Day 36-39

Hello!

Thank you so much for all of your kind posts, prayers and well wishes as I got over this difficult bump. 

The Infectious Disease physician confirmed the diagnosis as Valley Fever (Coccidiodmycosis, which is a fungus) this morning.  The doctors said it can lie dormant and since I lived in Arizona for 11 plus years, I may have contracted it there, fought it since my immune system was good, but it tends to leave spores dormant in joints, bones, and other parts of the body.  Once my immune system was wiped out, it took advantage and lit things up! 

It was rough going as Theresa noted in her previous post until they were able to dial in on the preliminary diagnosis which was confirmed by a biopsy they took from my right forearm on Thanksgiving. 

Before Thanksgiving my entire body was in pain with lumps, streaks and lesions turning up on every limb and joint.  I had been running a fever since the Saturday prior and things just seemed to be getting worse. Theresa stayed overnight with me on Thursday (Thanksgiving) and Friday (Our 22nd Anniversary!). 

Having Theresa with me on those very difficult days gave me whole feeling that kept me fighting so that I can soon be home with her everyday.  I could not move a muscle in my body and she helped feed me, clean me, give me water, and just hold my hands when fear was reaching for me.  Your love for me never has to be explained, I saw it in your eyes those difficult nights and your love held me fight with strength and peace and I knew I would be ok. Thank you Princess!!!

The docs had been treating me with a broad spectrum of antibiotics and anti fungals until Saturday when they started me on the big gun, Amphotericin B, which is the most effective drug to fight Valley Fever.  They let us know that AmphoB comes with significant side effects like kidney damage, liver damage, severe shaking (rigors), high fever, sweats, etc... 

I got to see the girls and my mom on Saturday which lifted my spirits beyond what I can explain in words.  Holding them, hugging them, kissing them, listening to them, and just being with them filled my heart with more love, strength and determination to fight, fight, fight!!!

Rachel's friend Megan and her mom Erin came by for a quick visit on Sunday and brought me a cool Chargers sweatshirt.  Thank you Connors family for all your love, prayers and support you have all given our family during this difficult time!!!



The first dose on Saturday evening went off with out a hitch but Sunday morning I woke up with both my right and left legs, thigh to toes, swollen like I'd never seen...yes, I had cankles, huge calves, huge knees, and huge thighs.  On both Saturday and Sunday physical therapy came in and got me walking with a walker which felt great but tapped my energy.  I continued getting blood and platelets as well.

The second dose of AmphoB on Sunday evening, came with what they call "shake and bake".  After the dose had completed, Theresa was just finishing helping me freshen up and clothe me when I started feeling a chill, then came the shaking.  My whole body was shaking and Theresa held my hand and told me to be strong.  The nurses immediately started giving me Demerol, used to control the rigors (shakes) and by the second dose the shakes had subsided.  Then came the high fever which was treated with Tylenol and ice packs.  

I will continue with the AmphoB unitl my lesions, sore lumps, joint/muscle pain, and swelling subside.  The good news is that there are no new lesions or lumps since Sunday, so I am winning the fight with your thoughts, prayers, strength, love, and good drugs!

My good friend Barry came  by for a quick lunch time visit and brought me a Golf short story book.   Thank you for the visit Barry!!!

Theresa also came by for lunch and stayed until the early evening.  We got a surprise visit from our friend Tiffany. 

Just started my 4th round of AmphoB and the Demerol is kicking in, so please have a great evening and hopefully I will be back to blogging daily soon.

Take care and God bless you all!

Love, John

Day 31-35 Happy Thanksgiving

Hello,
This is Theresa, John's wife.  John is unable to type his blog entry.  He is fighting an infection which started in his toe and is moving up his leg.  Infection is always so worrisome because he doesn't have any cells to fight it.  Please pray for John.  He needs to get better so he can prepare for his transplant. 

We are so grateful to have the support and love from you all.  This is a really hard day for our family...the girls miss him terribly.  I still feel we have so much to be grateful for! You have all shown us compassion and immense caring.That is what life is all about...caring for each other and being there when things get crappy.  Hold your families and good friends close.  Tell your loved ones what you mean to each other.  You are all fantastic and we love you!!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!
Love, Theresa

Day 30 - Toe-day the's day ;-)

Hello,

Woke up today with a swollen and painful left big toe...huh?!  I have a little cellulitis by my nail bed and never knew how painful a swollen big toe could be.  I took a few walks, while on pain meds, but have mostly been taking it easy today.  Hopefully it will clear up when my white cells decide to wake up from their siesta and I will be seeing the podiatrist on Monday.

