I’M  BACK IN OTTAWA

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

WOW! What a month April has been. New Orleans was great. I am happy we decided to join my sister and her husband in the heartland of soul. If you are a jazz lover you won’t be disappointed. A walk through the French Quarter and along Bourbon and Royal Streets is an enthusiasts’s delight. Mind you there are some odd smells and some “happy” tourists having an overly good time that do at times intrude, but they are entertaining as well. For history buffs a walk through the Garden District and a short ferry ride to Algiers will dazzle you with a glimpse of past architectural grandeur. Venturing even further a field to visit the plantations along the Mississippi is also a must. My imagination ran wild as I listened to the guide tell us of the mandatory 18” waists of the young ladies and their frequent fainting spells, probably as a result of the whale bone corsets they forced themselves into. 

Our week in the Toronto area was well used to catch up with old friends, relatives and to attend the Kidney Cancer Canada educational conference on April 21. Both Pegs and I thoroughly enjoyed our day. The conference was highly informative and uplifting. If anything we suffered information overload and I am happy that it will be posted on the website so I may review all that I heard. “E-Doctor”, the keynote speaker, impressed us greatly. He inspired us with his story of survival with wit and humour. (I recommend everyone to view once it is released on the website, www.kidneycancercanada.ca). Needless to say along with feeding our minds and uplifting our spirits,  they did a good job a feeding our bellies as well.

We left immediately after the conference for Winnipeg to see the grand children and as expected we enjoyed ourselves, but then again with grandchildren it is hard not too.

I still feel good. My energy is a little low and I have some shortness of breathe, but I am not sure that this is not from just being a little out of shape, a situation I am trying to correct. After all I am participating in a 5K on Race Weekend here in Ottawa. This will be my first attempt at an organized run since my last marathon 20 years ago. (That was a long time ago, but seems like yesterday.) In short, I still do not physically feel sick. However, I am heavy into preparing myself for battle. I have found reading Dr. Bernie Siegel’s books very helpful mentally and in leading me towards meditation. I have discovered Drs Beliveau and Gingras’s books “Foods that Fight Cancer” and “Cooking with Foods that Fight Cancer”. They tell me that my current diet needs only minor tweaking, and no radical changes.  Between the medicine, the spirituality and diet I am developing a multi-prong approach. Peggy is providing wonderfully strong support. With her and many others, family, friends and other survivors, I know I am not alone.