Tricks and Treats

Brain cancer is...

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...maximizing Halloween celebrations.

For those of you who enjoyed the creepy Pumpkin Carving Session One video, here's Session Two, as promised. We are set for the evening!

Thank you so much for all the fun you contributed to the holiday, with your skelly sightings, pumpkin carving pics, Boo treats, and all. 

We'll get you someday, Boo, and your little dog too!  Cackle cackle cackle!

Happy Halloween, Team D!

Go, Pack, Go!

Brain cancer is...

...a team effort.

We know you know that the Packers lost by one point today.  Don't be too sad.  It was a really great game, right?  And look at all this Packer gear under one roof!

Guillaume Team Updates 

• Darrell and Andi has such a great time with the Brady and Linda Guillaumes this weekend.  Thanks, Family!
• Darrell did a great job finishing this round of chemo.  He had a little nausea, but nothing too bad.
• Alex and Tiana are back to staying in Los Angeles (actually Silver Lake) for the last of the externships:  Tiana is at Kaiser.
• Boo:  We have already eaten half the cookies and half the See's candy.  We will miss you!

More...More Family,More Fun

Brain cancer is...

...enjoying Bennett, Christian, Brady and Linda...some more.

We headed up to Oxnard on the train yesterday.

More family, more fun.

Breakfast at the harbor

Looking left.  Oops.

Dinner at Ventura Harbor

Good night, everybody!

Darrell's Morning Mantra

Brain cancer is...

 ...not getting Darrell down.

Every morning Darrell wakes up and says, "It's going to be a great day!"
I'm not making any causal statements here, but Darrell does seem to have more great days than anyone else I know.

Happy Friday.  Hope it's great day!

Pumped for Pumpkin Carving

Brain cancer is...

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...not relinquishing Darrell's status as master carver.

We have so many Guillaume schedules that Darrell must oversee two pumpkin carvings sessions this year.  Here's a record of Guillaume Pumpkin Carving 2016, Session One.

Training for Turtles

Readers' Advisory:  Life 2.0-type reflection ahead.

Brain cancer is...

...providing opportunities to watch the world...and to be a part of it.

Do you remember us spotting pelicans at the Craig Park lake the other day?

We hadn't seen them before, and we haven't seen them since--just that one day.  We read that American white pelicans live in the northern interior of our continent and then head south and for the coasts to winter. 

Our observations and research made us feel a part of something larger: We think we witnessed members of the Pacific Flyway making their way to the coast for the winter. 

Many naturalists and educators are concerned that Americans suffer from a nature deficit.  We live hurried lives that are increasingly divorced from the environments in which we live. 

One incredible thing that our time off together is doing for us is giving us the opportunity to be outside daily, watching and wondering, being a part of the world.

Today at the park, 30 seconds before I took this picture...

 

 ...Darrell spotted two turtles basking on the bank in the sun.  Shy, they slipped into the water before I could catch the photo.


We wondered about our turtle sighting.  We've seen plenty of turtles in other Southern California locales, like Fullerton Arboretum and Laguna Lake, but never at Craig Park.   Why now?   Given our experience with the pelicans, we wondered if there are some turtle rhythms we don't yet understand. 

On our second loop around the lake, we were ready:

Ignore the coots.  Look at the bank.

Darrell made a great observation:  "Maybe they don't have rhythms.  Maybe we've just never had our eyes trained for turtles."

We deeply appreciate the extended opportunity to watch...and to wonder.

Cancer Eradication Effort Updates

Today is day 3 of 5 days, cycle 7 of 12 cycles for Darrell's maintenance chemo.  He takes temozolomide orally at night.  He tolerates it well.  His doctors warned us that it would have cumulative effects related to fatigue.  Darrell does notice that.  Today he napped.  But Americans are probably nap deprived as well, so no one's complaining. 

 

Amazing Brain

Brain cancer is...

 ...not necessarily a skill killer.

You may recall that the tumor removed from Darrell's brain in February was golf-ball sized, and it left a golf-ball-sized cavity. It's not surprising, then, that skill sets such as his speech, multiplication, and typing are affected. 

What is surprising to us is that, despite brain-scoop-removal, Darrell's brain hasn't necessarily lost complex skills permanently. 

