's choosing a place that has seen the most cases of hylanizing Clear cell carcinoma. Each cancer type is different and treated differently so, knowing someone got good care for say breast cancer in a place, does not mean that center has treated HCCC.
I did make a move today and found that Dr who had been the senior resident and assisted with his first surgery. I got a message off to her via her clinic and plan to update her and ask if she has any ideas on who we, should look at. I need to find places that are doing the right studies on oral cancers or clear cell cancers.
It's not my idea of a good excuse to drive 2000 miles but whatever it takes. I thought briefly about flying but not sure how stable he fluid will stay in his chest.

[chalet05]

Velda, my heart and prayers are with you and Mel.

[BarbaraRose]

Good luck with the challenges ahead.

[BirdbyBird]

Keep us in the loop so we will know where to find you. We will all be thinking of you and Mel both as you forge these trails where few have gone before.