Off to Sanibel Island

Denise and I are sneaking out for a couple of days, going to Sanibel Island to read near the water, sit on the beach, and dine out while we take advantage of some off-season rates. . Sanibel is a relaxing place that reminds me of a much more sedate Key West. No Duval crawl- just breathtaking (and better than Key West) beaches. We will be on the gulf a few steps to the beach. It has been awhile since we have done this- taken some time for R&R...and oddly enough, being recently retired- I am looking forward to the escape. New “Jason Bourne” book in hand, as well as 50+ sun block, and a tank full in the mustang -we will be off. Just as soon as I pack.

The other grandma is coming to Florida from Vermont, so our grandchildren will be with her, giving Denise a break. Denise spends a lot of time with them, going to the zoo, beach, play grounds...as well as conducting Grandma’s summer school. She does get a bit spent by the end of the week. I try to give her some breaks, but as usual she steams on. She is looking forward to some lounging time and a few good meals out. My buddy Doug Evans has suggested a couple of places, and he has yet to let me down.

Yesterday, I had an IVIG infusion at Moffit, and caught up on my guilty pleasure of “Rescue Me” season one DVD 2. IVIG is when they combine 100 pints of blood and remove the “good stuff.” The goal is to improve my immune system. I have been doing this for five months or so...and thankfully my insurance covers it, approximately 10K per treatment. I will say that the numerous fevers and hospitalizations I had before this has subsided. Maybe that offsets the cost?

I still have no word on the St James Resort at OSU Cal 101 trial, although my local Moffit Hem Doc Lancet has suggested I look at a trial MD Anderson has been conducting called OFAR. It would be “off trial” at Moffit, if I wanted to proceed. I won’t go into the details of the treatment or results- but my sounding board is retired Physician Terry Hamblin in the UK, a no bones about it CLL specialist and devout Christian. He I trust for the straight scoop. I am fortunate to get his input. He has suggested that the Cal 101 trial with a 50% PR and little if any toxicity is a no brainer over the more toxic OFAR. Ok. Sounds good to me, although I was hoping to have my treatments closer to home...but if I need to go to Columbus, ok. So I wait for word.

Over all I am feeling pretty good- on day four of my Steroid pulse... all seems to be going well. The skin issue still has me shopping for good band-aid sales... Testing some Walgreen brands- so far so good, at .05 each... being retired and a cheap son of a gun gives me “shopping purpose these days...” My legs are not so bad as to scare small children off the streets if I wear shorts.

Other than that- that’s my ramble for today...

God Bless,