Above you see Darrell taking a keyboarding pretest at the beginning of the therapy session.  Sure enough, his speed and accuracy are far below what they were pre-tumor.  However, with just 15 minutes of good quality practice and immediate feedback, Darrell was typing 3 words per minute faster. 

Similarly, Darrell's speech therapist, Kristin, observed great improvements in the strength of Darrell's facial and tongue muscles, and these improvements are resulting in increased clarity of speech.

Darrell's commitment to his homework is paying off.

Darrell's brain:  You're amazing!

Team D: You've Got Homework.

Brain cancer is...

...feeling sassy enough to boss you around.

We are enjoying a very sweet spot in our lives right now.

Today we woke up to be startled--yet again--by the Boo Brigade:

Andi had time for breakfast and shoe shopping with Kristine:

Yes, they match.  AND they hide the black pedicure, Boo.

We also had great views at the lake:

American White Pelicans

This is where you come in.  We've having enough fun in our lives that we can now worry about yours.

We've talked with two Team D couples recently who have admitted to not having "a place," as in "that's our place for breakfast" or "that's our place for after work."

We worry that these Team D members may not be alone in being placeless.  Let's be prepared, Team D.  Your homework is to conduct a place assessment:  Where's "your place"?  

If you can answer that question easily, good for you.  Your homework is to go back there and make sure that it's still your place.  Make another visit to make sure it still feels right. 

If you struggle to answer the question, "Where's our place?" You've got serious homework.  You need at least one place.  Here's some advice to get you started:

• We recommend that it be relatively close to home.
• We recommend that you consider the ambience. (It should bring comfort or a smile.)
• We recommend that you like more than one thing on the menu, even if you have a favorite, such as the breakfast burrito.

Because we have so much time on our hands, we have many places that are ours.  We'll share if you need one to get you going.

Nobody said this was going to be easy, Team D.  More work, work, work.

Soothing Sunday

Brain cancer is...

...enjoying a pleasant day.

Ruth, Andi, and Hallie continued the coffee quest:

Crepes de Paris in Brea was great. Thanks, Gals!

 Darrell and Beowulf were the Kings o' the Hill on our walk:

That is, until the rain started, at which point we were forced to improvise to protect Darrell's Optune unit:

Everyone is back home safe and sound now, and we are enjoying a peaceful Sunday.

Here's hoping you're doing exactly what you want right now.


PS...You are one sneaky sneak, Boo!  How did you know about Cheetos?

Happy Birthday, Granny!

Brain cancer is...

...so happy to celebrate the end of her '70s with LuAnn.

Today was LuAnn's 79th birthday. She is very excited about the next decade; she's looking forward to being an octogenarian.

We had a great afternoon reminiscing on her past adventures and planning for the next set.

Darrell and I enjoyed thinking about Darrell's relationship with LuAnn.  It started when she was 40, Andi was 16, and Darrell was 18. Here are a few memory tidbits: 

• 1978:  Darrell wrestled LuAnn into the coat closet.  He later regretted it.
• 1981:  Darrell helped LuAnn work through her macroeconomics class.
• 1984:  LuAnn navigated LA with us for our marriage license and threatened to rip up the license if Darrell wouldn't promise grandchildren.
• 2006 and 2011: Darrell and LuAnn worked out head-to-head struggles during international travels. Darrell said:  "You try driving stick shift in England, with their roundabouts and kooky left-side-of-the-road ways!"
• 1985-present: LuAnn and Darrell wrestle the Thanksgiving turkey in and out of the oven. He votes for more time, she fights for less.

LuAnn and Darrell constitute a force to be reckoned with. It has been an honor to witness their relationship thus far. Here's to your 80s, Mom, and to many more turkey fights!

A toast to LuAnn:  "You are many things to many people, all of them wonderful."  We love LA (LuAnn)!

A Bloody Lesson (Don't Get Excited!)

Brain cancer is...

Dr. Park explains blood results.

 ...continuing to present opportunities to learn about the fantastic human body.

Reader's advisory:  Technical information follows.  
For those members who want to cut to the chase:  Today's visit with Dr. Park was good.  Darrell can now cease taking the heavy duty antibiotics. His blood counts are fine, and chemo proceeds on Monday. 

We have not worked to understand Darrell's blood counts, which were initially measured twice monthly and are now measured once monthly.  Dr. Park always has just said, "Blood counts look good!  Proceed with chemo!"

