5/31/2002

I sat in my backyard and read a book for almost 5 hours, but the floor guys have not yet shown up. When I finished the book, I headed over to Colvilles' house. I guess I'll peak out their windows every few minutes. I have to pay the guys today. I should have played golf today - I'd have been home by now. Grrrr. Love, P.

5/30/2002

Another beautiful day. I gave up on staying at my house while they are doing my floors. It is much more comfortable (and smells better) over at the Colvilles. Ma took me into town today to break up the day. I see that gas prices are coming down. For how long? Probably just until I'm allowed to drive again. No golf tomorrow. I have to stick around for the floor-guys - they finish tomorrow and are going to want some money. Love, P.

5/29/2002

I thought my house smelled badly yesterday, but compared to the post-polyurethane smell, it was nothing. You can begin picking up the odor from well outside the house. When I sit in the basement to watch TV, I get a headache and feel crummy. The crew showed up right around lunchtime. It took them only 20 minutes to apply the first coat of stuff! They were in and out before I knew it! From peaking in windows, it looks good, but it is driving me crazy that I can't see what they are doing and how it looks up close. I guess I'll just have to bug the Colvilles! Love, P.

5/28/2002

Today was floor day. The guys hadn't shown up by the time I left for golf, so I left the door unlocked and had a note waiting for them. Golf was interesting. Only 2 good drives, but my second shots and putts were good. I ended up with another 116. I got home from golf as the work crew was heading out. They had sanded and put the stain on today. Three days of polyurethane starting tomorrow. The house STINKS. I stayed in the basement for a few hours and then had supper next door (my girls' night out was cancelled). I am using Pop's laptop now rather than plugging in my own. Kathy believes that I will be exposed to liver-toxic chemicals if I stay in my house. I don't want the Colvilles to get sick of me! Love, P.

5/27/2002

Lots of work today to get my house ready for "the Floor Guys". Kathy came over and suggested that I tape trashbags over my bookshelves and TV (such a brilliant mind). I took everything I could think of to the basement. I hope I don't leave anything up here (on my second floor) that I may need in the next 5-6 days. It rained here late in the day. We need the rain, but I'd like some sunshine tomorrow until I finish my golf round! Love, P.

5/26/2002

I had my church choir singing debut today. I stood right next to Helen Ida, and I let her do the work. I was able to sing along, and I stayed in the alto voice. Hooray! Bob Gardella and crew came late this morning and moved all my furniture elsewhere. I brought a lawn chair in from the porch to sit in for TV watching. Ma feels sorry for me and had me over for supper tonight. She'll be sick of me by the time the men are done with my flooring! I wonder how horrible it is going to smell in here?! Bed early tonight. Love, P.

5/25/2002

The man is coming on Tuesday morning with his group to sand and stain, etc my floors. I spent most of the day cleaning out my storage areas so the furniture movers (Bob Gardella and crew) can find a place to put everything. I cleaned, I did laundry, I wrote lists, I watched golf, and I never took off my pajamas all day! By 5:30, I was whipped and just rested while Kathy took over. Yikes - tomorrow is choir-singing day! I've been told that Helen Ida is an alto, and she should be there tomorrow to hopefully drown out my voice. Love, P.

5/24/2002

Golf today. What a pretty day. I only had one other golfer with me today, and she wanted to quit after 9 holes. I went on and played the back 9 by myself and didn't catch up with anyone until the 16th hole. I prefer playing with someone, but it was kind of nice playing alone. I ended up with a 116, just 2 strokes more than Tuesday. My pitching was a bit better, but my driving stunk. Too much stuff to keep in mind when you golf. My mom took a lesson this week (which ALWAYS screws up your game). She said she couldn't get any worse. I play in 2 tournaments with her in June. I'll have to wait and see if the lessons made her worse. Supper tonight at Kathy's (grilled chicken, etc.) - hooray! Love, P.

