Saturday, January 16, 2010 3:43 PM, CST

Hi everyone ...merry MLK week.

Just got back from day 1 at the clinic .. had 93 pills (it seems like) along with the various mixes of chemo...yum yum.

Doing good ..no problems.. labs are good .. ready to wipe this MM out.

I know it seems strange but it was very nice seeing all our friends we have made that are on this same journey. Everyone is smiling, joking and very upbeat about our situation. One of the secrets to success maybe.

The Doc placed 2 MRI pictures side by side on the screen. One from September and the other this week. The MM hot spots are all but gone!!! Truly remarkable. So I am really encouraged by this and Doc as well.

Well enough of medicine.

Many years ago our family would go to both Grandparents for a few days before Christmas. It lasted about a week but to me seemed like a month. Of course, being a 14 yr old city kid , I wanted to go hunting - rabbit huntin. Fortunately, I had an uncle with rabbit dogs at each port of call. In Geraldine, Uncle Huelon Freeman would load the truck up with 6 Beagles, Daddy and me ... and go rabbit huntin. Then, when we went to Gadsden a few days later, Uncle CJ Croft would load the truck up with Beagles, Wade, and me....and go rabbit huntin.

I guess this is where the term “double dipping” was coined...not sure.

On one of these wonderful outings with Uncle CJ...it was crisp morning, sunny blue sky...Wade and I each sported a 12 gauge shotgun, unplugged with 5 shots, semi automatic..load consisted of 6 shot big game powder load. What this simply means is anything within 40 yards would be vaporized.

Uncle CJ sported a 22 rifle….never understood why until later…….a 22 is for shooting squirrel and little varmints, not something hopping on the ground at 40MPH. As we topped a terrace, the dogs started yelping and chasing a rabbit. What a wonderful sound to hear beagles in the distance yelping. A word of explanation.. a rabbit on the chase will run in a complete circle and end up where it first was jumped.

So the hunter waits for the rabbit to return to the original point. As the dogs turn and start coming back towards you it is time to be ready for a shot. The rabbit will be way out in front of the dogs.

On this day Wade and I were making ready for a shot... along comes the rabbit doing about 20MPH. Wade and I start unloading the ammo...10 shots in a few seconds….dirt, smoke, corn stalks all flying everywhere...as we look through the haze, the rabbit is still going except he is now in overdrive about 40MPH and at least 35 yards out from us...then we here a single shot from Uncle CJ - yes, he shot the rabbit with a 22. damnest shot I ever saw.

　

SIDE NOTES AND VICIOUS RUMORS

• don't get it ....Tommy Tuberville wins 85% of games in 10 years and gets fired
• don't get it ... Dooley at Tennessee ...with a losing record resume
• don't get it .... national health care .. its free? Been to the Post Office lately?
• don't get it ... Bobby Bowden gone at Fl state
• don't get it ... all these ex Notre Dame coaches as color analyst for SEC games ..what sacrilege
• don't get it ... everybody I see is now an Alabama fan

From Karen:

Nice quick day at the clinic this morning. We had to be there at 10 and were home by 1. Mark had a great nurse who was witty and very good with her nursing skills and patient care. All the nurses are wonderful but every once in a while you get that special one! A couple of the nurses ask if Mark was red yet - they must have bets on when he will turn Day Glo Pink. He had his chemo pills for breakfast here and then a Velcade injection and a Melphalan IV at the clinic. He also got the drugs to prevent side effects and a shot in his tummy. It sounds rough but he made it with flying colors. The hardest part is eating the ice chips for two hours to prevent the Melphalan’s side effects. I am investigating getting an Icee machine for the clinic - has to be an easier way to keep your mouth frozen. Tonight he begins the Thalidomide pills. The chemo is for four days so he has only 3 ½ more days! Tomorrow is the same song and dance.

We got to catch up with a few other friends at the clinic this morning and everyone seemed to be doing well. We were really thrilled to see Curt from NC - last time we saw him he wasn’t in very good shape and today he was striding down the hall! That in itself is a miracle! The doctors had told him in NC that he wouldn’t survive the plane trip to UAMS much less the treatment and here he was ready to dance!!

Tom had invited Mark to putt some this afternoon but just as we were leaving the clinic the rain began. Debbie had to go back home to the girls and his Dad was coming in tonight. I am so amazed that Debbie is handling her job, Tom, their girls and a three hours trip here. She is quite a juggler - as she says, “I take it one day at a time”. And as I know with God’s grace.

Thank you all for your love and support.