Gloved Hands

I don't know what I expected from the last treatment but I didn't expect that multiple parts of my body would go partially numb. At first I thought it was just exposure to cold but as I laid in bed, "snug as a bug in a rug", I felt portions of my hands, feet and face go numb. Soon after Susan offered to rub my back and to my surprise there was numbness' especially along my spinal cord. The numbness in my hands and feet might be bringing some comfort from the burning and soreness caused by the 5-FU so perhaps it's a blessing in disguise?

What I am experiencing may last a while but it will be nothing compared to what I would have gone through if I had more treatments or what others go through on a routine basis.

The weekend was a mixed bag of good and bad starting off with the Byron 15K Saturday morning. I didn't run but opted instead to photograph the runners instead. Imagine my surprise when I got to photograph a movie star, Sean Astin, who was in Lord of the Rings and also starred in the movie Rudy, (Nice Guy). Bundled up as I was Sean mentioned that I looked like an Inuit.

Can't say I felt “Peachy” later in the day after Larry dropped me off but by Sunday morning I felt decent enough to log seven miles on the trail. All right, I know I'm not “supposed” to run more than five but the extra two miles were more like a walk/run, smell the roses, clean the trails and “kill some time” so you won't have to wait so long for your companions who are running ten miles.

It won't surprise to many people to know that even now I may just drink a beer or so after running but Sunday, after our run, this was almost comical. Let's see if I can paint a picture; during my run I had double gloves, hand warmers, toe warmers, full face-mask and three layers of clothing to run in forty to fifty degree weather. Following the run I added a heavy coat and monstrous gloves my brother Tim loaned me.

If you were to ask me how many beers I drank Sunday morning I simply could not tell you. I can report that three beers were opened for me, placed between almost useless heavily gloved hands. Inevitability, each beer would slip through my grasp, retrieved / replaced after striking the ground albeit full of foam.

Returning home I felt pretty good, a warm shower, something to eat and dressed to see Patrick perform I sat down to relax. Thirty minutes later there was a repeat of Thanksgiving, my body simply would not cooperate and I had to stay home. For a couple hours I huddled under three blankets while wearing a fur lined hat. I greeted my bed at six forty five PM and stayed put for the next twelve hours.

I remind myself each day that the side effects will subside and my body will become more predictable.

Later ........... Mike