5/23/2002

Phone call day today. Argh! I called dozens of people about various crisises today, including the insurance guy about my soon to be cancelled health insurance. He is going to look into the numbers, but he suspects there will be a rise of up to $540/month on my policy. Lovely! Thank God for Social Security Disability! It will help. The plumber came today to replace some stretched-out thingies on my kitchen sink. He was at my house less than 15 minutes and charged me $70 for the "service call". Gee, thanks, buddy. Golf tomorrow - that should make things better. Love, P.

5/22/2002

I went to church choir practice tonight! When I was a young kid, I figured that I was a pretty good singer but never had the chance to practice. Just over a year ago, I joined my Lutheran Church. They mentioned choir practice this past Sunday, so I decided to show up. I know nothing about music - am I an alto, soprano, etc.? I can read the notes as far as up or down if someone is playing the song, but if no one plays the song, I have no clue as to which note to start with. The group was very tolerant and told me to be an alto because there were too many sopranos. Now they are talking about having us go up front and actually sing during the service. I promised God that I would join the Church if a Lutheran one was started near my home; I also promised to work on joining the choir if the church had one. Now, I guess we have one! Yikes. I'd better practice during my morning showers. Love, P.

5/21/2002

Tuesday is golf day. I had a pretty good round for me, shot a 114. That is 5 strokes better than 2 weeks ago. Now I need to figure out where I can shave 15 more strokes off the score to finally break 100. I was practically a dead body by the time I got home. I crashed on my couch and watched Rosie, Oprah and then Emergency Vets until my ride to supper came. Tuesday is Prime Rib night at The Pub, and all 5 of us ordered it. Wow! It was wonderful. Love, P.

5/20/2002

I see there are no new Guest Book entries again today. I must be "getting boring" ! Sorry, gang, but not many new and fun things are happening. I met with a man today who is going to make my hardwood floors look better. I went for a walk today. I'm heading to Lynn's for supper. That's it. Yawn. Love, P.

5/19/2002

Church today. I wore my red dress for Pentecost. I thought that the rest of the day would be dull, but Joan called me and invited me to go with her to the last day of the Lake Monticello Faulconer (sp?) Golf Tournament. We sat at the 18th green and watched the groups come in. It was getting later and colder, so we left when the last group played and did not stay for the 2 man play-off to determine the winner after they ended up with a tie score. We then went out to dinner with some friends of Joan's. I feel badly that I used up all the good weather at the Outer Banks and left Chris M's mom with cold and windy days. Sorry! Love, P.

5/18/2002

What a FUN day! This afternoon, I went to the wedding of Micah (a technician from work) and Carrie (a former technician, now a nurse). We had chilly, windy weather, but no one cared if you wore a coat or jacket. It was a lovely wedding. This evening, Missy and her two kids (Julianna and Dominic) came over with a movie to watch (Snow Dogs). Her kids kept saying that they wanted to move in with me. I really enjoyed both activities, but I feel badly that I missed Rebecca's First Communion today. Sorry, Rebecca! Love, P.

5/17/2002

I got home from the Outer Banks this afternoon. Waiting for me in the mail was . . . my acceptance from the Social Security Administration!!!! I will get a check every month put straight into my account. What a relief! I'm glad that I spent lots of time filling out the papers. (Please don't forget that I still have brain lesions, seizures, etc., though my body is doing well.) I'm going out to supper with my neighbors tonight, so I thought I'd put this in a bit early. I was not able to read my Guest Book or Emails while I was away due to a phone credit card screw-up, so Kat wrote what I told her to each day by cell-phone. Maybe I should stop reading my messages every day - it was quite fun seeing all the ones that had been sent in while I was gone. Love, P.

5/16/2002

Sun, sand, and surf! Truly a small slice of Heaven. I'll be a shame to leave here tomorrow, but I have a wedding to attend on Saturday. Absolutely perfect weather here this week. I was even able to beat Marianne and William in a game of pool this afternoon. Too bad I have to sit in a car for 4-5 hours to get home again. Isn't there a teleport function available? Nine more weeks before I can drive (unless I have another seizure). Love, P.

5/15/2002

Today was a beautiful day. I was even able to sleep 12 hours last night. Marianne came after lunch and we enjoyed the hot-tub. Later, we went to several art galleries, but the only one that appealed to me was almost a thousand dollars. I'll try to like something cheaper next time. Great afternoon on the beach, though I refuse to swim in cold water. Tomorrow is to be even warmer, so I will work on my melanoma then (just kidding). Love, P.

