Picard gets a refill.

Wednesday we took Picard in for a fill up.  He’s now loaded with fresh chemo for another week of 24/7 cancer killing action.

While we were at Pacific Oncology we learned from my blood work that I was dehydrated.  In spite of drinking massive quantities of water, the chemo had depleted my fluids.

I agreed to spend an additional two hours having an IV drip add more fluids to my system.  It was worth every minute of it.  The extra juice cleared by brain, lessened my fatigue, and made it easier to swallow.

To celebrate we went out for a steak dinner.  It was the first thing I’d eaten in days that was more substantial than soup.

It was wonderful.

We also learned the chemo was going to make my skin extremely vulnerable to sun burn.  I am going to have to wear protective head gear and have all my skin covered even in moderate sunlight.

Unfortunately, this also means my body is going to have to be fully covered during the hottest days of summer.

This shouldn’t be too much of a problem as long as I wear something that is loose, flowing, and allows for a lot of air circulation.

Fortunately, I live in liberal Oregon where no one gives a second thought at seeing a 62 year old man wearing a flamboyant sun hat and a Moo Moo.

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8 Responses to Picard gets a refill.

  1. Linda says:

    It’s great to hear this news … well, not the part where you’re dehydrated, but the rest of it! You know there is a reason men in the Middle East wear those flowing white “gowns” — deflecting the heat, and geez, they’ve got to be more comfortable than blue jeans! I hope you can hide from the sun in an air conditioned space!

    So glad you could enjoy a nice steak dinner!

  2. Marcia says:

    Your post has caused me to spend an inordinate amount of time researching moo moos. I was relieved to discover that the bovine community is not offended by the use of the term. If they had been, I was going to suggest that you consider a caftan, but was concerned that that might offend the younger bovine community.

  3. Gary says:

    Linda – Going with the Galabiyya look is intriguing. Of course, hanging out at the airport could be a challenge. But I don’t hang out there much anyway, so it shouldn’t be too much of a problem. Thanks for the suggestion.
    …..
    Marcia – Ever since I learned Bovine flatulence was a major cause of global warming I’ve stopped being concerned about the opinion of cows. I see there are kaftans for men. They don’t appear to have long sleeves, which is an issue. As, I mentioned to Linda, I am currently leaning towards the Galabiyya look.

  4. Candace says:

    Gary —
    *
    Even when you think that you’re listening carefully to what your body is telling you, the message can still get lost in translation. I was wondering what was causing the difficulty in swallowing, which you had mentioned. I hadn’t thought of dehydration.
    *
    Although I’m eager and curious to see pictures of a Borg in drag, I thought that you might like to take a look at other clothing options, aside from burqas, which are available to you.
    *
    Sierra Trading Post carries a lot of different outdoor products at discount prices. They happen to carry outdoor clothing that comes with ultraviolet protection.
    *
    Here are the search results for men’s clothing with UV protection. You might want to take a look.
    *
    http://www.sierratradingpost.com/search/SearchResults.aspx?searchDescriptions=true&Ne=9400050&allAnyWords=&searchWithin=&anyWords=&N=9400154&exactPhrase=&allWords=upf
    *
    Of course, you’re welcome to search for women’s Moo Moos with UV protection. =)

  5. Gary says:

    The oncology people suggested the difficulty swallowing might have been a form of nausea created by the initial super duper chemo treatment. The swallowing might have gotten easier because the initial treatment wore off. It could have been a coincidence it got better immediately after I got the fluid IV.
    .
    On the other hand, a Google search revealed that problems swallowing can be a symptom of dehydration. Since the swallowing dramatically got better immediately following the IV fluids I’m betting it was caused from dehydration.
    .
    I’m still looking into all the options for clothing with good UV protection. I’ll take a look at your suggestions as well as doing a broader search. Thanks for your ideas.
    .
    I continue to be intrigued with some of the Arab garb, particularly because those guys are really good at staying cool while being fully covered.
    .
    The only down side to the Arabic clothing is people might get the idea I am a bit eccentric. Fortunately, that is a bridge I already crossed a long time ago. I’m not going to worry about it.

  6. Marcia says:

    RIT Dye makes a SunGuard. You wash your clothes in it and it adds UV protection for a certain number of wearings.

    “Do-it-yourselfers can approximate the effect with SunGuard, a laundry additive from the makers of Rit Dye. A $2 box will give that ordinary T-shirt an SPF of 30, and the protection lasts about 20 washings.”

  7. Candace says:

    There you go. Wash your Arab garb in SunGuard, and you’ll have the best of both worlds. For that matter, add some tie dye to the fabric, and you can become a walking Grateful Dead poster Borg.

  8. Gary says:

    Marcia – I wonder if I bathed in RIT Dye if it would shield me from enough UV rays that I wouldn’t need to wear clothes that covered my entire body. I could dye my entire body flaming red, outdoing people trying to be edgy by merely dying their hair a flamboyant color. I think we may be onto something here.
    …..
    Candace – I like the image of a Grateful Dead Borg, but I don’t think it quite fits my style. Then again, my style does seem to be in transition. I’ll give it some thought.

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