Sorry for the long silence. The sun touched the horizon again about January 6 and now the days are lengthening. The weather continues to do strange things though. Day before yesterday it got up to -2C, almost melting, and 30 hours later it was -32C! And snowstorms and blizzards every week. The weather used to be so calm in the winter here in Inuvik over 20 years ago when Sandra and I were here before.
I was worried in early December that my cancer was coming back. I had some prickly numbness in my left hip and thigh, which reminded me of the only symptoms I had when cancer was first discovered. That is the way cancer survival is - every little twinge or pain causes alarm! Anyway I was able to get CT scans of my neck and back in Yellowknife at Stanton Hospital on 19th December, 2018. Then no word whatsoever as to the results!! -- Until I was able to go back to Yellowknife for an appointment with Dr John Walker from the Cross Cancer Institute in Edmonton on January 4. At which time he informed me that my cancer was still in complete remission, that the three tumours on my spine (base of neck, lumbar, and sacrum) were all inactive and completely stable. He also pointed out that the immunotherapy treatments that ended on July 19, 2018 were still effective, because the lymphocytes are trained by the immunotherapy so that when new cells are produced even after therapy ceases they still attack cancer cells. The long and the short of it, my recovery is so stable that the doc doesn't want to see me for at least 6 months, maybe September or around there.
But what a weekend that was, leading up to Monday February 4. The temperature was in the minus thirties when we arrived Friday evening, an hour late (which come to think of it is right on time for Canadian North!). The 1986Toyota started without being plugged in, with a bit of coaxing though. Next hurdle - the Stanton Suites hotel had lost my reservation for Friday and Saturday which kinda bummed us out. They still had room fortunately. The next hurdle was that we met Annelies and Bill and Brad for supper at Coyotes and the restaurant promptly lost my food order - and no I'm sorry or reduction of the bill. Do you think we will ever go back there? I DON'T THINK SO!
Then the temperature plummeted to -41 that night and I neglected to plug the car in. It would not start the next morning. And the Alberta Motor Association never did show up to help us (we are cancelling our membership!). Our good friend Anson came and boosted us and the Toyota finally started. I did have to cancel my haircut with Aileen at Vixen Hair Den at 10:30 that morning because of the car starting problem.After a lunch with Anson we continued on our day's activities. And oh yes, the Monkey Tree bar lost our lunch order so lunch was a bit longer that usual! But guess what, they gave us a free lunch. We will go back there, but never again to Coyotes.
So silly me. I think I made a rash vow to finish a draft of my cancer recovery book by the end of December. Nope! Never happened. I am back writing now though - but I have decided to concentrate on my memoirs. Sounds boring doesn't it? But memoirs don't have to be boring I recently finished reading the memoir of Tara Westover entitled Educated, where Tara recounts her journey from an isolated childhood late in the 1990s filled with life-threatening family violence and no schooling to eventually getting a PhD at Cambridge in the UK in 2014. Now my life isn't that exciting, but I did go from an only child on a tiny farm in Saskatchewan, born on Battle of Britain Day in September 1940, struggling with deafness and other challenges, to get my PhD in Engineering Science at the University of Warwick in the late 1980s. I did spend some time at Cambridge during those years, at the same time as Stephen Hawking, although I never met him there.
A few years ago I began writing down anecdotes of things that happened in my life. So now I have plenty to work with to write about in a memoir, which will of course include my cancer recovery story. We are fortunate here in Inuvik to have a cancer recovery circle that tries to meet once a month so that we can share our stories of hope with others who are cancer patients or family of cancer survivors.
Well that is enough for now. It is 4:20 PM and in a few minutes I will head out to pick up a Valentine's Day card for Sandra. The temperature is down around -28C but the wind has finally died down. It was intensely cold last night with a howling wind and the temperature in the -20s. I have a sneaking suspicion that Chinese food is on the menu for super tonight. And then we are spending time with Bob and Sharon in Illinois by telephone at 6:30 PM. Talking weather and politics (Trumpism and Trudeauism) followed by a Bible study. We love our twice weekly talks with them.
AND, I must not forget our 24th wedding anniversary is coming up later this week on February 17.
Best wishes to all.
