LIVING WITH MCL

Had my heart ultrasound the other day, and it was very uneventful. It was interesting to watch, but as I had little idea what any of it meant, it didn't do much good. I tried to solicit an opinion from the sonographer, but he wasn't very forth coming. Not that I really expected anything else. Giving an opinion is way beyond the scope of his job. I didn't think it would hurt to ask though. You never know, as I'm sure he did have an opinion. He just wasn't willing to share it with me. I did manage to get him to say 'everything looked good' to him, but at the same time he did say he was authorizing the treadmill test on August 8th. I'm just not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

As I was listening to the radio, this song started playing. I haven't heard this song in quite awhile, nor had I even thought about it, but as I was listening to the words this time, it really hit me. Just Imagine if.......... [embed]http://youtu.be/pEx7I31-iW8[/embed]

Went to a birthday party yesterday for a long time friend, and as I was looking around, I saw quite a number of people engrossed with their smart phones, some showing all sorts of pictures to everyone, and others just sitting off to the side, in their own little world, playing on their so called smart phones. What struck me so was, I know I have been guilty of doing exactly the same at times, that is sitting at a party, at a dinner, or just around the table talking to friends, and checking the internet, my email, or texting someone. It annoys me when I see that, so why shouldn't it be annoying to others as well. It bothered me enough, I just switched out my DroidX for my old LG VX5500 (a so called dumb phone), and saved myself $30 in the process. I just didn't want to be one of those people any more. So from now on, if you need to get in touch with me quickly, you're just gonna have to call me, because I won't be checking my emails as often as I once did. You could try

I seem to be going through another one of my funks about now. Something I find myself doing a lot more of lately. I just shouldn't be though. I should be happy. At least that's what I told myself 10 years ago, when I was diagnosed with MCL. I told myself, if I could get 10 good years I would be a happy camper. Well, I got those 10 good years, but that hasn't made me happy. I want another 10 years. I'm just not sure I can get them, and even if I do, I'm not sure that will make me happy either. You see, 10 years is a long time. It doesn't seem that long when I look back, but it is. Sure I've managed to hold my MCL at bay for most of that time, but along the way something happened I hadn't planned on. I got older, and my MCL is no longer my only concern. Most recently it was  the Basal Cell Carcinoma that was removed from my forehead , and the  Bibasilar Atelectasis, and coronary calcifications, that showed up on a recent CT scan , both of which can at leas

I've got some good news and I've got some bad news for you. Which would you like to hear first? The good news of course, I responded. Well, your blood test results indicate your MCL is stable, and has been for the last 3 years, plus according to your latest CT scan, while your spleen has increased in size from 19 cm in '09, to 22 cm today, all your other organs look mostly "unremarkable". Pretty good news, I thought to myself. So what's the bad news then, I asked? Well, according to that same CT scan, you're exhibiting bibasilar atelectasis , ................... and coronary calcifications. So, it's much more likely you're going to die from a myocardial infarction rather than your Mantle Cell Lymphoma. Oh, and BTW, I'm referring you for an EKG stress test. Now if that's not enough to burst anyone's bubble, I don't know what is. I knew I never should have complained about that pain in my back. All I seemed to have gained from it, is