Mark reported that "the girls" (alluding to three girls) dug up about a gallon of the small coquina on the beach and are using these small shell contents to make a soup for dinner. Mark said he is getting brown from being on the beach morning and evening. Should I remind him of the dangers of skin cancer? Probably not, he already has cancer and this is his vacation from cancer treatment; a time to have fun and relax.
Mark will spend about 25 plus hours in the air flying back to Austin arriving this Thursday. Sunday he heads for the VA hospital in Houston.
April 20th Mark celebrated his 47 th birthday; the third birthday since docs gave him three months or less to live .Mark has made a lot of friends in Jomtien beach, Thailand and has just had his birthday party there complete with dancers and fire twirling and Thai food. Wish we all could have been there.
Amazing Coincidences - Mark is staying in a bungalow owned by an Englishman George Richardson (same last name as Mark) and his Thai wife Angel. George is also a survivor of stomach cancer and loves to sail. Mark loves to sail.
Mark is taking a month break from cancer treatment: a break from chemo killing good cells as well as cancerous ones; a break from chemo leaking into his arm tissues causing pain, redness, and heat as well as great concern about loss and use of what was formerly a good vein or veins and fear of loss of tissue. This is a break from pain and riding hours in our old car to Houston to get chemo only to be sent home because of the white blood count being too low and having to return the following week; a break from doctors and staff who are unpredictably either very kind or the exact opposite and from staff who convey a wish to be understanding and those who are not the least bit understanding; a break from the VA system which is a Godsend or a source of frustration depending on the personality or whim of who waits on you or what the rule is or might be that applies to your situation; a break from thinking about what to do next or different in the battle against cancer and how to pay for anything new or different; a break from being nauseated most of the time and weak from chemo. He is enjoying this break immensely.
What is Mark doing and what should he be doing?Mark is relaxing and meditating, visiting the temple, cutting back on pain medication, eating three meals a day, walking on the beach enjoying a calm view of the ocean that he loves surrounded by people who are gentle and a nation of people who tend to be very accepting and kind. Ever think about how judgemental many Americans have become? Nearly everyone of us spends time thinking about what other people should or should not be doing which raises the question: Should we be doing this? Having said this, I invite you to call on your good judgement and feel free to comment or send an e-mail of suggestions for Mark about what you think he needs to do at this time...two years after cancer diagnosis with medicare recently kicking in as his only insurance along with access to the VA system.
Mark's Mom went to Waterloo Records 25th Anniversary party - What a party on the parking lot with lots and lots of bands playing for about 8 hours. Things like this happen in Austin Texas, self proclaimed "Music Capital of the World". Mom and James are cleaning house and partying while Mark is on vacation.
Do you know that Mark's Mom writes a column in a parenting news magazine each month? Yes, Mom has written a column in a parenting magazine every month for the last 15 years. The column (department) to click on is Family Matters. You can read the magazine online at http://www.austinfamily.com/ In the May issue Mom discusses the phenomenon of Helicopter Parents which is a term coined in the early '90s for parents who hover closely over children in college and now is used in a broader sense and includes for parents of younger children who tend to over manage their children's lives and activities. There is an interesting article in USA Today about Helicopter parents hovering over children in the work place; parents who try to negotiate better salaries and circumstances for their child by calling the grown child's boss or human resource director.
People from 51 Countries Have Visited This Blog - Look at the flag board on the right side of the blog. When you touch one of the flags with your cursor it will tell you the country of that flag and in some cases it will bring up a map. Flashing flags are new additions to the board. Visitors have come from: Austria, Afghanistan, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Switzerland, Chile, China, Czech republic, Germany, Spain, Finland, France, United Kingdom, Greece, Guam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, India, Italy, Israel, Japan, So Korea, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Madagascar,Morocco, Myanmar, Northern Marianas Islands, Mexico, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Singapore, El Salvador, Thailand, Turkey, USA, Serbia, and So. Africa. Thank-you all for visiting the blog and inviting friends from other countries to visit the blog. Mark takes these flags as a sign of support from around the world and this is part of what keeps Mark going when cancer gets tough.
Belinda - We met a young English lady in the waiting room at Bumrungrad Hospital two years ago. She lives on the island of Koh Samui and has a Thai Husband and a darling little boy Bertie. She had never smoked and had no bad habits at all, but she had cancer of the throat. She came back and forth from Koh Samui to Bumrungrad for treatment. At one point she went to Hong Kong to get a pet scan which shows cancerous areas in red. The red color is because of the high metabolism and heat of the cancer. Her husband and Bertie went along and they went to the Disney Park in Hong Kong. She was found to be cancer free at that time. Recently she wrote and cancer is back with her. She has a positive attitude and is returning to treatment. Pray for Belinda and her family. She is a mighty warrier in the cancer battle....but needs all the help and support she can get. Cancer is all around us and the world is full of brave people like Belinda and Mark who are battling cancer.
1 comment:
Hi guys,
First off, yes, Americans are very judgemental and I've always hated it. I think that's one of the first things people from other countries have difficulty accepting with us. Odd that we got that way, since we never had the royalty class vs the peasant class like other countries.
Now, you want me to tell you what I think Mark should do? Doesn't that come under the first paragraph of this response? Don't ask me! I'm no expert! I'm not even a real American. I was naturalized. I was hatched in the Republic of Germany!
But, if it was me, (which is the only way I can relate)I would do what I felt like doing, when I felt good enough to do it. Your life is only as rich as how good your friends and relatives are and how you experience life. You may only have one relative, friend and stay all your life in one place, but it's how you enjoy it all. If making sand angels on the beach is a really fun thing to do while you're basking and inhaling the warmth and security feelings, when you're finished enjoying that beach, go find another. Catch a freighter to Australia and snorkle all day on the barrier reef while everyone else is scuba diving it. It's much cheaper, and I think more fun. Certainly more safe. Hop freighters all around the east coast of Australia and go to New Zealand, Tasmania, Borneo, New Guinea. Have you read "My Wicker Wicked Ways" by Errol Flynn? It's hilarious. Follow his childhood travels in those areas.
I think Australia has socialized medicine and I think that they'll bill medicaid for whatever it will pay if you need medical help while your there. My British friends' parents who needed heart surgeries used to come over to Texas to "visit" and get their surgeries done here because they could get it done faster(they were on huge lists there) and the British system would pay for it.
Hell, do what you want to do to have fun. Not many of us have that opportunity. Take it. Crew on a boat that does business with a cruise line. You'll meet lots of people. Especially if it's a party boat.
Gotta go, it's late. You've earned the right to be hedonistic. Go for it and enjoy every second of it.
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