Although Rachel is feeling better, Theresa and my Mom are still under the weather, so I hope they are feeling better soon and up for a visit.  We are all looking forward to spending Thanksgiving together here at the hospital and the day after Thanksgiving is our 22nd wedding anniversary...maybe another sleepover date night will work out ;-)

Thank you all for your continued prayers, encouragement and love!

Love,
John

Day 29 - TGIF!!!

Thank God it's Friday!

I love Friday's and today turned out to give me every reason to do so!  I had so many visitors and am so thankful to everyone who came by for a visit.

I ventured outside closer to Torrey Pines South and took a great picture that has 9, 13, 14, 15 and 16 in one shot...although since it was with my iPhone, it may be difficult to see them all.

There's a 3 day Breast Cancer walk going on here in San Diego and a group of teachers from Rachel's elementary school were walking for the cure.  It so happened that the 1st day of the walk passed right in front of the hospital I am staying at.  Lindsay, Rachel's kindergarten teacher, came inside to say hello and give me and the family some goodies from the walk while the other teachers were outside staying warmed up to continue their walk.  Thank you Lindsay and team EBS!!! I really appreciate that you stopped by to say hello during your walk!

My team from CareFusion came by and spent their lunch hour with me and then some!  They caught me up on all the goings on at work and filled me in on their plans for the Thanksgiving Holiday.  Thank you Nick, Jason, Kranthi, Rohit, Richard, Catherine and Shri, the visit was very much appreciated.  Thank you for the movies and books Jason!  I broke out some chocolate for a Friday toast! 

My aunt Debbie had picked up Olivia from school, so I got a surprise visit from Olivia, Debbie and Erik.  We hung out and I got lots of hugs from Olivia, who I haven't seen in a week.  When they had to go, Olivia and I didn't want to stop hugging each other and she did not want to leave.  She's been so strong and I am very proud of her!

Joe, Sharon, Wes and Kristi came by for their Friday sunset watch with me (was a cloudy day so no sunset).  We had a great time even though we did not see the sunset.  We talked about food and all the yummy stuff I will be eating when I go home...can't wait!!!  Thank you for spending some of your Friday with me, you all are awesome!

Tiffany, Tod and Camile came by for a visit as well and filled me in on their plans for Thanksgiving.  Camile gave me a gift to wear when I am home for the Holiday's...I thought of wearing it with the mullet, but I think it does well on its own ;-).  Thank you for the visit and cool gift!

My boss's boss, Nivaldo and his wife Maritza, came buy for a visit.  It was great to see Nivaldo and meet Maritza, although I am sorry that I forgot to get a picture!  We had a great visit and I Nivaldo shared some pictures from his recent trip to CareFusion's offices in India.  Nivaldo had amazing pictures of the colors and detailed architecture of India.  Thank you Nivaldo and Maritza for the nice visit!

Joe, Laura, and Tommy came by for a visit to round out the evening.  Tommy brought me a cool Steelers beanie!  Tommy razzed me all evening about Arizona's loss to USC, the Steeler loss to New England, and taunted me about the upcoming Arizona - Oregan game on Nov 26th.  Thanks Tom-Tom, but you are lucky my platelets are low or else I would have had you in a head lock ;-).  Love you guys!!!

God bless you all and thank you for your love and support!

Love,
John

Day 28 - Resting and In the Zone

Hello Family and Friends,

Thank you so much for the recent posts to Day 27, they definitely helped lift my spirits and added to my strength and drive to make it through the next few weeks.  White cells are still being shy which is why I still may be a few weeks out from going home...patience and perseverance, I am in the zone!

Didn't need any transfusions today, so I took a lot of strolls around the hospital.  My family has had the flu, so I have not seen them since Saturday.  We've been staying in touch on the phone and I got to read  a book at bedtime with Rachel using the Kindle that was a gift from my co-workers.  Rachel and I will be doing more bedtime reading!

Theresa packed some comfy clothes for me to wear...hospital gowns are getting old ;-)  My sister-in-law Mia came by this afternoon and brought me the clothes from home and some sweet notes from my family.  Thank you Mia for the delivery and the visit Mia!

Take care and thank you again for the inspiring posts, thoughts and prayers!!!

Love,
John

Day 27 - Patience + Perseverance = Magic

Hello!

I am feeling good and my back is getting better every day.  I had platelet and red cell transfusions today and my neutrophils are still at zero.  As day 27 came and went, I felt a bit numb to the fact I have been here that long. 

