Germ warfare

At Pat's request, let's try large size font. I think I like it better.

Woke up at 4 am, anticipating blood sampling at 4:30, and couldn't get back to sleep. I am just not burning through enough energy here and only seem to need 5 hours. Our friend Evelyn came up with the craziest idea, it is brilliant. Call Hollywood and have them come film my treatment and how I deal with it as a reality show, the real Survivor, Swap Your Wife For a Horde of Nurses, Fear Nothing It's Gonna Happen Anyway, Bad Blood Makeover. The logistics are difficult, not sure how to get the camera guy in this room with me, but man, just think of the final episode, all of America on edge! And, I could make millions. Stanford might love it too. On a serious note, since I am having such a positive ride on the chemo train it would alleviate a lot of fears that people have about this kind of stuff, to know that it can and does go smoothly. And I have some great tips for adapting in the joint. That's not nausea, that's hunger! Love that one, eating some Sara Lee Carrot Cake right now!

My beautiful wife showed up yesterday evening with all the things I ever wanted in my hospital room and more. She brought this giant get well poster her second grade class made, and some classic hand made Get Well cards from the kids. I will post some of those later, it's dark in here now and Dana is trying to sleep some more. I thought she should take the hospital bed last night, she looked a lot more tired and stressed than I. She is on a cot, pretty awesome that they let family stay in the room with you. It would have been bad if they tried to take a blood sample from her, as she doesn't have a PICC line, and the next thing she would have been getting one.

I had to have her put on one of those ineffective looking paper masks they have people wear if they may be getting a cold, because she may be getting a cold. I fear the germ, there are no shells in the tank, no bullets in the gun, I am France and germs are Hitler Germany, blitzkrieging me. So far so good, no germ has been able to make it over my Atlantic Ocean, yet they lurk. And they lurk in the second grade classroom my wife teaches in more than just about anywhere in the world. I probably wash my hands 30-40 times a day in here. Every time you reenter the room. Every time you hit the bathroom. I am one clean dude. One of the Docs was wearing the paper mask for the first week of daily inspection, so they must work.

I got in the elevator yesterday during one of my jaunts, and these 2 kids, maybe 16-20 years old or so, got in with me, guy with the IV pole and the gal with the paper mask. Together they weighed about 180 pounds, and the guy was varying shades of khaki green. I thought he was coming from a costume party at first, but it must have been dialysis or something. He says to me, Hey If you don't mind, why do you have to wear that pink mask, and I told them I was immune suppressed, and he said Oh yeah, so is she, she just had a lung transplant. If you ever want to stop feeling sorry for yourself because you didn't get the corner office, go to a Children's hospital and watch those kids cope.

All around this place are the survivors, working here. People say Oh, what do you have, then you tell them and they say Oh, I had this and that when I was 5 years old, or I went through 5 years of chemo and I feel great. A guy came up to me on his bike while I was watching Mike and Jack leave the other day, and super cheery says Hey are you a BMT? My instant reaction was No, but I'd love to have a BLT, then I realized he meant Bone Marrow Transplant, so I said No, not yet and probably not I hope, and he says Had mine fifteen years ago and I feel great, so I said Get some oil on that chain or you won't feel great for too long, har har.

The boys and aunts are coming up today for a visit, looking forward to that, we're gonna have a party in FG44, paper hats and paper masks.