My friend Kate
Posted May 10th, 2009 by Jane

I met Kate in cancercyberland 4 years ago, in realworld regularly for two years. I went to her funeral on Thursday; a packed crematorium of mourners; Kate was 47, her twins 12, her younger son 8.
Kate’s breast cancer story is not one of those cheery pink accounts beloved of magazine editors in October. Diagnosed in April [...]

 

Women of courage..no thanks
Posted May 11th, 2009 by Jane

Nominations closed today for ‘Women of courage’.. a little competition for breast cancer patients organised by Breakthrough Breast Cancer in partnership with Prima magazine. The lucky winner can have a treat at Champneys Health Spa, and there are Avon goodies for the runners up (last year it was a washing machine.)
Breakthrough have removed the link for [...]

 

Its not in the toolbox
Posted May 17th, 2009 by Jane

Its really harder than I expected to not be on chemotherapy. I coined a phrase this week that I keep wanting to repeat..in cancerworld and normalworld. Its this: “most people run out of life before they run out of treatments. I’ve run out of treatment before life.”
I think this beautifully sums up my situation. In [...]

 

Of steroids, coffee and cake
Posted May 17th, 2009 by Jane

Steroids make me hungry…ravishingly delightfully hungry. I am spending a lot of time in teashops. Recession or not Elvi and Evans may be closing down in Winchester’ high street, but there’s some delightful up market tea shops taking their place. Well done Raymond Blanc.*
It has become the highlight of my day…a little trip to town, [...]

 

Health bulletin
Posted May 17th, 2009 by Jane

I know that several of you were worried after the shutters closing post, particularly as I didn’t post again for a while.
Like many others with cancer I have an ambivalent relationship with those ‘how are you’ questions. And then I can be a difficult and prickly kind of person too.
Its a real dilemma…you want people to ask [...]

 

Having a Nice Day
Posted May 24th, 2009 by Jane

The elephant arrives unexpectably sometimes. Just when I think I’ve got it sussed..that its possible to talk about cancer and death without embarrassment or awkwardness someone brings along the elephant and I feel like I’m back to the beginning. The elephant came uninvited to lunch a couple of weeks ago, ushered in by a friend determined to [...]

 

A reply to Supersue
Posted May 26th, 2009 by Jane

Were I to adopt a fighting spirit and declare that I am going to ‘beat’ my cancer then I would be praised as brave and inspirational. Mention that I want cancer mentioned and somehow I’m letting the side down.
I am going to die…perhaps in less than 6 months, perhaps not. …perhaps I’m calling ‘wolf’. Of course I [...]

 

Outward bound for cancer patients
Posted May 27th, 2009 by Jane

There’s a charity called Odyssey Holidays who run special free courses for people living with cancer. The website says: “Odyssey is a charity which enhances the quality of life for people with cancer through imaginative programmes of challenging and dramatic activites using the outdoors” and “It uses the stimulation of uncertainty and surprise to help participants [...]

 

Thank you
Posted May 28th, 2009 by Jane

My techie mentor tells me 50-75 people visit the site daily. I don’t know whether in the scheme of internet thingies this is a lot of people or not! Probably not.
Thanks for reading and thanks for making comments. I ‘approve ‘ nearly all comments and turn down a very few. Yesterday was one such..an angry woman [...]