Its Friday and all that there is to do today is travel and indulge in a night in an hotel. So today is easy to do, take my vitals, have a smidgen of breakfast, shower and pack the car. Of course there are some practical bits to add on like checking the tyres, putting petrol in the car and double checking that I have my meds and night finger splint packed. With all this done its time to set off. The resulting journey, being guides by Google Maps turns out to be the longest route ever to the hotel we are staying in. What should have been about a two hour journey turns into a three hour plus one.
We arrive at the hotel and have afternoon tea and scones before even getting to the room that turns out to be an almost mini bungalow. While my partner continues to knit a new hooded jersey for the youngest grandson I work my way through the days crosswords. So the evening arrives and we go to the bar to eat, eschewing the “fine dining” restaurant, we have played that one before, nice surroundings and over priced food, we order our meals and settle down to conversation and, in my case, a small glass of Merlot.
On Sunday the this section of the blog, “CHEMO II THE REBOOT” will reach day two hundred and it feels like that is long enough for a “reboot”. I’ve been on this chemo now for almost two years and I seem to be tolerating it well, I’ve recovered from whatever it was that forced me to abort cycle 16, the toes that I dropped a paving slab on have recovered , my hand has almost recovered completely from the operation to correct the Dupuytren’s Contracture and I am also training again, so it seems to me an opportune time to enter another phase on my prostate cancer journey. It seems to me that it is almost as good as it could get again, not quite perfect by any means but much better. So I think I am going to use Monday to launch a new phase to lose weight and increase my fitness with a view to once again traveling and going abroad. Its a big fight and I will still need my internal visualisation of Rocket fighting because cancer is relentless and I must match it but I need to get on the front foot and get into “Its as good as it gets” mode. Its also time to publish another poetry collection, which I may call “As good as it gets”. All of this I discuss with my partner over dinner. So on Monday look out for the new phase and a new picture of Rocket.
Post dinner I am back in the hotel room and ready to draft the blog while my partner continues to knit. The usual rituals kick in, night medication, donning the finger splint and preparing for sleep, only in a strange room and in a smaller bed. To sleep, perchance to dream.
