#TMIFiles: After the Disco and Other Stuff in These Foolish Things

Monday. Another work week is upon us. I actually don’t have a ton of pressing issues on my plate right now (can’t believe it since I was out on Friday!), so I thought I’d write a little update.

Friday was DISCO DAY! I wish it were as happy as it sounds. Alas, it was the roughest day I’ve had during this whole chemotherapy process. I should have taken the day off instead of trying to WFH, but my new boss insisted I didn’t try to do the FMLA paperwork for it, so okay.

In addition to disconnect, I had my monthly follow-up appointment with my primary care doctor (aka, my friend Jeff). So that was a 10:30 appointment and disconnect would follow.

I can’t even remember the morning really. I took Martini to doggy daycare and then went home and I think I checked my email once and then fell asleep until it was time to leave for my PCP appt. Let me tell you, the brain fog and fatigue was thick on Friday.

Had a good visit with my PCP. My blood pressure was a little low, which is unusual for me and probably why I was feeling the fatigue, but other than that, things looked good to my doc and he’s beyond thrilled that I haven’t yet felt any peripheral neuropathy (thank goodness).

After check-up I had some time to kill before going to the infusion center for disconnect and fluids. I was starving and the only thing I could think about was a bean burrito from Taco Bell! How weird is that?! I didn’t even know where a Taco Bell was located. I had to Google Map a trip to the Taco Bell closest to the cancer center (which, now I know there’s literally one across the street from the hospital).

The struggle was REAL. I felt like I had a whopper of a hangover, and that bean burrito was my savior! It was the best bean burrito I’d ever had in my life. I also got a pink lemonade. Let me tell you something, do NOT get the pink lemonade from Taco Bell. It is so sugary sweet I kind of wanted to hurl, but I didn’t want that bean burrito to go to waste. I felt pretty dehydrated but knew I was going to get a fluid infusion pretty quickly, so I sucked it all up and got myself inside the center.

Once inside and in that infusion chair, I felt like I wanted to collapse. I knew that fluids were on the way, but MAN, I have never felt so dehydrated and worn out. The fluids couldn’t come fast enough.

Fridays are funny (peculiar, not ha-ha) in the infusion lab. It seems that it’s mostly people like me who are getting disconnected from their pumps and their FOXYs, but sometimes it’s people who look as though they are on death’s door (and let’s be honest, they are) and they are getting an injection or some other kind of treatment. Some look sad, some anxious, but all are behind masks still, so I can’t really get a read on people.

All I know is that on Fridays I feel funky. I’m glad I made that disco playlist several weeks ago because it gives me a little bit of life on the way to the center, but yeah…once the disconnect happens there’s something that happens both physically AND emotionally and it’s a strange sensation.

I had to answer some urgent emails and take care of some business, but for the most part I was doing my emails from my bed until it was time to pick up Martini from daycare.

I walked the dog, took my big-boy antinausea pill and fell into bed for the rest of the night.

Y’all. When I tell you I woke up feeling like a new person, I mean…it was like a miracle happened. Chemo is soooooo unpredictable.

And luckily I felt good because I’d made a 9am breakfast date with the Cyclist (!) in his neighborhood, which is really close to my new neighborhood so I got ready, packed up the dog (our dogs were going to meet for the first time) and headed over to the new place to see what it’s like at 8:30 on a Saturday morning [note: it’s very peaceful and beautiful].

I pulled up to the cafe and the Cyclist was waiting for me along with his dog, Bobby. It was kind of hilarious that the two dogs said hello and then pretty much ignored each other the rest of the time we were together. But it’s much better than if the dogs had hated each other. And in fact, they essentially just peacefully coexisted, which truly is the optimal outcome for a dog date.

We had breakfast at the cute cafe near his condo and he waved to his neighbors as they walked by. He lives in the cutest little hidden neighborhood and if I weren’t moving to the park, I’d love to live in this quiet little gem that’s surrounded by semi-suburban hustle and bustle.

Then we decided to walk the dogs in the surrounding parks and our dogs got tangled up a bit and they also got hot so we stopped beside a fountain to rest and at one point we were talking about our feet and I told him not to look at my toes because I haven’t had a pedicure since before covid (!!!). And of course, he looked and told me that my toes could use some work and let’s go get a pedicure together!

So we did.

And we held hands.

And it was sappy cute and I loved it.

He’s kind and gentle with me and so far I’m really enjoying this.

In fact, I’m going to see him Friday evening - he’s invited me to a small party that one of his neighbors is having.

I’m so pleased right now. I’m just kind of beyond thinking about the possibility of this being…maybe…something?

We haven’t hardly kissed and we’re definitely not even close to sleeping together, but I can’t tell you how happy I am that someone actually reached out and took my hand. And held it for a good, long while.

After the delicious pedicure, I had to leave to go home and continue packing.

The move is getting closer and I can’t wait! But I still have lots and lots to pack. Packing during chemo is a loooooong, drawn out process, but I’m chipping away at it, little by little. I spent the rest of Saturday afternoon and into the evening going through stuff and packing while the dog slept and Real Housewives noise played in the background.

Sunday was Father’s Day.

We were also celebrating my SIL’s birthday and my parents’ 58th wedding anniversary! So we had lots to celebrate and I’d made lunch reservations at a fancy steakhouse. I really wanted to do something more casual, like barbeque, but all of the bbq places are the kind where you have to stand in line and my folks can’t really stand that long and it just seemed easier, although much more expensive, to have a sit down meal.

I gotta be honest, I think we’d have had a better time at Chili’s. We’re that family that can’t really get their shit together and we have a hyper kid who can’t sit still and ughhhhh…it was a little chaotic.

But it was very, very nice and I hope my dad enjoyed it.

I enjoyed for the most part, but I think the chemo fuzzies kind of crept in and I couldn’t even finish the lobster tail that I’d ordered.

Then home to pack a little bit more and then…sleep, glorious sleep - my favorite thing in the world right now.

OK, gotta roll. I have a long meeting in a few and I have to basically present my lines to the interns. Better go figure out what I’m going to say!

Laters,
GS