Eternal Hippies A Year Homemade and Beyond

That's right! I have finished my daily radiation treatments. I was given a certificate and I got to ring the bell they have on the wall. I still have 3 more radiation treatments in Wilmington, but yesterday was the last daily treatments. My hair is coming in thick, with the exception of the top...so I am still wearing chem hats to work. Plus, it is still winter and my head gets cold. I am still fatigued by the radiation and I have aches and pains in my bladder. The doctor said it was normal. That knowledge doesn't stop the fact that I have to run to the restroom every half hour.  Some time in March I'll find out if I have to do any more chemo treatments. I am so hoping not. We are now in the planning stages of our garden. Hopefully this weekend I'll feel like getting my hand dirty planting seeds. I took this picture of a flower that was outside work. I laid it on white card stock and used the flash. I love how it almost glows. Not too much is going on. J

Today makes my 20th radiation treatment. 8 more to go. good thing too because I am worn out and sick of loosing hours at work, fighting traffic, having to scramble to get dinner ready after treatment and putting up with technicians who are clearly on auto-pilot. There is one young man who asks me the same questions, some times three times a day. "How was your day?" "What are your plans after your treatment?" "Any big plans after this?" "What did you do today?" No one is outright rude, but they are clearly tired of seeing my fat face. I've been taking a picture each week showing the progress of my hair growth. The sides are coming in nicely, the top, not so much. I am really hoping that by mid March to be able to show my hair again. I am tired of wearing hats. We are going to have a garden this year!!! Yea! This time we are going to only use 5 gallon buckets. In the past I have used smaller containers and ended up with smaller vegetables.

I am now 12 radiation treatments into it and the fatigue is kicking my butt! I have had to resort to drinking coffee on work days just to stay awake. On days off, I sleep a lot. 12 to 16 hours a day on weekends. Last Saturday I took Mom and Sean to lunch, but it was a real struggle. My body just didn't want to be moving around. Today, even with coffee, I am struggling. I don't normally drink coffee, just herbal teas. I've had nausea as well. Biggest bummer is that I have gained 10 pounds since this radiation has started. My hair continues to grow and is still very soft and fluffy. I am hoping in a couple of weeks I can shed the chemo hats at work. But I won't stop wearing them until my scalp doesn't show. For comfort, I have been watching youtube videos on homesteading and nomadic travelers. My favorite right now are Weed em & Reap , Off Grid w/ Doug & Stacy , Nomadic Fanatic , and just to drool, Hercules Candies .oh, and I shouldn't forget Luke M