It has been a slightly unusual week this week, internets. I don't necessarily say better; just different. Which I suppose is good in itself. Apart from the food poisoning ...
We set out with a Plan. Judy was going to take me to chemo on Tuesday, bring me back, then go up to Penny's for the rest of the week, to help her with the funeral arrangements and getting the sorting on the house started. Lynn was going to come up after work on Thursday evening, go to work from here on Friday morning, and then spend the weekend, so that I wasn't in the house on my own for too long. And Wednesday I'd planned to take the bus into Oxford and ... I dunno, look at stuff, since I can't afford to do anything else much.
It started out okay. I got my bloods done on Monday, and we rolled up at chemo, as scheduled, on Tuesday. Boss nurse Rose sent me to sit down, and told us they were trying a new system. I don't know what the new system is, but it doesn't seem to be much of an improvement on the old system, there was still an hour's wait before anything happened. And, as usual, the pre-meds knocked me out, so I slept through most of the actual treatment. Which is a pity, really. As I've said before, chemo is now the main (often the only) social event on my calendar, to the extent that I've started dressing nicely for it, and putting all my jewellery on. A full set of jewellery, that is; not all the jewellery I possess. Obviously. Else I wouldn't be able to lift my head up for all the earrings. When I start putting on make-up for it, we'll know I have a real problem.
Somewhere in amongst all the excitement (I use the term loosely), the chemo team arranged for the district nurse to do my bloods and dressing changes in future, and sent us home with a big bag of ... stuff. Blood-taking and dressing-changing stuff I assume, I don't know. Let's see how that goes. Seamlessly, I am quite sure. As what does not?
So, anyway, chemo over, and back we came via the pretty way. I went to bed; Judy packed and headed northwards; I got up, had dinner, watched some TV; went to bed again. Got up; threw up; threw up some more; went back to bed.
Rinse and repeat, and add in stomach cramps that eventually turned into the inevitable and, just to crown the joyful moment, a nosebleed that wouldn't quit. Several hours of this had me vaguely worried. If there'd been someone else in the house I would have phoned the 24-hour oncology number; but, if they'd wanted me to come in, (a) how would I have got there, and (b) what about the cats? I daresay we could have found some way around point (a), but point (b) is more or less insuperable, particularly given the nature (generally hostile) of my darling puddytats. I suppose, at a pinch, I could have stuck a note and the spare key through Mrs #10's door - Judy feeds her cat, who is a well-behaved and civilised creature, while she's away - but it would still be difficult. So, no phoning. I put out a plea for help on Facebook, but that wasn't very effective. Not really surprising at four in the morning, I suppose ...
Eh, well. I'm still here, so no harm done. It's just lucky it was no worse, that's all. As it was, the only victim was a perfectly good white nightie, now white no more but steeped in gore. Also typical is that it should happen then, when I've been perfectly fine throughout the rest of this chemo.
Somewhere amongst the general unrest I texted my brother to ask if he could come and see me on Wednesday, and emailed Lynn to ask if she could come down a day early. Tim didn't get my text until midday on Wednesday, by which time it was a bit late, but all I wanted to do by then was sleep anyway, so it didn't matter. And Lynn gets a special gold star for very heroically dropping everything, packing her bags, and coming to my rescue.
I was very glad to see her.
Of course (of course!) I've been fine ever since. Still, it's good to have someone around. Just in case. I do wish there were more people I could depend on, but what'm I going to do, magic up a team of golem? Useful as that might be, I really don't have the wherewithal.
Lynn has just gone home - I hope it wasn't all one-sided, and she enjoyed seeing the cats (Molly has now decided she likes her and lets her stroke her, she said, drowning in pronouns) and spending time in the garden, especially as we've had some lovely weather the past couple of days. Hurrah! for lovely weather, while I'm about it; it makes everything seem less awful.
Judy should be back soon. And I think I am going for a lie-down.
Oh, we have some good news, for relative values of 'good'. When I staggered round to the Co-op yesterday, I saw that the Polish shop next to Domino's has closed down - so, not good news for Polish people, sorry about that - and there's a sign in the window saying that a pharmacy will be opening there in September. Which will be a pharmacy (just) within walking distance, which is something I very much need.
I only said it was good. I said nothing about exciting. Please: this is me.