Because we won't see him in November (he'll take vacation), Dr. Park gave us a lesson in interpreting blood counts today.   On the rare chance that you'd like some information on blood counts and cancer treatment, read on. 

A Lesson in Darrell Blood Counts

Blood is considered an organ.  In fact, it's your largest organ, and it's comprised of four components.

• Red blood cells
• White blood cells
• Platelets
• Plasma

This 52-second video explains it well, and it has the added benefit of resembling an amusement park ride:

 Source:  American Society of Hematology
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Chemotherapy can lower blood counts, interfering with patients' ability to function normally. The numbers of monthly interest in monitoring and planning Darrell's treatment are these three:

• White blood cell count:  White blood cells fight infection.  Each month the lab measures Darrell's total white blood cell count.  Darrell's count today (and always) falls in the normal range for a cancer patient; he has 4,000 white blood cells in each milliliter of blood.
• Neutrophils:  Neutrophils are the most abundant and the best super powered of the white blood cells.  The lab counts the total number of neutrophils.  Today Darrell had 1,900 of those super powered puppies in each milliliter of blood.  (The low end of the normal range for a cancer patient is 1,500). 
• Platelets:  Platelets help control bleeding and support healing. The normal range starts at 100 platelets in each milliliter of blood.  Darrell had 163 platelets in his sample today.

 Super hero Darrell has super hero blood!

Thanks for staying tuned.  You can take the teacher out of the classroom but...

Let's Ask Leon!

Brain cancer is...

Leon

...surrounded by smart people.

When we hand over our park pass for our Craig Park walk, we often hand it to Leon (above).  True to Life 2.0 style, we connect with the people in our lives.  For Leon, this means he must field the Question of the Day.  One example from weeks past:  "Hey Leon, who is the 'Craig' in 'Craig Park'?"  Leon replied, "Ted Craig was a Brea City Councilman."  "Thanks, Leon!" we said as we waved and drove away to find our shady parking space.

Today, spurred by the many campaign signs displayed on our way to the park, Darrell wondered, "How many senators comprise the California State senate?"  I didn't know.  We know that our state government mirrors the three-branch federal model, with a bicameral legislation (lower and upper houses), but that's about it.  "Hey!  Let's ask Leon!"

"Hey Leon! How many members comprise the California state senate?"  Without a blink, Leon replied, "40."  Darrell, stunned, asked, "Leon, how could you possibly know that?"  "I graduated from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in political science."

Rock on, Titans, rock on!*

Guillaume News Bits

• Alex and Tiana:  Tiana's first interview went well.  She and Alex each have approximately 20 interviews ahead.  They are excited by lots of great possibilities; the most recent addition to the schedule is Portland, Oregon.
• Zachary and Summer:  They are both having a great CSUF semester.  Zach just got the flu.  Boo!  I did set up my first personal treatment plan for him.
• Andi:  Yesterday--Day 13 of the epic flu--Darrell took me to the doctor.  She feared it had morphed into a new creature.  She gave me antibiotics, a great cough medicine, and my flu shot.  I went home and slept for 13 hours. I think I'm on the mend.
• Darrell:  He finished the course of Tamiflu, unscathed.  He will get his flu shot soon.  Today is Scan Scam Day.  It's the day he would tackle the monthly scan, but he gets a break because of his record of clear scans.  He does see Dr. Park for a check up and bloodwork tomorrow.  He starts Round 7 of maintenance chemo Monday. Rock on Darrell, Rock on!

*Yes, we did fact check Leon's response.  And if you already knew that there are 40 members in the California senate, you further prove our point:  We are surrounded by smart people.  Rock on, Team D, Rock on!

Darrell wants to know:  How many members comprise the California State assembly?

(Non) Therapy Dogs

Brain cancer is...

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...better doing therapy without the dogs.

Of course Darrell would invite the dogs into the muscle strengthening, breath support exercise therapy session (also known as "blowing party horns")!  Today was probably the last day they'll be invited, for reasons that are very clear now.

The (non)therapy session led us to decide that you might enjoy some Mousse contrast photos.  Here are couple then and now pics:

 The Pounce Trick remains a crowd pleaser:

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 Darrell says he hopes you are still feeling the pounce in your life!

Party Therapy

Brain cancer is...

...somewhat like a birthday party.  Or its therapy is, anyway.

