We were on our way to NIH for many tests for Gary's re-staging. I was in my car and a few miles in front of Gary who was in a Mercedes SLK 280, a very small black car, but very cute!
Gary was on 495 North, inner loop, heading towards Bethesda. He had just past I66 (entrance ramp from I66 to 495 is on the left) and Gary was in the far right lane. He observed an 18 wheeler entering 495 from I66 and watched as it crossed 3 lanes of traffic and was heading towards him. Gary was honking his horn and flashing his lights, to no avail, as the trucker had no idea that he was there.
The truck continued on over into Gary's lane and Gary tried to speed up to get by him, but no such luck. The front right wheel of the 18 wheeler hooked onto the driver's side of Gary's car. Literally, they were hooked together traveling down the road. Finally the trucker realized what was going on and stopped, I'm sure the noise must have been deafening!
The whole driver's side of Gary's car was dented and torn apart, but Gary walked away without a scratch! Well he didn't walk away too quickly as he was pinned in between the truck and the Jersey wall. The EMS suggested he try to take the convertible top down and have him climb out that way. It worked!
Traffic was backed up for several miles because of the accident, and even made the news.
Gary called me right after it happened and said 'Jane, I've been in an accident but I am okay, a truck hit me'. At that point I didn't know if the car was drivable so I drove back thinking i might be able to help him and drive him back to NIH. As I drove past the scene, that is when I found out that it was an 18 wheeler... I couldn't believe it!
Now what is even more amazing, the car was drivable and he made it to NIH in plenty of time for his appointment. After the tests he drove to the Mercedes dealer and turned the car in and got a loaner. We were afraid the car was totalled, but luckily it was only $5000 worth of damage and is being repaired now.
Here I am being very analytical about this, but when I think about what could have happened I begin to cry. What an amazingly lucky man he is!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Celebration
Gary's last round of chemo was yesterday. The PIC line is out and now it is dealing with the chemo side effects and then re-staging in 2 weeks. The nurses came into his room as the last drip of Cytoxan was leaving the bag and sang 'For he's a jolly good fellow' and gave him a cake. How sweet is that?
We went to our son Andrew and his wife's house after to celebrate with a pizza and champagne (sparkling juice for Gary). It was great to be with family on such a momentous day.
We went to our son Andrew and his wife's house after to celebrate with a pizza and champagne (sparkling juice for Gary). It was great to be with family on such a momentous day.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Update on life
It h as been close to two months since I have added anything to my blog. It isn't that there isn't anything going on, it is just that I have had a difficult time finding a few moments to write.
As I write this, Gary is receiving his last round (#6) of chemo. The final dose being delivered tomorrow. What happens after that is re-staging. That will begin on the 24th of this month and then subsequent days after. He will havea CT scan, PET scan, bone marrow biopsy, colonoscopy and lots of blood work.
How is he doing??? Unfortunately the Bortizamib had to be stopped for the 5th and 6th round, due to peripheral neuropathy and now the vincrisitine was stopped for the last round, the 6th one. His legs are swollen, especially the right lower leg and foot and the pain and tingling is present. We are hoping that it will improve over time, but there is no guarantee of that. He is doing well, other than that and seems to be tolerating everything else quite well.
A few weeks ago, we visited with Gary's neurologist to discuss his neuropathies and his Parkinson's. After a very thorough appointment (3 hours) it was great to hear that though his Parkinson's is progressing, it is minimal. That is such a relief. Unfortunately the peripheral neuropathies are real and with an extensive exam proved very much to be so. We are hoping it will eventually improve once the chemo ends.
We are adjusting... life is far from normal. It's as if the elephant has moved into our house and is hiding behind a very sheer curtain. It is there, but we aren't discussing it. How much can one discuss it without breaking down all the time?
I think once his hair returns and the IV's are out that we can move on. Right now it is so ever present.
