MRI.....

...... I think we should use MRI's as a method of interrogation of terrorists.  A couple hours of that clanging will melt anyone's resolve and people would spill any secrets they knew!

It has been a few years since my last MRI.  It was much noisier than I had recalled.  For those of you never having had the occasion to need an MRI....... imagine someone holding a bullhorn 4 inches from your head and randomly sending  sounds through that bullhorn.  Some are like a crazed Martha Stewart mixing up a batch of 6 inch bolts in her mixer.  Others are a smoke alarm in am office amplified through the bullhorn.  Then there is the jack-hammer rat-a-tat-tating on a steel plate.  You get the idea.  The last time I had an MRI I was having a migraine before I got into the machine.  It was an excruciating hour.  So this was was not that bad, I only had a little headache after the test.  Which we addressed with Mexican food and a Coke!

I won't get the results until Tuesday when we meet with the oncologist again.

I have gained 5 pounds through my recovery!  Time to pay attention again.  I am doing 20 minutes a day on the elliptical and going further each day.  Trying not to push it, but gently doing a little more each day.  My coughing is lessening, as is my shortness of breath.  And the soreness on my right side is almost gone!

I have made the difficult decision to stop playing trombone in the jazz band.  It takes a lot of time and energy for me to play at the level needed to contribute to this great band, and I want the flexibility to be able to travel more on my days off.   I will probably re-join another band that does not require so much practice on my part and has fewer concerts that the jazz band.  So I will still be playing music in the future, just with scaled back demands on my time and energy.  

But my immediate priority will be having enough energy to do my work schedule.  I am slated to be back at work on Feb. 27th.

Today I plan on working on the mound of paperwork that has accumulated on my desk in the past couple months and see what I can un-earth from the pile....and file.....and recycle.

Tomorrow we are supposed to be seeing the sun again, so I would like to head to one of my favorite beaches and walk and listen to the waves.  My last time there was just prior to my surgery.  I found a rock shaped somewhat like a heart....always a good omen.

Lighthearted thought for the day:
"I can attest to the immediate and dependable benefit of exercise.  After a trip to the gym I enjoy an glow of smug self-righteousness that can last an hour of more."
Seeking Enlightenment Hat by Hat, pg 182., author Nevada Barr