beautiful this year. We're mowing our few patches of grass weekly now ... enjoying our new "green" (100% battery operated) push mower ... what a difference from riding the Cub Cadet in Churchville for 3 hours each mow!
I received chemotherapy round 20 on Wednesday (May 30th) in Charleston as scheduled with somewhat more difficult side effects this session for some reason (the usual fatigue, flushing, bout of hiccups, but with more nausea). There's a pill for just about everything so I'm confident I'll bounce back shortly. Labs remain "good" and the 2-1/2 hour treatment went smoothly this session. Another whopping $17,000 worth of healthcare cost fighting this monster ... this just illustrates why we all need good healthcare and insurance coverage! During our recent Rochester visit we obtained a second opinion relative to my jaw bone issue (osteonecrosis of the jaw). Dr. Fantuzzo (an oral surgeon affiliated with Strong Memorial) confirmed we should take a "wait and watch" approach to this issue but was encouraging that my body just might repair the damage caused by this disease itself! Made us feel much better. The second opinion was well worth it.
We're thankful that a recent CT scan of Martha's stomach confirmed nothing more than a previously known hiatal hernia and a second hernia in her stomach. Thankfully no surgical intervention is required at this time ... she'll manage this issue with drugs for now.
I've volunteered for Edisto Beach "Turtle Patrol" (another one of my "bucket list" items) and we're walking the beach twice a week (with experienced turtle patrollers) looking for (primarily) Loggerhead Turtle crawls and nests. Martha has joined in but I must admit getting to the beach by 6:30 am has been a bit of a struggle relative to my relaxed "retirement regimen". We patrol beach access sections 16 thru 22. Our section has three (3) nests confirmed to date. The turtle season (roughly May through September) is a good one this year with our little Edisto Beach tallying over forty nests to date! We're learning all about distinguishing the crawl patterns of the five
different species of sea turtles that inhabit our portion of the SC coast, how to "probe" to find a nest, how to mark and protect a nest, and how to collect data and take a DNA sample from one egg in each nest (there are upwards of 100 eggs per nest!) for use by the SC DNR (Department of Natural Resources) for research purposes. During each walk we also pick up litter to help keep our beautiful beach clean.
Congratulations to "Team Danny" (Team Captain Lindsay, Jobe, Derek, Carrie, and grandson Jack) for a very successful "2012 Fight for Air Walk" held in Rochester on May 5th. Team Danny placed FIRST among all family teams in the event relative to fund raising this year! We are so very proud and deeply touched by what these "kids" have accomplished having raised over $1,000 in support of the American Lung Association's initiatives to
fight lung disease. Way to go Team Danny and special thanks to all who sponsored the Team ... you're the best!
Per my oncologist's "prescription" that "vacation looks good on you Dan", Martha and I are packing for our "June adventure". We're leaving Friday (June 8th) for Anchorage, Alaska to catch a cruise ship. We'll spend a week cruising the inside passage from Anchorage to Vancouver. We've never cruised Alaska and this cruise has been a long-standing "bucket list" item. We'll spend the following week in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (warming up!). Looking forward to our June vacation. We plan to return to Edisto on June 24th ... to celebrate Darjeeling's 17th (wow!!!)
birthday. Dan thinks Dar should celebrate on the beach this year, watching the dolphins play and and smelling the
fish! Our kids keep reminding us we "vacation every day on Edisto" but we just love to travel and there's a whole
lot of world we've yet to see!
Once again we send our very best and may God continue to bless you and yours ...
Dan and Martha