I have often been told that I am a patient man and that I persevere through what ever I have been faced with in life.  I feel my patience is being tried more than ever as I wait for the day that I am told I am in remission.  I know that I will persevere and get through this first obstacle on the path to being cured of MDS and leukemia.

John Quincy Adams once said, "Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish."

This magical effect that John Quincy Adams spoke of is something that comes from deep within our souls fed by the love of ourselves, our family, our friends, and life.  This magical effect is fed by the love, prayers, and hope that all of you have been sending my way.

Soon these difficulties and obstacles will be a fading shadow of my life and my patience and perseverance will get me there!!! 

Me, Kerri

The nursing staff here at Scripps Green Hospital have been exceptional!  They have made an otherwise arduous hospital stay comfortable, safe, motivating, and caring.  When I was first admitted, a nurse named Kerri took time to explain to me and Theresa just what I was in for and what to expect.  She has a calm, laid back demeanor that put both me and Theresa at ease immediately.  Out of all the nurses, I have been in Kerri's care the most and want to thank her for true passion to care for her patients in a calm, empathetic way.  Thank you Kerri!!!

Joe, Me, Pat

Two friends and colleagues, Joe and Pat, from a company CareFusion does business with came by today.  Joe and Pat, and I played Torrey Pines South one month after the 2008 US Open.  The South Course won that day, but we had a great time trying to beat it.  Thank you for the visit today gents, it was great to see you both and I look forward to being back out on Torrey Pines and taking the battle to the South course once again!


Thank you all for your continued love, prayers and support!!!

Love, John

Day 26 - Rest for my back

Hello!

Today has been a restful day.  I took two long naps while icing my back.  The meds they gave me for my back also had something to do with the napping part ;-).  The meds and rest are definitely working and my back is feeling better every day.  I have still been talking my walks outside and found a new (indoor) spot to check out Torrey Pines.  The view gives me a good look of the South course 16 tee boxes and amazing sunset views.

Room View

New view

I am now 12 days out from the start of my second round of chemo.  Whoo hoo!!! Today I did not need any blood products, so let's hope that trend continues and that eventually my Neutrophils (most important white blood cell) start to reappear...they are my ticket home ;-)

Love you all and thank you for your love and support!

John

Day 25 - Time is ticking

Hello,

Caught some pictures of the sunset and moon yesterday.  It is so nice to get outside and get fresh air!

I received platelets and red cells today.  The doctors expect to see my numbers starting to come up by this weekend and would like to make sure my neutrophils to up around 1.5.  If my neutrophils are up and I don't need red cell and platelet transfusions daily, I will be able to get home.  During the first week of December, I will come in for a bone marrow biopsy to confirm that I am in remission AML remission. All together coming home and getting the bone marrow biopsy results, the first week of December will be a big one.

My buddy Dave came to visit me today.  Knowing that I was not feeling good from the Steeler loss last night, Dave cheered my up and brought me some cool Steeler socks!  I put them on right way, very comfy!!!  Thank you for the visit Dave!  I love you man!  I will be routing for the Washington Redskins on Monday night football tonight (Dave's favorite team)!!!

Take care everyone! 

Love, John

Day 24 - Bro Day

Hello,

Feeling good, with the exception of my lower back.  My anti-nausea medicine was discontinued today since I am 48 hours post chemo.  My hair continues to fall out, so I will be going for the Mr. Clean look this week.  I have decided to stay in San Diego at Scripps Green for my Bone Marrow Transplant.  Being close to family and friends was #1 and the experience of the BMT team here at Scripps goes back over 20 years.  The BMT unit here is calm with a small patient to nurse ratio. Many of the nurses here have been working with BMT patients for 15 years or more here at Scripps.

Right now I am in a waiting game, waiting for my white cells, platelets, and red cells to get above critical levels.  When that happens, I will be able to be discharged and will have a bone marrow biopsy in early December to check for remission.

My brother Mike came by to visit and watch the Chicago vs Minnesota game.  Mike was between my niece Sophie's swim meet and my nephew Max's baseball game.  Mike gave me the low down on his Patrick Henry High School Football team's season.  Thanks for coming by bro!



My brother-in-law Joe came by to watch the Pittsburgh vs New England game (Sunday Night Football).  Although I was not happy with the outcome of the game (Steelers lost), it was fun to hang out with Joe.  Joe was wearing his Buffalo Bill jersey which I have not seen him wear in a long time...he was wearing it because the Bills won.  He made me laugh, which is just what I needed.  He also got to use my cocktail bar ;-). Sorry I forgot to get a picture Joey!