5/14/2002

Here I am at the Outer Banks. It's a little cooler than I would have liked. I couldn't check in until after 4:00 PM, so I hung around the house not doing much of anything. The drive here was exceedingly long. Great weather report for the rest of the week. Kat has been working on putting the photos from New Zealand & Australia into the online Photo Album. Some of you may be able to access them now, others may have to wait until she works some bugs out of the system. There is a six person hot-tub right outside my bedroom door. I'll have to check that out. Love, P.

5/13/2002

We had our golf tournament today. Keswick Club always has great food and tons of free beer. You get there for lunch (I had chicken salad), practice hitting balls, go out and play, then come in for a fantastic supper (steamship round, pasta, etc). The course was used for a Canadian tour event over the weekend, so the rough was 6-8 inches high. If you ended up in the rough, it was nearly impossible to hit it out. In general, I had more shots that were decent than I usually do, but kept ending up in the rough. I did win a few holes for the team, but we ended up in the middle of the pack. No big grand prize this year. We also had rain on & off, including a thunderstorm for which we had to clear the course for about 45 minutes. I head to the Outer Banks tomorrow for a mid-week getaway. I'd better remember to take my laptop! Love, P.

5/12/2002

Church this morning. I announced my PET scan results and got a big round of applause. I had some rest here before Kat arrived with her family on the way home from the Outer Banks. We headed to the beach for awhile and then they took me out to supper. The boys really do wear me out, but they are so loveable! Andrew no longer looks at me like I have 6 heads - I'm moving up in the world! Will I be able to go to bed early? Somehow I doubt it! Love, P.

5/11/2002

Sorry about you Journal access problems, Mom. I have been writing each day and I have had no trouble reading my entries on the Journal page. Is it the new computer doing this? Church tomorrow. Better get sleep tonight if the Mays will be here in the afternoon! Monday is my annual golf tournament at Keswick Club. This will be my 5th year out of 6 that I have played. Last year we took second place, but this year, my golf is worse and Mike Ashby can't play. Oh well, it is a great course which I only play once a year - so what if I play poorly! Love, P.

5/10/2002

Is it still Friday? Man, what a long day! Kat and family were here overnight, so it was an early morning. After breakfast, a walk, etc., I was taken out to lunch and then they headed off to the Outer Banks to attend a wedding. I got lonely when they left and called Kathy. I went over there and watched her working like a crazy fiend on various projects (from the safety of the hammock) until she drove me home. I then got ready for my "Movers and Shakers" party - my first one since December. It was a great party. One couple arrived in a candy apple red Ferrari convertible. I want that car! Too bad I can't drive till end of July at the earliest. We then went to a local restaurant for supper. Lots of fun, but it really wiped me out! I'm even at the stage where I'm thinking that I can skip my bath tonight. Love, P.

5/9/2002

I wanted to get an early Journal entry on today. That didn't work. I got home from the hospital after 3PM and was on the phone a good bit. Then Kat and her family arrived and it has been hectic. I heard her mention "bedtime" for the boys and thought this would be a good time to write this. My PET scan was this morning. You go early, get injected with fluorinated glucose, wait 45 minutes, and then get scanned. You lie perfectly still for an hour - your legs itch, your ear itches, your eyebrow itches, etc. They come into the room after the hour, switch your position a bit, and then 15-20 minutes more scanning. It was horrible! Dr. Chung usually reads the scans at some point, so we paged him and told him that I had just finished. He said he'd come right away (the benefit of being a doctor). He read the scans as "no evidence of tumor in the body". The little part left in my lung is INACTIVE and no new tumors! The PET scan works by measuring areas of highly active cells, which melanoma certainly is. None! This just amazes me! The brain is a different story. This test is only for the body. My next brain test will be an MRI scheduled for AFTER the Fuge family reunion. Hip, hip, hooray! Love, P.