We don't talk as much as we have in the past. It is stressful for Gary as it is for me. I guess it is hard to look to the future until we hear what the results of the re-staging are. We are disappointed that some of the chemo meds had to be taken away and worry about what that means for the future.
Last month, on the 19th of February, my sister-in-law, Betty Lee Davis, lost her fight with cancer. She hung on for 21 months from diagnosis, which was way above what was expected. She was told about 7 months. I went to the funeral in Kentucky and Gary stayed home. I am sure it is very difficult for him to hear about all of this. It was horrendous for me, but I needed to be there for my brother. He is in my thoughts all of the time.
Our friends are such a support to us, especially our Boston friends, Andy and Susie and our friends here, Diane and Bill. Andy has come down here for several of Gary's chemos and Susie has been such a huge support for me. Andy is helping Gary with finishing our basement. It has been a great distraction for both of them. Andy is Gary's best friend and his suppport through all of this has been such an important part of the process. Bill has come over several times also to help in the basement and having the continued friendship with both of them has made all of the difference. I am blessed to have Susie and Diane in my life (Gary too) as I am to have our children, Tammie and Andrew and their spouses, James and Meghan, to offer us such love and caring. We are just so lucky. I also have the women from my bookclub that are there for me at a moment's notice, especially Kristy and Linda. I don't know what I would do without them.
As I write this, Gary is receiving his last round (#6) of chemo. The final dose being delivered tomorrow. What happens after that is re-staging. That will begin on the 24th of this month and then subsequent days after. He will havea CT scan, PET scan, bone marrow biopsy, colonoscopy and lots of blood work.
How is he doing??? Unfortunately the Bortizamib had to be stopped for the 5th and 6th round, due to peripheral neuropathy and now the vincrisitine was stopped for the last round, the 6th one. His legs are swollen, especially the right lower leg and foot and the pain and tingling is present. We are hoping that it will improve over time, but there is no guarantee of that. He is doing well, other than that and seems to be tolerating everything else quite well.
A few weeks ago, we visited with Gary's neurologist to discuss his neuropathies and his Parkinson's. After a very thorough appointment (3 hours) it was great to hear that though his Parkinson's is progressing, it is minimal. That is such a relief. Unfortunately the peripheral neuropathies are real and with an extensive exam proved very much to be so. We are hoping it will eventually improve once the chemo ends.
We are adjusting... life is far from normal. It's as if the elephant has moved into our house and is hiding behind a very sheer curtain. It is there, but we aren't discussing it. How much can one discuss it without breaking down all the time?
I think once his hair returns and the IV's are out that we can move on. Right now it is so ever present.
We don't talk as much as we have in the past. It is stressful for Gary as it is for me. I guess it is hard to look to the future until we hear what the results of the re-staging are. We are disappointed that some of the chemo meds had to be taken away and worry about what that means for the future.
Last month, on the 19th of February, my sister-in-law, Betty Lee Davis, lost her fight with cancer. She hung on for 21 months from diagnosis, which was way above what was expected. She was told about 7 months. I went to the funeral in Kentucky and Gary stayed home. I am sure it is very difficult for him to hear about all of this. It was horrendous for me, but I needed to be there for my brother. He is in my thoughts all of the time.
Our friends are such a support to us, especially our Boston friends, Andy and Susie and our friends here, Diane and Bill. Andy has come down here for several of Gary's chemos and Susie has been such a huge support for me. Andy is helping Gary with finishing our basement. It has been a great distraction for both of them. Andy is Gary's best friend and his suppport through all of this has been such an important part of the process. Bill has come over several times also to help in the basement and having the continued friendship with both of them has made all of the difference. I am blessed to have Susie and Diane in my life (Gary too) as I am to have our children, Tammie and Andrew and their spouses, James and Meghan, to offer us such love and caring. We are just so lucky. I also have the women from my bookclub that are there for me at a moment's notice, especially Kristy and Linda. I don't know what I would do without them.
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