Love you all!
John

Day 23 - Dog Days

Hello,

As I mentioned in the Day 22 post, my back went out on me.  Here I am, finally D-D-D free and my back goes out...really?! 

I started the day with a very nice walk outside and felt the sun hit my face in the fresh air for the first time in 22 days!!!  Felt so good! All my walks now include a walk outside around the fountain.  Most of Saturday was spent icing my back and resting to get it back in shape.  I did get in quite a bit of college football and some rest.  The day ended with an Arizona loss to USC :-(...really?!

Is that really you Dad?

Best part of my day!

The highlight of my day was a visit from Theresa, Rachel and Gabe came for a visit.  Since I am no longer on chemo, I can wander outside, so Theresa brought Gabe with her and Rachel.  Gabe was growling at me at first since I had my hat on and a mask, but the second he heard my voice, is tail wagged like crazy and he was ready for some time with his Dad :-).  Olivia was sick so she stayed at home to rest, but I will see her on Sunday.  We took Gabe for a walk and gave some treats.  It was fun!

Joe, Sharon and Barry were at the Green Flash beer festival where they were having a Be The Match bone marrow registry drive!  Drinking beer and supporting Be The Match...what a great match that is.  They had a few for me, per my request.



Thank you all so much for your support of the Be The Match program.  The Sabre Springs Red Cross office now knows me by name since so many folks have gone in to get registered.  God bless you all for your continued love, support, wishes and prayers!!!

Love,

John

Day 22 - Round Two Done - Ding, Ding, Ding!

Yes!  Round two of chemo is done!  It finished up at 6pm on Friday and I was thrilled!  I was disconnected from my D-D-D and able to roam the lobby AND go out side for the first time in 22 days!  I called the girls right away and we looked at the moon together!  It was awesome to get fresh air and extend my walking track!

I am feeling great, but I did manage to throw my lower back out Friday night...really?!  It is definitely improving and I am continuing to get my walks in.

Between Thursday and Friday, I had many visitors stop by but did not get to get pictures of everyone.  Ed Stokes, a colleague from work was nice enough to come by for a very pleasant visit.  Thank you for the time Ed, it was very much appreciated!  

The kids had the day off, so Theresa, Cindy, Olivia, and Rachel came by for lunch in my room and we had a awesome time.  While Livy helped Cindy and Theresa get lunch from the cafeteria, Rachel hung out with me and helped me fill out my meal menu for Friday.  We also watched some family videos that were unlabeled and needed to be labeled correctly.  It was great just to hang out and laugh, felt like being home!  Cindy made some yummy treats for the BMT unit staff and they loved them!  Thank you Cindy! 

Joe, Laura, Tommy and Izzy came by for a nice visit and we tried to get Olivia to perform her solo performance that went really well on Wednesday night!  Tommy and Izzy were enjoying the start of a 4 day weekend for them.  Thank you for coming by!

Cindy took the girls home and Theresa stayed with me.  We got a nice surprise when my boss, Sam, showed up for visit.  Sam is based in Virginia and was in San Diego for the week.  It was great that he got to meet Theresa and we enjoyed talking about his recent trip to India and getting caught up on the goings on at work.  Thank you for the visit Sam, it was great to see you!

Theresa and I relaxed in my comfy bed and watched HGTV and the beginning of Conan.  Thank you for that Sweetie, it was so relaxing!

On Friday, I had very nice visits from Khalid, Ritika, and Shawn from work, who brought a very nice card from the Infusion team at CareFusion and some very nice gifts for my family.  Thank you CareFusion, your thoughts, prayers and support which is all very much appreciated!

I also had a very nice visit from our financial advisor Larry and his wife Lori.  It was my first time meeting Lori so it was so nice to get to know her after knowing Larry for many years.  I gave them a tour of the BMT unit and they gave me some great gardening tips for when I get out of here.  Talk of all the vegetables they grow made me hungry just in time for dinner!  Thank you for the time Larry and Lori, it was such a nice visit!

Theresa and Cindy came by on their way to the airport.  Cindy went home today and we were sad to see here go :.-(.  Cindy was here since Sunday and helped with the girls during the week while Theresa was busy coming out to see me and taking care of business.  Cindy, thank you so much for coming out to San Diego.  Theresa and I are so blessed to have your support and friendship!  The week went by so fast and we will miss you!!!

Thank you all for your continued love, prayers and support!

Love, John

Day 21 - Dedicated to Warrior 21 Noxah Palomo

Today is Day 21 (Thursday 11/11) of my road to AML remission and the final day of my second round of chemotherapy.

