Slacker?

Casey said to me the other day, "What's up with the blog? You're kind of slackin'." Yikes, I guess I am. I really didn't just want to write daily 'stuff' I'm doing, as I'm not too sure people really want to read about my miles walked, what I had for breakfast, or what time I took my shower. Since most people know me as a bit of an anti-tweeter and anti-facebooker (this is just me of course, as I would never judge anyone else on their need to communicate and connect with others - how do you like that disclaimer). I have steadfastly refused to join the 'ultra-connected' generation, as I really don't feel everyone needs to know that I'm sweeping the kitchen and then plan to snack on some yogurt. So, that being said, I'm sorry if I didn't give an update (I have gotten lots of emails checking if I'm "ok?"), but I think I was a bit afraid that I would be entering the shady, slippery-slope gray area of over-commuinicating to people. And, unfortunately, these days, overcommunicating often descends one into the realm of TMI.

Yet, I actually do have a bit of info, so I would like to update everyone on how things are going. Things are going great! I'm still at my mom's house, but have had movie nights with Casey and my brother, sleepover with Jack (Owen will have one on Thurs), dinners with friends of my mom, and getting out of the house all the time. My out of the house time is walking, appts at the clinic, went to Bartell's today (I jump like a scared kitten when someone coughs), stopping by Kidd Valley for a double cheesburger, etc.

Getting out and about - good. Sick people and big crowds - bad. All that being said, I am very grateful for how well things are going and realize that I need to be very diligent (and a little bit lucky) and really try and stay healthy. I don't want to assume something is 'going to get me,' but I also want to be realistic that I could pick up an illness that would set me back a bit. I am cautiously optimistic that I will continue to progress uneventfully.

Transplant wise, I'm Day +25. Today is actually exactly one month from admitting to the hospital, chemo was started on Dec 12th. The staff feel I am unbelievably "ahead of schedule," but I try and keep that in perspective related to who usually is having this procedure done. Most patients who have a stem-cell transplant are battling life-threatening diseases (usually cancer) where they are much sicker than I was going into this. So, I tell the staff at the SCCA to please not give me much credit for getting out of their hair quickly, but realize that I am just luckier than most of the patients whom they usually are providing these life-saving services for. I only hope that I will, in the end, prove that this procedure can be done very safely on patients with early-stage MS and that it is a treatment that will truly HALT this sucky disease. If that comes out of me doing this study, I will be very happy. But, I will think everyday of the many patients I met and saw battling for their lives while I have been receiving treatment at the SCCA, Fred Hutch, and the UW Hospital. I feel like I was extrememly lucky to have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity (remember, this was a choice I/we made), for which I will always be grateful, but the people battling multiple myeloma, leukemia, lymphoma, and other horrific diseases, are the true heroes.

I got off on a tangent there, sorry. I was mentioning that I am Day +25. I have my Long-Term Discharge Class tomorrow. I will get my Hickman IV line removed on Thursday. I will have my last SCCA clinic appt on Friday. And, next Tues will be my "exit conference." I'm glad to be getting kicked out of the clinic and onto weekly visits with the oncologist. I will see an oncologist until July 5th (longer if needed). He will check my blood work weekly until early March, then every two weeks until early July. My counts go up and down, but are at a good level. It's that darn 'micro-immunity' that is going to take so long to mature. I really have very little, if any, protection from virus', so I'm glad my whole family have had both flu vaccinations.

My goal is to get home sometime later this month. I would have to come back to my mom's for a few nights if anyone gets sick at home. I then plan to lay pretty low (like I'm doing) until the three month mark, but will plan on being the full-on house husband. I'm really looking forward to walking kids to school, cleaning up around the house (no vacuuming yet), cooking dinners, and just hanging with the family again. There are so many things I won't be able to do (especially until six months), so I figure I'll try and do a lot of biking and hitting golf balls.

I have talked with a few people (Diane, John, Sharon, Kathy) about walking. I am going to try and get a walking schedule started next week. If anyone has a day(s) they would like to get out and walk, please send me an email. I would adjust to the 'time' that worked best for you since it doesn't matter to me if it's in the morning, middle of the day on a day off, or in the evening after work. Diane, I'm going to give you a call (I meant to do it Sun...sorry), but any emails from anyone else who would like to walk for an hour or so around Green Lake, the Ballard/Phinney area, or even somewhere else would be fun and something for me to look forward to. Probably in and around Seattle central is best for me. Sorry, not running quite yet, maybe this spring.

Well, I hope to talk with you all sooner than later. By the way, I'm going to go eat a vanilla yogurt and go for a walk, then come home, shower, and watch American Idol. How's that for TMI...see what I mean? Love to you all. Mike