Interesting Week & We're Getting Closer

Well we finally have a scheduled banged out at MDA. The scheduler was a "bit aggressive" in putting together 12 hour day of straight appointments for Thursday & about an 8 hour day for Friday with a few days having no appointments. I have asked her to take another look at it.

The housing is shaping up. We locked in 8 days through Catholic Services this morning. Leslie & I are taking a room at a former convent & now a gated living community. I am told by the volunteers that it is absolutely beautiful. Transportation might be a problem since we need to be at MDA at 7:00 & 7:30am two of the days. Regardless, we are very thankful for being able to scratch-off this problem. As a heads-up to all, we will have to rely on the computer centers at MDA & "St. Dominic's Village" to post for the first two weeks or longer. It's a function of when Dell can ship our lap top. The point being, posting may be a bit sparse the first few weeks. The excitement really doesn't kick in until Aug. 8th which is when I believe I will start radiation "lite". That is when I become an inpatient. If things get touchy & I need Leslie to stay the night, hopefully, I'll have one of the rooms with a pull down "Murphy Bed" hidden in the wall. By that time, we are hopeful we will have secured housing at a local apartment complex, (one subsidized by one of several church based organizations) or we can extend our stay at St. Dominic's.

Last night, a group of wonderful friends we went to Mexico with a few years back, put together a pot-luck dinner for us or as they say, "a bon voyage" party. It was a magnificent night of food, drink, talk, laughter, tears, fellowship & poorly told jokes. One of the fellows suggested that since day 100+ falls on Thanksgiving, they would throw a large parade for us in NYC that day & call it the "Thanksgiving Day Parade". Do you see what we had to go through last night? We will miss these clowns a lot. They are of major support to our family.

So we have a schedule & temporary housing taken care of. Tonight, after worship service, my pastors, some of the Church Elders & Deacons, & friends will perform a "laying of hands" upon me, sending me off with the Lord's Full Armour to protect & watch over us.

The trip is looking less intimidating everyday!