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Ray's Last Chemo Week.

Monday 17th August. We attend ACCESS ministries annual fundraising dinner in Melbourne. Get home just after mid-night.

Tuesday 18th August. Go to Bendigo Base Hospital for Ray’s 4th round of chemo treatment. We underestimate (yet again) how long this will take and realize we won’t get back in time to pick up the girls from school. Instead of making phone calls and alternative arrangements, Ray decides he would like some exercise and sends me back to Castlemaine. He will walk to the train station (2kms away), catch the train back to Castlemaine and ring me when he gets back.
On the walk to the train station, Ray stops to have his photo taken and give an interview to a roving journalist from the Bendigo Advertiser who is doing the weekly “Word on the Street” segment (see above).
Ray gets back to Castlemaine, rings me and says, “don’t worry about coming to get me, I feel like walking home” – we live 5kms out of town.

Wednesday 19th August . Ray working in Melbourne. Home about 8.15pm.

Thursday 20th August. Goes to Bendigo Base again to have bolus removed (thankfully the clip had been undone and it had emptied). Other than this, Ray has a relatively quite day working at home.

Friday 21st August. Ray attends wedding rehearsal for a wedding he is officiating at on Saturday, then works from home.
In the evening we attend the Buda Fest ’09 Schools’ Harvest Dinner, which Marli has been part of. A pleasant evening with the Knowles’, whose son was also one of 20 primary school students who helped Master Chef Rob Scott prepare and serve dinner using ingredients from the local schools’ gardens.

Saturday 22nd August. Ray runs the line for the 2nd half of Tahnee’s team’s soccer match in Bendigo. They played one of their best games yet and won 8-2 against Epsom.
Race back to Castlemaine for Ray to officiate at our friends, Cath & Mark’s wedding at Clevedon Manor. Come home to check on the girls and then go back into town for the wedding dinner.

Sunday 23rd August. Sleep In!! Until 9am that is. We are due at Daryl and Marg’s place for brunch at 10am. Ray decides he will walk cross country to their place which is approx. 3kms as the crow flies. The girls and I leave a bit later and drive across in the Jackaroo. A pleasant, lazy afternoon – eating bacon and egg sandwiches and watching Nemo on DVD.

Hope you all had a great week too. LOL Marg.

More Diary Entries from Ray:

1/8/09 Day 13/2. Wouldn't know I was having chemo. No side affects apart from cracked, sore nasal passage which is healing well. Went to soccer, chopped, cut and stacked wood in the afternoon.

2/8/09 Day 14/2. No symptoms. Worked on the garden at the North School. Tip run. Met a couple to discuss their wedding. Slept well.

3/8/09 Day 1/3. Chemo Monday - a long day as usual and taking on board that I will be doing this for next 5 months. The White Album concert in the evening was sensational.

4/8/09 Day 2/3. Little nauseous - 1 out of 10. Feeling flat that I will need to continue chemo for next 5 months.

5/8/09 Day 3/3. A little nauseous but a good day until I got to the hospital to have my pump taken off. The nurse realised the valve had not been unclipped on Monday, so the fluid (F5 - an additional drug that drips in over 48 hours after the main drugs have gone in) had not emptied. I have to come back in another 2 days to have it disconnected. Went back to Castlemaine and enjoyed lunch with Marg, Susan, Sue and Jane for Marg's 50th.

6/8/09 Day 4/3. Little nauseous, but OK after taking anit-nausea drug. Lots of water. Trip to Daylesford and Melbourne then home to cook our family birthday dinner for Marg.

7/8/09 Day5/3. Not a good day. Nauseous, gurgly in the tummy. Took anti-nausea tablets all day. Lots of stomach upset. Went out to friend's place for dinner and ate sushi and rice and felt a little better. Slept well.

8/8/09 Day 6/3. Feeling nauseous this morning. Went to Tahnee's soccer match and did linesman's duties for the first half. Not feeling good. Trying to eat small and regularly, noodles and an apple for lunch. Worked in the garden in the afternoon. Fell down a little bit around 3pm. A bit runny. Dry reached, felt a little better after. Had a hot shower and relaxed for the rest of the evening. Had a small roast vegie dinner.

9/8/09 Day 7/3. Not a good day - lethargic, diarroea, nausea. Potted plants in the garden for a couple of hourse - fresh air, trying to shake the lethargy. Showered early afternoon and rested, read, watched movie with the girls. If the pattern is the same as first two rounds, I should pick up tomorrow? Dirrhoea has been more frequent this time round.

10/8/09 Day 8/3/. Still not feeling good. Ran out of anti-nausea tablets over the weekend. Realised I need to make sure I've got a good supply on hand. Got some more today.

Marg says:
I was asked last Sunday night by a neighbour and friend how I was feeling and I replied, "actually, quite relaxed at the moment, although part of me feels I shouldn't be".
After several months of 'normality', what I'm quickly re-learning is that you really can't become too complacent or comfortable with cancer. A misunderstanding by us about the chemo treatment meant we were taken by surprise and quite shocked to find out that it wasn't going to be the third and final chemo treatment (for this round) on Monday. Provided the CT scan (which will be done in 3 weeks time) shows that the chemo is having some affect on the tumors, Ray will remain on fortnightly chemo treatments for the next 5 months!
It was a disheartening moment for both of us, but something we have come to terms with very quickly. As Ray said to Dr Warren "What will be will be".
So, in spite of it all, we left the oncology unit at Bendigo Hospital at 3pm, stopped at Bunnings to pick up some weed matting for Marli's primary school garden, stopped off at home to get changed and then headed down to Melbourne for a Japanese dinner with a friend and then on to the White Album concert.
It was fantastic and a lovely start to my birthday celebrations. We got home at 11.45pm (it's now an hour and 10 minute trip between Castlemaine and Melbourne via the new freeway) and Ray drove all the way. He felt slightly nauseous just before we got home, but not too bad. A little nauseous today with a sore throat, but still got out for a walk late afternoon.

Enjoyed a haircut on Friday, a fresh, invigorating feeling at a physical level, but empowering at an emotional level. Irrespective of whether the chemo will claim my locks, I WAS IN CHARGE - yeah! It was me controlling the decision to take off (some) of my hair. Off for round 3 tomorrow and ready for it. Cut/stacked wood with Marg on the weekend, enjoyed the fresh air and exercise. Have plans to build a strawberry patch this next weekend. Off to Hamer Hall (Arts Centre) in Melbourne tomorrow evening to listen to a group of accomplished musicians sing the Beatles White Album. Celebrating Marg's 50th (August 5th). Will enjoy some sushi beforehand, so the drugs had better behave themselves. Go well beautiful people (read Melanie Safka!!).
Blessings, Ray