5/8/2002

An unexciting day today (I'm sure tomorrow's PET scan will be much more exciting). I don't even know who reads the scans and whether it is done same day or not. I may find that I don't get results for days or weeks. Pops DID remember to come to supper tonight! Yea, Pops! Bed early tonight - I have to head for my scan before 7AM! Love, P.

5/7/2002

I thought golf would be cancelled today. We were having some rain this morning. We had rain the first 3 holes, but then the sun came out. The round of golf (usually about 4 hours) was VERY slow. The group in front of us was just taking years to finish each hole. It took 5 hours and 20 minutes to play our 18 today! Ridiculous! I hate slow play. I'm working hard here to just let it go and not let it upset me. It's a GAME, Pam - a GAME! I had 4 strokes less this week than last Friday. If I can trim 20 MORE strokes off, I'll break 100! Leftover steak for supper tonight. Yummy! Love, P.

5/6/2002

Well, I now have bifocals. Of course, they are progressive lens (no line) in my same old frames, so only you Journal readers will know! They are much clearer than the ones from 2 years ago. I CAN SEE! Kathy took me to lunch at this little place that just opened for lunch. It was good food, and even better - they have gellato in lots of flavors. Pops was to come over for supper tonight, but I guess when Ma is away, he must get more forgetful. He called this afternoon to try to reschedule because he had made other plans in the meantime. Grrr! These men! Oh well, maybe Wednesday night. Love, P.

5/5/2002

There was a miscommunication regarding my ride to church this morning. I had been told that a woman who lives near me would take me, but she had said that she would take me if she decided to go. At 5 minutes past the latest she would have arrived, I was able to contact Al (Pops) and he dropped me off there. Kathy came by to take me to the store for a chicken (tomorrow's supper) and stayed for a walk around my neighborhood. What a nice day, though a round of golf would have been nicer. Lynn will be arriving soon to take me to her house for supper (and if I'm lucky, some hot-tubbing!). I wanted to put this in before I left the house, but I put it off too long. Fortunately, she just called and told me she would be a hair late. NASCAR was cancelled last night due to rain. They will race tonight instead -Go Steve Park! Love, P.

5/4/2002

Well, my bifocals are ready for me to pick up. Maybe Monday. I again went to the girls' soccer games today (Lynn DID call me). Lots of fun watching soccer. Better than baseball. The younger girl, Rachel, justs loves to play and she runs around like a crazy person. Rebecca doesn't care for it, but played very well today. I then went to a little art show in which each girl had stuff exhibited. I had the Talley family over here for supper, and we watched a movie. Hours past bedtime, but I must have my bath first. Goodnight! Love, P.

5/3/2002

The front nine of golf was SLOW today. We were behind these horrible golfers who were poking along. The other ladies I played with decided to quit after nine unless the group ahead of us were only playing the front nine. Fortunately, they stopped and we all went on. I had 11 strokes less than the last time, and hit a few really good shots. I am still 20 strokes worse than prior to my cancer, but I like the direction my score is taking. Tomorrow morning I was planning on going to the girls' soccer games and art show, but Lynn has not responded to my message. I have called her house so many times in the past week and can never get anyone to answer. I finally got the machine yesterday and left a message. Her turn to call me! Love, P.

5/2/2002

Happy Birthday to cousin Dick! I must say that if Mom wouldn't have told me, I would not have known. I have plans for golf tomorrow, if it doesn't rain. I had a pretty uneventful day today. My plumber came to look at my leaking sink, I paid a bill, etc. Yawn. Love, P.

5/1/2002

I had an appointment with my oncologist this morning. He said that I'm looking great. I'm feeling pretty great. He'd like me to get a fancy-schmancy test called a PET scan. It is a good test for melanoma. They have brain PET scans and body PET scan. The machine at Martha Jefferson does the body type scan. I'm scheduled for next Thursday. He seems confident that this test will be fine and that my only active tumor might be in my brain, and after gamma-knife, may not re-grow for a long, long time. Let's hope he is right! (New body tumors will really mess with my golf game!) I have seen pictures of PET scans, but would not know how to read one. I don't know if I'll get a same-day reading or not. . . tune in next Thursday! Love, P.