hardtack

It’s funny, I don’t actually feel I’m in any way courageous, but rather, I feel like it’s in some way, my duty; my neglect put me in this position, so I feel it’s only right that I try to encourage others to watch their own health, because it does affect others. (Why am I starting to feel like a, shudder, born again christian?) But regardless, thanks so much for your encouragement, and I hope that you and others, are, if nothing else, mildly entertained by what I post. 😉

Credit to the Italian chef whose name slips my mind (Gino someone or other).

Thanks so much matey! I’m posting for a couple of reasons… as a cautionary tale in the hope that others don’t make the same mistakes that I did, to show that there’s a positive way to address a very negative experience (of course it helps if you’re a pragmatist), and just to share the changed approach to my lifestyle that I’ve taken (albeit not by choice, but rather change being the mother of invention). I really do appreciate your appreciation 😁

So do I. Did you happen to get along to one of their gigs at all?

For the first time in a long while, I feel confident of a win. It won’t necessarily be easy, but if we play like we did last Saturday, I think we’ll win with a reasonably comfortable margin. Defence should handle their forwards with relative ease. Mids should be able to comfortably hold their own. It’s just the forwards who concern me, but I do feel that Fritsch will be out to prove, as much to himself as the selectors, that he is more than capable. Petty I’m hoping didn’t give us a one off last week… if he can, and he should, hold his marks and outbody his younger and less experienced opponent, he is in a good position to hit the scoreboard. I’m looking forward to this game!

Well, here I am back in for cycle #7 and feeling pretty positive. A quick consult with my oncologist revealed that my CT scan (taken last week) shows that the spots on my lungs and liver are shrinking… the largest spots in my lungs have reduced by about 33% since my last scan (whenever that was). My CEA marker that gives an indication as to how active the rectal tumour is, is now down from 26 when I started to 14. All good news so far, although I did lose 4.2kg over the past two weeks… something I’m kind of liking.

His brother seems like a real piece of work!

Well, let’s hope it’s not Fullerton. If you’re going to bring the guy in for a well deserved debut, you don’t just send him back the next week… he needs a real run at it.

He’ll miss two games max assuming that neither the AFL, nor the club apply any penalties

I haven’t searched to see if this has been discussed at all, but is the ‘Bison’ nickname derived from his hair, that somewhat resembles that of a buffalo?

My band played our last gig for an indefinite period of time on Saturday 12th April. As the chemo has had a direct affect on my voice, making it quite fragile, I brought in some friends from local bands to help out. They included Paul Field (The Cockroaches and Sacred Hearts), Brendan Smith (The Stray Dogs), Marcus Phelan (Brave New Works and The Beatels), and Mickey Mahoney (The Treble Clefs and The Allniters). It was just as well that I did invite this crew as during the first set, I gave myself three songs to perform and by the second I was starting to sound like the love child of Tom Waits and Donald Duck! Fortunately, by the time the second set came around it had warmed up and worked well for the rest of that and the third set. Other invitees included Richard Burgman (The Saints and The Sunny Boys), Richard Rhule (early Dynamic Hepnotics drummer), plus a couple of unplanned fill ins. It was a real spirit lifting afternoon despite it happening at the end of the first week of my fortnightly chemo cycle which is when I’m at my lowest ebb. Later during the week (last Wednesday) I again met up with Seiko, Mitsuteru and Takami from the Japanese band Buddhadatta, for coffee and general chatting. A nicer bunch you couldn’t hope to meet and another real spirit lifter! The Irinotecan and Fluorouracil that they have me on for my chemo, is having a cumulative affect on my body, and while not being too vicious on my appetite and my general energy levels (I can still walk to the shops just making maybe three stops on the way to regain my breath), but it has now completely [censored] up my taste buds… everything, but…EVERYTHING tastes absolutely foul!

Yes, but what does it mean?

I wasn’t going to read through this topic to see if it’s been asked already, but what is the “shadow puppet duck” hand signal that Petty gave after each of his goals, and as the players got around him to celebrate, what did the two handed shove in the chest signify?

And his trying to wrench the ball from Melksham’s grip… that was a real jaw dropper!