Back to Reality

The Five Burts
Doesn't the Background Look Fake?
Bill and Ethan on "PRACTICE" - lovingly handcrafted by Bill and his kids
Artisan Works
John and Allie
Summer has truly arrived - heavy,hot,humid with an almost daily thunder shower expected, I have no problem grasping that August begins later this week. Me, I am still trying to get back into the routine of daily life after returning from a wonderful week of fun, family, and friends.

Greg and I started our journey a week ago Friday with a drive back to upstate NY ("boy, that farm looks awfully familiar doesn't it?") to attend the wedding of friends John and Allie in Rochester. Having never visited Rochester before, Greg and I had something to do between the lovely church ceremony and evening reception and toured the city and its surrounding neighborhoods. The reception was a grand affair, held at a place called "Artisan Works" (see photos). We greatly enjoyed the art, the music, the food and the company.

Sunday morning we hit the road bound for Maine. It was a beautiful day that turned into a great night at my brother's summer home in Gray. We had a blast swimming, boating and hanging with the five Burts: Bill, Ethan, Aaron, Christine and Hayden or as I now call them - B.E.A.C.H. We had a great Maine lobster dinner while there and of course visited LL Bean.

Greg flew out of Portland on Wednesday bound for the 2009 Comicon in San Diego. I met Jess in Beantown and we proceed down to the Cape with a stop for a great lunch in Plymouth where we sat outside along the water and enjoyed the sun. Our time on the Cape was great. We had wonderful dinners courtesy of my Dad and his wife Linda, did our required training runs, participated in Truro Winery's tasting, roamed the streets of P-Town, and relaxed. Good thing as the drive home Saturday was somewhat brutal although we were rewarded with an evening soiree at Lauren and James' cabin on Cupsaw Lake so all was not lost.

I ended the week by attending a bus trip to see the Lion King in NYC with my niece and nephews as well as my mom (Thanks mom!) We had fun in Times Square where we people watched, had lunch, and shopped in the M&M store: did you know they are making coconut M&M's? they are very tasty! The show was wonderful, everyone enjoyed it. The day was long and I came home to an unpacked suitcase, dirty laundry, etc. As I settled down to watch True Blood I thought of the week ahead and realized I needed a vacation from my vacation!

Ithaca

Here are some photos from my trip to Ithaca to prove it was not a complete waste; we had journeyed north to attend the Ithaca dragonboat festival, however upon awaking Saturday morning I was aching everywhere - thank you Zometa! We watched the morning races and then spent the afternoon touring around Cayuga Lake and its 16 wineries...

Sunday morning I felt a little better so we visited Ithaca's famous farmer's market and hiked up and down Buttermilk Falls. I tried to convey to Greg how different the city is while school is in session and thousands of Cornell and Ithaca College students flood the streets (My sister Gwen attended Cornell and I had visited her there to experience it). All in all it was a nice weekend but I was happy to get home and to start feeling normal again!

Zometa - Round 2

Zometa Infusion 7-9-09
Just returned from a trip to NYC where I received my 2nd round of Zometa. (Not a huge fan of the attached photo but you can see I am back in the chemo suite - not quite so freaky this time around.) Met with Dr. Oratz who reviewed my last round of labs and said everything looks good. Just need to have my bi-annual mammo/sonogram and I should be "cancer related" doctor free for the remainder of 2009! Woo hoo!

Feel okay right now - was extremely tired after the infusion, probably more from stress than anything else but a quick nap fixed that.

Came home to learn that the photos I had taken for a local photographer's breast cancer project will be in a show at the Morristown Museum opening September 30th! More details to follow!

Was looking back at my posts from 2008 to see where I was a year ago - boy that wasn't very much fun was it?

July Already

Family
Maia and Jess
Hair June 2009
Amazing how fast time is flying by this year. It could be due in part to the fact that summer did not seem to quite fully arrive until this past weekend. Greg and I were fortunate enough to spend the holiday weekend on the Cape where the weather was simply perfect and we did a whole bunch of nothing! (by nothing I mean I usual - long walks on the beach, browsing at the flea market, visiting family, eating and drinking, and I did manage to do my "rave run" - a 5 mile loop that starts at the National Seashore Visitor Center, and passes both Coast Guard and Nauset Light Beaches.

It was our second trip up to the Cape in two weeks - our last visit was a quick overnight to be part of my sister's nuptials; we have been quite lucky as the weather that night was spectacular as well! The ride home is never fun and this July 5th was no exception: 8 hours in the car. Need to get to work on that transporter...

I face my 2nd Zometa infusion later this week. I remain positive that the experience will not leave me as unsettled as the last, however returning to the chemo suite is not all that much fun. I am prepared this time and will work from home in case I suffer the same side effects. Good thing I know what to expect or I might think I was coming down with swine flu!