One year ago this month, Andy Friedman, a member of my team at work brought to my attention a boy named Noxah Palomo who is the son of one of his good friends on the east coast.  Noxah was stricken with childhood leukemia when he was pitching in a baseball game at the age of 12. Noxah's baseball uniform number was 21 and since he was such a fighter, his family called him Warrior 21.  The team at CareFusion raised money for Noxah and his family so that they could enjoy Christmas 2009.  We all got a chance to talk to Noxah and his mother on the phone during a holiday team celebration and were all inspired by his spirit.

Noxah continued on his Warrior path for a year, enduring endless chemotherapy treatments and a stem cell transplant.  On October 8th, 2010, two weeks before I was admitted to the hospital to begin my battle, Warrior 21 Noxah Palomo lost his brave battle with leukemia. 

A lot of people ask me how I get through every day, and one answer is every day I think of Noxah and how brave he was and how hard he fought.  I vowed to continue his battle and win for him and all other children who are stricken with this awful disease.  I have lived a wonderful life, had children, been married for 22 years, enjoy friends and family, and have more to enjoy. 

No child should ever be denied this from life and so I dedicate my Day 21 to Warrior 21, Noxah Palomo, my hero!!!

Below are some links to provide more support to the Palomo family.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/delawareonline/obituary.aspx?n=noxah-m-palomo&pid=145940091&fhid=7883&sms_ss=facebook&at_xt=4cb466ae2d5ea3d4%2C0

http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2010/10/11/brotherly-love-remembering-noxah/

If you’d like to support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, please see the link below:

http://www.leukemia-lymphoma.org/hm_lls

Love,
John

Day 20 - Nice Visits!



Joe Dirt lives in us all!

Day 20 (Thursday, 11/10) started off with some platelets (hefeweisen beer) and an ultrasound to keep track of some minor clots I have in my arms.  All is well and they won't be giving me any problems.  I continue to do my laps around the ward and hassle the staff ;-).  I started day 6 of my second round of chemo today.  So far, so good (gracias a Dios!), just a few GI issues and some minor nausea that is well controlled with a med called Zofran.  My scalp is aching a little bit and I noticed my hair is definitely starting to fall out.  I see short little hairs on my pillow.  I walk out of my room once in a while with my mullet wig on...really freaks out the nurses, but gets a good laugh too (kind of disturbing looking :-o).

Good friend and co-worker Ryan came by for a visit and gave me the down low from work...glad to hear nothing has really changed and the team is continuing to do the good work they have always done!  Thanks for stopping by Ryan, it was a nice surprise and I really enjoyed the visit!

Our friend Sherri came by for a nice surprise visit today also.  Sherri and her family have been such a source of strength and inspiration for me and my family over the years.  Sherri's sister passed away from cancer years ago and actually used to work here in this BMT unit that I am on.  So many nurses that have cared for me remember Chris and what a loving caregiver she was for her patients.  Thank you for stopping by for the visit Sherri, it brightened my day!!!

Theresa and the girls had a busy day that culminated with Olivia's solo concert in the evening.  Theresa called me on her phone when Olivia was singing, so I got to listen, then clap and whistle!  Olivia sang "Maybe Next Time" by Liza Minnelli.  You sounded like a jazzy angel Livy Lu!  I can't wait to see the video and I am sooooooo proud of you!

Wes, Kristi, Joe and Sharon came by last night for a diner visit and we watched the sunset.  They always time their visits just right for those sunsets...hmmm...they can come by and watch every sunset everyday!  We had a great visit and lots of laughs, mostly at Dave C.'s expense, since he was not here ;-).  Thank you all for taking time out of your busy day to come by and spend time with me and making me laugh!!! I love you all!

Take care everyone and God Bless you all!
Love, John

Day 19 - Charging on!

Hello!

Wow, the days are flying by!  I am 4 days into my second round of chemo and 3 days to go on the Ara-C!  I've been getting blood transfusions and platelets to help keep me healthy so thank you to all you out there that donate blood during blood drives.  The blood bank always needs more so to find out where you can donate check out this link: http://www.redcrossblood.org/

I want to thank our good friends Sharon and Jovita for getting the word out to all of you about joining the Bone Marrow Donor Registry (Be The Match) program.  So many of you have already gone out or are planning to get tested and entered in the registry.  Our friend Cindy who is in town helping Theresa went in this morning and got registered at the San Diego Blood Bank location in Sabre Springs.  Cindy said they have seen a spike in appointments and calls at their office!!!  Cindy also said it was easy, you just fill out a questionnaire, get your cheek swabbed, and your done!  Thank you all for doing this, you don't know how much it means to me.  You never know who you may help, but it is an amazing program that can give you the chance to save a life some day!  Thank you again and for more information check out this link: http://www.marrow.org/JOIN/index.html?src=tabjoin