Brave Darrell went back to speech therapy today.  We agreed that it was very helpful.  How could it not be if it involves party activities, right?

Horn blowing (above)?  It works on breath control and cheek and lip muscle strengthening.  So do:

Balloon Inflating

and Bubble Blowing

Oh, and by the way...

...all that kissy work you've been doing as Team D members?  Absolutely critical for lip muscle strengthening.  Your lips and your tongue must work closely as a team in order to allow you to speak clearly.

Keep up the hard work, Team D!  Kiss Kiss!  Party (therapy) on!

Magical Home Day

Brain cancer is...

...enjoying a magical home day.

In this case, the adjective "magical" describes both the "home" and the "day."

In the case of the "magical day,"  it was one of those days were these four family members found themselves together by happenstance and enjoyed Del Taco as will as each other's company:

In the case of the "magical home," our home appears to spontaneously generate wonderful holiday decorations.  To wit, our home killed a witch:

It produced this jaunty scarecrow:

Andi it sprouted this graceful gourd: 

See?  Magical Home Day.
We hope your day has some magic too!

Casa Szabo

Brain cancer is...

 

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 ...happy for time with Beth and Geoff at Casa Szabo.

We hope that you, too, had some time to spend with people you love this weekend, Team D.

We also hope that any skeletons at your home are enjoying themselves, as are these in the new sighting at Kristin, Gordon, and Madeline's home.

Flee, Flu! Fly T!

Brain cancer is...

...fleeing the flu.

Here are our flu updates:

• Suspicious that Darrell might be exhibiting early flu symptoms, we contacted Dr. Park.  Dr. Park started Darrell on the antiviral Tamiflu.  He's on Day 2 of a 5-day course.
• When he's clearly flu free, he and I will both get flu shots.
• Today is Andi's Flu Day 9.  I woke up and said, "Hey! I don't hurt!"  It felt great. I definitely learned some things about living with flu.  If you do get the flu, tell me.  I'll set you up with a personalized treatment plan.   

Fly T!

Alex and Tiana are entering interview season.  They are beginning to interview with hospitals to determine where they will spend their residencies (the next four years, after April graduation).  They are "couples matching," which means that, if they match, they will necessarily be somewhere together.  "Couples matching" also means that they are casting a wide net--lots of interviews, lots of places--to increase their odds of matching. It's a bit of an intense time, given the high stakes of the outcome. 

Today Tiana embarks on the first far-flung interview trip:  To Texas and New Mexico.  

You got this, T!  We love you!

Bonus Content

Skelly sightings continue, across locales.

At our house:

And at Brady and Linda's house:

It again seems that a kinder, gentler, more erudite skeleton lives with them!  Luckies!

Happy Saturday, Team D.  Have some fun today!

Boo, Who?

Brain cancer is...

 ...getting booed.

The photo, above, shows how scary someBOOdy made our front porch during our trip to Carlsbad.  Today things got even more Halloweeny.  Love it!

Who are you, Boo??

Goodbye! Hello!

Brain cancer is...

...saying goodbye and hello!

Goodbye, best breakfast view ever!

Goodbye, fluffy white robe balcony selfie kiss!

Hello, trip north!

Hello, next adventure!!

Much love, Team D., from Fullerton (temporarily).

Doing Nothing

Brain cancer is...
...doing nothing.

We do solemnly attest that we packed our gym gear and walking attire.  However, Andi is still wrestling this flu to the ground (take note, if you haven't made that flu shot decision yet:  I still have a low-grade fever, 6 days in).  Darrell has been great at revising our vacation plans as a result.  He decided that we should, "Do nothing, in several locations."

Here's the visual record that we attained the goal of doing nothing today.

Doing nothing at breakfast.

Doing nothing at the fire pit

Doing nothing at the pool (zoom in)

Doing nothing on the balcony.

We've got this.  If you have some "nothing" that needs to be done and you just can't get to it, let us know. 

Hugs, Team D!



New Black and White Goals

Brain cancer is...
...setting achievable new goals:  Maximizing time together: Black and white!

In shiny black cars:

...and fluffy white robes;

Hotel robes even hug themselves.

 

Looking right--in robes.

Maybe this is a poopy chomp?

It's black and white!

PS:  We did well with our goal last night.  We kept the Pacific Ocean where it belonged.  The sun was more of a problem...

 ..but not our problem.

We hope all of your problems are manageable today!