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Catching My Breath
The surgery to remove a cancerous tumor in my large intestine was five weeks ago. The initial diagnosis was the best I could have hoped for. The tumor was located in splenic flexure, an anatomical term that defines a location near the descending colon that is close to the spleen. The surgeon removed 13.5 inches…
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Where Do I Go From Here?
A child’s graduation from college is a momentous occasion for any parent. I remember helping my daughter clean her dorm room for the last time. There was a “shit ton” of stuff. Walking out of the dorm for the last time, my daughter started moaning about some perceived injustice she recently encountered. Her final words…
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I Found A Potato In My Bed
My surgery was last week. Exactly four days ago. The procedure is called a colectomy. Considering the procedure’s complexity and the length of the surgery, my recovery feels easy. I was discharged after only two and a half days. I’m feeling tired and sore. Lined up on my kitchen counter are all the medications I…
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Come Stumble With Me
My surgery is 12 days away. In the last ten days, I have had four related hospital appointments and a lot of blood work to ensure I was up to a 3-hour procedure. The surgeon and the hospital wanted to make sure I knew what to expect both pre-and post-surgery. I felt seen and taken…
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Bigger Than a Bread Box, Smaller Than a Refrigerator Facing my Mortality
I have been smacked in the face by the reality of my life. I have always been healthy. At 69, my blood work is perfect. I don’t take any prescriptions. I eat well. I’m not overweight, and I am physically fit. I thought I was exempt from the diagnostic testing that, at my age, we…
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I Received Some Very Unsettling News!
In my previous blog, I had written about being diagnosed with severe anemia resulting in the need for an immediate transfusion. I had also mentioned that I was scheduled for several medical procedures to figure out the cause of the anemia. A colonoscopy and endoscopy were performed. The results were not what I expected. I…
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This Is Not Supposed to Happen!
For a 69-year-old man, I am in reasonably good shape. I regularly do 30 to 40-mile bike rides 3 to 4 days a week. Add to that some rigorous hiking in the foothills of Tucson. I had been noticing that over the course of the last 2 to 3 months, my endurance began to diminish. …
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Our thoughts. Our beliefs. Do they always support us?
We all have a belief system. Our beliefs are influenced by family, friends, religion, politics, life experience, and general perceptions and experiences we accumulate throughout our lives. For some people, their belief system is fixed, unyielding, and without question. They might die to protect it. For others, their belief system is more flexible. More accommodating…
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Lost In The Desert
Since spending the last four months in Tucson, many blogs I have posted reference the Sonoran Desert. Tucson is a city interwoven into the fabric of the desert. The Sonoran Desert bears witness to 4000 years of continuous habitation. There are echoes of the past and voices of the present. I have spent much time…
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Finding Creativity
A few weeks ago, I attended The Linda McCartney Retrospective at the Center for Creative Photography on the University of Arizona campus. I found Linda’s photography moving and evocative. Many of the photographs portrayed intimate moments with Paul and her children. Because of her access to the lives of all the Beatles, many photos captured…
Lean into your life 