I was out doing one of my laps around the BMT unit and was stopped by the BMT social worker who was telling me he saw my employer, CareFusion, in the news paper this morning.  The story was about CareFusion discontinuing the sponsorship of Jazz events around the world to promote CareFusion (long overdue cost cutting measure).  As we were talking a voice came up behind us and said, "What's that about CareFusion?" and it was Doug Medve a colleague from work!  Doug was downstairs below the BMT unit and he said that he heard my voice and went looking for me!  Well he found me and we got a chance to get caught up on how things are going at the office and he also got to meet Theresa.  It was great to see you Doug and thank you for the time you spent with me today!

My aunt Debbie also stopped by to say hello and brought the nurses some pretzels filled with peanut butter...the nurses and doctors thanked me all day, but I said it was my aunt Debbie you should be thanking.  Thank you for coming by Debbie!!!

Gigi, Barry, Cindy, and Theresa all joined me for lunch today.  Gigi and Barry brought Theresa and Cindy some lunch, which was very nice.  I had finished my chicken and cheese sandwich and had to endure the yummy smell and scene of everyone eating rolled taquitos, rice, and beans...I am starting to make a list of the things I will be eating when I get out of here, and rolled taquitos will be on the list!

My daughter Olivia sang at a Veteran's Day concert yesterday and tomorrow she sings a solo at her school for a choir fundraiser!  Theresa is recording the performances so I can watch them on DVD later this week.  I am so proud of Livy and can't wait to see her singing!

Although I did not get to watch the Steeler game last night (still no ESPN!), I did get to watch text updates on the ESPN GameCast website.  It has a little 3-D football field that shows each drive and does a play by play text update.  Actually pretty cool.  It was a close one, too close, but my Steelers got the W!

Take care everyone and thanks again for the daily love, prayers, thoughts and support!!!

Love, John

Day 18 - Flying High with Inspiration!

Hello,

I was flying high with inspiration from a special visitor today, but I will get to that in a bit.  I was also flying high with my blood pressure which went up a bit due to all the fluids I am getting...a little Lasix will do the trick and keep me going for the next 6 hours ;-).

I tried to get my ESPN channel working today, but seems the hospital is having issues with their satellite provider, so NO, will not get to watch my Steelers beat the Bengals tonight...I am working on trying to get a streaming radio station going, but security on this hospital network is tight!

Theresa and Cindy came by for lunch today and gave me all the details of the girls morning.  It is great to have Cindy in town this week.  They are going to a Veteran's day choir performance tonight that Olivia is singing in.  Olivia also has a solo performance on Wednesday night at her school for a choir fundraiser.  Belt it out baby!!!

Steve, a good friend and neighbor from the hood came by for a nice surprise visit this morning.  He offered to take me out to a bar, but the nurse said no.  Thanks for trying Steve!  He got in trouble a couple of times cause he was making me laugh while the nurse was trying to take my blood pressure...always making trouble.  Sorry I did not get a pic Steve, but thank you so much for the time and well wishes today!

Steve's wife Shannon had introduced me over email to a co-worker and friend of hers who was diagnosed with AML in 2004.  Eric went through 2 rounds of chemo just like me to get into a first remission.  Eric had to go through another round when his AML came back, then he received a bone marrow transplant in 2006 and has been in remission since then!!! Amazing and very inspirational!!!  Eric was traveling out to the West coast for work and to see family and was so nice of him to come by and visit me in person today.  Eric spent a couple of hours talking with me and Theresa about his experience beating AML.  With all the strength I have received from family and friends, Eric's visit put me over the top.  His positivity and energy about staring this disease down had me flying high with inspiration!  Eric, thank you so much for your visit and for everything you shared with Theresa and I.  When I get through all this, I will be taking you up on that Tahoe ride!

Love you all,
John

Day 17 - Nice day of family and friend visits!

Hello!

Day 16 ended with a little nausea, but I think it was more due to the fact that Arizona lost to Stanford (17-42 ).  Seems their offense and defense decided not to show up.  However, my Offense and Defense are definitely a show and are up to fighting hard with all your love, thoughts, best wishes and prayers!!!

Day 17 started with getting some more platelets, par for the course.  I received my 3rd and final dose of the daunorubicin (I call it my "Jello Shooter") today and will continue the Ara-C for another 5 days.

