Update # 12: "No news is good news"

The above phrase is a sterling example of the multiplex nature of language. It has always baffled me. Does it mean that having received no news is a good thing? Or is it a simple declaration that news is never good; ergo, the only good news the absence of any news at all? Surely there must be other forms of good news, n'est-ce pas?

Whatever, no Update for a month means that things have been going well with me and my "pc", i.e., that you have received no news is, in fact, good news. The incision is very nearly closed. My appetite has returned; I'm regaining weight and recouping muscle strength. All things considered, "I'm happy and healthy and feeling no pain."

There is a flurry of medical appointments in the coming couple of weeks–the endocrinologist, the chemotherapist, and the surgeon. A CT scan. All point to the start of the last leg of the treatment process, four months of weekly chemotherapy. As you might imagine, I am eager to get started. Once the chemo is completed, I will be free again to live without the restraint of medical obligations.

So, good news abounds, the limitations of language notwithstanding!

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Define "Art"

As an occasional student of art history, I strove for years either to discover or to create an acceptable definition of art. Google "art, definition of" and you will learn that I am by no means alone in my quest. And with no more or no less success.

Art is "the class of objects subject to aesthetic criteria" seems to me a cop-out, like saying "philosophy is the totality of topics examined by philosophers." It doesn't say what art is.

Speaking of philosophers, don't go there to find a definition of art lest you find your brain twisted like a pretzel. [See Stanford University.] On the other hand, a less rigorous approach, which took up an entire book, defined art as "making special." Uhh, did I miss something?

Two definitions of art come close to the one I have settled on as my own. Tolstoy defined art as "a use of indirect means to communicate from one person to another." And John Ruskin defined art as "communication by artifice of an essential truth that could only be found in nature." [See Wikipedia.]

My definition: Art is a message to you from your own core which is mediated by someone else. This is true even if you yourself are the artist. And it follows that if a work of art doesn't speak to you, it is for you not art.

And there it is, to be analyzed, categorized, and criticized.

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Update # 11: The recuperative process

I met with Dr. Tyler on Monday, Dec. 12th, and --unfortunately-- again on Monday, Dec. 19th. Though it looked good to me, he was unhappy with the way the incision was healing. It seems an unhealed tunnel had been left under the scar tissue on top, so he called me back into surgery and cut through to the tunnel and rejoined the sides of the incision, which is now covered by a "wound-vac".

My wound-vac is a 6 X 6-inch sheet of plastic with a vacuum pump fitted to its center. The pump works 24/7 to pull the sides of the incision together and remove excess bodily fluids. So... I'm currently attached to a 3-pound portable pump which hangs from a shoulder strap. And will be for the next four weeks.

Sometimes the recuperative process seems endless! But... I'm still trying to be a patient patient. And keep my sense of humor.

Ever thankful for your support, I am...

JR~Rocky~John~Dad~Brother~Son

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Update # 10: Whipple and beyond...

The Whipple procedure was performed as scheduled on Wednesday, Nov. 9th and the oncological surgeon, Dr. Tyler, related that all went well. I spent another 14 days at Duke, arriving back in Waxhaw on Thanksgiving eve. Unfortunately I was unable to enjoy the feast since my new "plumbing" is still struggling with how to process food. At the moment, the only thing remotely palatable is peanut butter on a saltine. Go figure.

The incision is healing with help from twice-daily dressing changes by the angel who married my brother. Both Diane and Larry have watched over me with a measure of grace and concern for which I shall be eternally grateful. God bless family!

Next milestone is an appointment at Duke with Dr. Tyler on Dec. 12th. Presuming all goes well, I expect the follow-up chemo will begin soon.

Once again, I deeply appreciate your prayers, good vibes, caring thoughts, cards and letters. I can feel your support. Just knowing you are there for me gives me hope for a continuing positive prognosis.

~ in peace and love for all of you ~

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Update # 9: Whipple on!

I apologize for the lack of communication of late, but I suffered a setback of sorts. The stent inserted in my bile duct in Tucson in July became clogged, which resulted in a return of the jaundice symptoms. The stent was removed at Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte and eventually replaced at Duke University Hospital in Durham.

However, things are still on schedule. The Whipple procedure is set for Wednesday, Nov. 9th at Duke University Hospital. I am to call the evening before to receive an exact check-in time, probably somewhere between 4:00 and 5:00 AM.

I am already looking beyond the surgery to a speedy recovery and a return to some semblance of normalcy. Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers–especially this coming Wednesday morning.

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The news is good!

Get well card from grand niece, Kessa (11 yrs)

The CT scan at Duke revealed that the cancer has not spread and the oncological surgeon pronounced the pc "mass" resectable, i.e., removable. I thanked Dr. Tyler for taking my case and told him that if he keeps statistics on patient survivability, I intend to increase his batting average and make him and his team look good!

Dr. Tyler seemed pleased with the way I had progressed through the radiation/chemo therapy and noted that this should presage fewer post-surgical complications. Ergo, I may not need a post-op weep tube for a leaking pancreas nor a feeding tube directly to my stomach.

In my fight against pc, I am determined, but not desperate. I cannot grieve over the prospect of my passing. My life is just not that important in the greater scheme of things. Though I could wish for an "individual awareness" in an afterlife, I will be satisfied for my spirit, my life force simply to return to its source.

Meanwhile, I intend to carry on for as long as I can and work on my growing "bucket list". :-)

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Update # 7: Moving On

Bell of freedom!

Monday, Oct. 3rd was a milestone in my "pc" saga. I received the final treatment of the five weeks of radiation/chemo therapy! Yes! I'll miss my caregivers [see photo] but won't miss the daily 25-mile trip to the hospital and back, nor will I miss the unsettling side-effects.

My daughter Jennifer said the side-effects I experienced–nausea, loss of appetite, altered food tastes, indigestion–sounded like being pregnant! OMG, how do women tolerate that for 9 months?!

Next? A trip to Durham on Monday, Oct. 10th, to meet with the oncological surgeon at Duke for a CT scan and the decision regarding if and when to schedule the Whipple procedure. 

Several of you have related tales of folks who've survived the Whipple procedure for five years or more. Thanks for that encouragement! There's lots I hope to accomplish yet.

In peace, love, and wonder,

John/Rocky

P.S.
Join the movement to save our country from political corruption and corporate greed. Read and support MoveOn.org and Nation of Change.

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