Tuesday, 26 October 10
One of the side effects of this medical odyssey is noise in my right ear. The ringing started during conformal radiation in March 2004. The ear canal for my right ear runs at the extreme edge of the area radiated. The unwanted sounds have come and gone over these past years. Sometimes they come and stay for a week or two, and there are also vast periods of time when no buzz is detected. The chatter returned last week, louder than before, so I paid a visit to my Otolaryngologist (Ear, Nose and Throat doctor) today. The audio test confirmed a normal left ear and a right ear with moderate hearing loss above 4 KHz. This ever-encouraging and helpful doctor, the same physician who was the first to tell that I probably had a brain tumor (January 2004), said that my hearing was still superior to his, and that there are many people who experience this condition (Tinnitus) without exposure to radiation. He also commented that my 6 year gbm survivor status was remarkable. This was my cue to present to him an autographed copy of An Unremarkable Man. We grinned at the irony of the matter. I asked him to be sure to read pages 5-8 of the book, since he is mentioned on those pages.
Friday, 22 October 10
The Kwik Kar mechanics may have
found the source of the slightly strange behavior that I have been experiencing with my Ford Taurus lately. We will
see if the new plugs and ignition wires correct the problem. I have been promised increased miles-per-gallon performance compared to the "cooked" plugs
and wires configuration of the past several years.
But the main benefit from my visit to the shop today was the conversation with a Kwik Kar patron - a sailor aboard the USS Maryland (BB-46) during World
War II. He was hard of hearing, so I wrote my questions and exhortations on napkins and he replied orally. I learned much about life on a WW II fleet
battleship, and I also learned that this war hero is trusting in Jesus Christ alone for the forgiveness of his sins and his salvation. A most unusual dialog -
written from me to him and vocally transmitted from him to me. This chat reminded me of a similar meeting from March
2009.
Wednesday, 20 October 10
Things have been routine and
typical for the past 16 days. I am thankful and motivated to attend numerous family and school activities.
Monday, 04 October 10
I am now 80 months post op. 6 2/3 years since that dreadful brain tumor was removed. I remember the encouragement I received in those early days (and still today) from friends, family and brain tumor people. My focus now is to return the favor.
Saturday, 02 October 10
The 4th annual Stars Come Out event was conducted this evening at III Forks restaurant in Dallas, benefitting the The Legacy Brain Foundation. It is encouraging to see so many people come together for a common cause. Thanks to Scott Murray (our MC) and to all who made this such a special time of hope and encouragement.
Friday, 01 October 10
Danger in the Comfort
Zone, by Judith M. Bardwick, asserts that many American businesses and employees have an Entitlement mindset. "We have it coming to
us" and "my future with the company / the company's survival is only loosely based upon objective performance" are the thoughts of people and
enterprises that are mired in the quicksand of Entitlement. Judith exhorts us to move from Entitlement to Earning, a phase in which companies
survive and thrive based upon accomplishments. Entitlement is a recipe for disaster, Bardwick states, but abandoning Entitlement in favor of
Earning can be a difficult task, because nobody wants to change. Why change and introduce uncertainities into a comfortable situation? Bardwick says that people and companies will not change on their own: they must perceive real and present dangers as the motivation to change. She calls this "Fear." So we move from Entitlement to Earning through Fear.
This book's concepts are relevant to the family and society as a whole, and not only this, but I see a direct correlation to this brain tumor story. If I grow lax in my treatments, if I skip a MRI, if I decide that I do not need routine check ups (e.g. I am in Entitlement), then I risk a major tumor recurrence that can be exceedingly difficult to defeat. It is this real fear of a returned tumor that keeps me on track. I view each day with an attitude of Earning, doing my part to continue to live by taking my meds, even if nobody would know I had skipped a dosage or a scan. Ample rest is important, as are diversionary activities each day. My prayer is 40 years; my attitude is one day at a time.