 



Our good friends Tod, Tiffiny and their daughter Camille came by for a very nice visit.  I usually take Olivia and Camille to middle school as part of the carpool, so it was nice to see Camille and get caught up on her lizard Charlie (a bearded dragon lizard) that I have taken care of while they were out of town.  Thank you for coming by Tiff, Tod and Camillie!

In addition to watching NFL football, I had many visits today.  My Mom, Jim, and nephew Adriane came by to say good by.  Jim and Adriane came by to pick up my Mom this weekend. My Mom has been in town since Day 0 to help Theresa with the kids.  Mama, I can't thank you enough for all your help!!! You are truly and angel and we will miss you, but look forward to seeing you in another week.  Rest up and God Bless you for all you have done Mama!  When I told the girls last Friday that I'd have to hang out at the hospital, they were of course not too happy and Rachel was upset.  On their way home from the hospital, Adriane shared an iPod song with Rachel "Don't stop believing" by Journey.  That cheered her up including him diving into some bushes to make her laugh!!!  Thank you Adriane!  You are a little angel and making my baby feel better after a rough day touched my heart!  Thank you little buddy!

I also had a visit from my Grandma Joyce and Uncle John.  I showed off my mullet wig for my best impersonation of my step-dad Jim (circa 1990's) :-).  Go Joe Dirt!

Theresa picked up our Comadre Cindy at the airport and came by for a visit with the girls!  Cindy will be in town for a week.  It was so nice to see her and give her a big hug!  She brought me a very special letter from her husband Larry and he sent me his Medal from last June's Rock-n-Roll Marathon here in San Diego.  We were there to cheer him across the finish line and he has lent me his Medal for inspiration to finish this race I am in...Thank you Compira, it means a lot to me!!! Thank you for sparing Cindy for a week and don't have too many parties (Sorry about Texas losing!).

Good friends and teachers from my daughter's elementary school came by for a very sweet visit.  Mary and Lindsay brought me lots of sweet treats, two cool books and lots of hugs!  Mary even brought me Rachel's math test to sign (Rae did great!).  Thank you so much for the visit Mary and Lindsay!

 

My cousin Kathy and her partner Sharon drove all the way down from Santa Cruz on their way to Texas for a visit.  It was so nice of them, because they had just gotten back from New York the night before, made the extra trip down to San Diego and now headed to Texas!  They brought me some holy water and a scapula from St. Patrick's Cathedral in NYC, a soft beanie, and the coolest Golf Shoe Slippers ever!!!  I'm entering the hospital fashion show for sure!  Thank you Kathy and Sharon!!!

Take care everyone and thanks again for checking in!

Love you,
John

Day 16 - Family Day

Hello,

Started day 2 of second round today. Feeling good, strong, and getting lots of walks. 

Theresa stayed until noon.  Thank you for staying with me Princess! 

Joe and Laura

Theresa's parents, brother, sister, my-brother-in-law, niece and nephew all arrived when Theresa was leaving.  We had a fun visit.  My nephew Tommy and I combed through the NFL picture book I have and saved our spot for the next visit.  Izzy got me all caught up on the latest Anime shows.  Thank you for the time today, it was nice to see you all!

Tommy and Izzy



Senor and Senora

My brother Mike and sister-in-law Mia also came by for nice visit today!  Mike brought me a plaque that usually hangs in his Patrick Henry team locker room that says "Make It Happen".  Thank you brotha, I definitely will!!! Mia helped me snap some nice shots of my view today, beautiful sky and sunset!

Love you all,

John

Day 15 - Got most of it!

Hi Everyone, 

I received the results from the bone marrow biopsy today (Friday) and although they were able to knock out 83% of the leukemia cells in my marrow, there is still another 17% that will require a second round of a normal course of the Daunarubicin and Ara-C (won't be high dose this time) over the next 7 days.  This is not uncommon and I am so happy that the first round was able to zap as much as it did!  When I was first admitted, 60% of all the bone marrow in my body was Leukemia cells, now only 10% of my bone marrow is Leukemia cells...now that's what I call progress.  I am healthy, feeling strong, and feeling armed with all the love, thoughts, best wishes, and prayers that come my way everyday from all of you.

I got a lot of visitors yesterday and had a Friday Night Date Night and sleep over with Theresa ;-).

Luis, Me and Khalid

My good friends and colleagues from work, Khalid and Luis, came by and we had a great visit.  They brought a huge card that had so many nice messages from everyone from work.  Thank you all so much for your thoughts, prayers and well wishes.  Also, thank you for the Kindle and gift cards for my family.  That was so nice of you all!  The Kindle will come in very handy for my reading and my family sends their thanks for the nice gift cards. We are very touched by the caring and generosity you have all showed to me and my family. Thank you, thank you, so much!   

Mia, Theresa, Me and Tiff



Theresa came by and then my sister in-law Mia and then our friend Tiffiny...I was surrounded by beautiful women!  We had lunch, talked, and laughed.  Thank you for the dose of laughter and good spirits! Thanks to Tiffiny for bringing Theresa some lunch. It's nice to know that people are watching out for her too!

Parag, Yogi and Me

Our good friends Yogi and Parag came by for a visit and were so sweet to bring Theresa some chocolates and me a book called "Sh*t My Dad Says", which I am sure to get a big kick out of!  Thank you Yogi and Parag for the visit and time to talk!





My daughters Olivia and Rachel came by for a visit in the early evening which was awesome.  It was the highlight of the day!  They were both understandably upset that I would not be coming home soon, but I assured them that Papi will be just fine and needs a little more medicine to get the rest of this stuff.  Given the speed these two weeks have passed, another 3-4 will be cake.  They have such strong spirits and will be even stronger when we will all get through this together as a family.  I love you my little Princesses, with all my heart, ditto, eternity and beyond...gotcha!

Theresa surprised me and said she'd be staying the night, so I quickly went into action. I picked a movie for us to watch and ordered a cot for her to sleep in, got my cocktail bar ready (consists of tea's, ensure and ginger ale...hey, it works).  We snuggled in my bed for the movie (Bourne Ultimatum...thank you Joe and Sharon), talked and got ready for bed.  Just like being back at home...ahhhh, the best night ever!

One more thing.  A very good friend (my best Tequila shot partner) who beat cancer sent me a very appropriate message that I'd like to share:

Courage doesn't always roar.  Sometimes courage is a quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow".

Love you all!

John

Day 14 - Bone Marrow Biopsy Day

Thank you all for the day 13 posts.  All the thoughts and prayers are very much appreciated! 

Theresa spent most of her day here with me (thank you Sweetie) even though I was out of it most the time.  Theresa helped me relax given it was biopsy day.  Our good friend Tiffany stopped by for a visit, but she mostly saw me asleep, but her and Theresa got caught up on things.  Thank you for coming by Tiffany!!!

Day 14 was a big day... I got my bone marrow biopsy.  This is my 6th bone marrow biopsy since 2001, but the results of this one are by far the most important.  I'll find out if the chemo zapped all those damn malignant cells in my marrow.  I should know the results in a few days.  The procedure went very well with the help of some mild sedation :-) and an excellent Dr. doing the procedure.  I got some more platelets, red bloods cells, and more benadryl, so between the mild sedation and benadryl, I was pretty much out of it for the whole day.

Dinner came just about as I was coming out of the fog and I was able to catch the day 14 sunset from my window.

Day 14 Torey Pines Sunset...beautiful

Thanks again everyone and I will let you know what I hear from the results of the biopsy as soon as I get some news.

Love you all!!!
John

Day 13 - Restful and Restless

Thank you all for the posts on Day 12!  It was a big day and as one friend put it, it's all about beating this thing to the punch :-) 

Got more platelets on day 13 and got some much needed rest.  Theresa came by for lunch and although I had to take more benadryl today I was able to actually hold a conversation with her which was a great boost of my strength. 

The hardest thing about all this is not seeing Theresa and the girls everyday and not being involved in the day to day husband and dad stuff.  However, that restless feeling also fuels my strength and hope more and more everyday to beat this damn thing!!!  Some friends of ours have  a friend that has been in remission for 4 years post bone marrow transplant for AML!  He put it best in very inspirational email he sent me, "I have my babies, I had no option [but to beat AML]."  I can't agree more!!!

Dr. Bob Gordon came by for a nice visit and let me know that he had donated blood in my name (doesn't mean I will get his blood, but someone who needs it will)...thank you Bob!!!  To see how you can donate blood, check out the American Red Cross.

I had some good friends come by this evening for a very nice visit which helped lift my spirits... Thank you Sharron, Joe, Wes and Kristi!

Tomorrow I get a bone marrow biopsy to see if the malignant cells in my bone marrow are gone.  The results may take a few days but the hope is that the malignant cells are gone and I am in chemo induced remission and I can start the process of getting my name in the National Donor Registry to find an unrelated bone marrow donor.  If there are still a few malignant cells hanging, we'll zap'em with another course of chemo and repeat the process in a couple of weeks.

Thank you all for your love and support, they have made day 13 come and go quickly with a lot of strength!!!