Category: iPhone12
Today
Finished 8th round of immunotherapy today. Few more months to go, if no surprises. Next scans in September.
All good 👍🏻💪🏻.
🫶🏻
Started Immunotherapy
💪🏻 and positive!!
First Chemo
While in the chair a Social Worker stopped by to check on me. Pleasant conversation about fears and frustrations regarding cancer and my five year journey. She left me a ‘Bags of Hope, with lots of useful goodies. The bags are put together by volunteers that have been doing this since 2016. The support and assistance of the clinic staff is unsurpassed!
It takes a handful of meds to get through chemo- to help manage nausea and other side effects. Hopefully, I won’t be needing some of this collection, but better to have on hand.
“Don’t sweat the small stuff “.
All good.
🙏🏻💪🏻
Health Update:
The port was implanted yesterday afternoon. It’s under the skin, where you see the two horizontal incisions. The catheter is attached to the port, near the top incision and travels up and to the right connecting to the jugular vein. A large vein is needed to deal with the chemo drugs. It finally hit me, on the operating table ( I chose local anesthesia over total, so I was fully awake and aware throughout the procedure) things are getting serious. 99% of patients choose to be totally out.
The club no one aspires to. Because I have a port I have to carry a card identifying as such, complete with serial number on the back, etc. I also have to wear a wristband identifying the port brand as well as something for my keychain. Mostly, this is for the benefit of healthcare workers, but it serves as a reminder for me as well
Always positive and strong! Hug your loved ones! 🙏🏻💪🏻🤗
Hidden West Seattle
Friday View
On my walk a few minutes ago. A cloudless sky in Seattle- who would’ve thought?
Note: health update coming next week. I’ve seen one of three doctors, after my last CT on the 8th. Two more still need to weigh in. Based on what the first oncologist said, I have a sense of where things are going. It’s a mixed blessing/bag. All good.
This journey started in 2018, with the first CT scan. It’s just the nature of ‘c’.
Blessings 🙏🏻
Health Update
Today I met the radiation Oncologist and his staff. They were all wonderful. I’m in really good hands. Next week I go in for CT Mapping of the tumor. Once mapped, the coordinates of the tumor are entered into the SBRT machine and will be ready for treatment. I have one more CT scan with contrast to do so the doctor has the latest image of the tumor. Doctors at two hospitals have been tracking this tumor for the last 9 or so months, so there is a plethora of imaging and data to work with.
Health Update
A month ago I had lower back surgery. Simultaneously, I was also dealing with a different hospital /doctor group for my cancer. I have an inoperable tumor in my upper left lobe/lung. Juggling two critical health issues at the same time was more than enough for me to deal with. I haven’t posted as I have rarely left the house, hence, no new photos to post. I actually have a few from before surgery, but it’s tough to get past the circumstances of surgery, etc.
This morning I got a call from the doctor working on my cancer case. The two biopsies they took 10 days ago were NEGATIVE. This was the best news. Now things are in motion to treat the inoperable tumor with Targeted Radiation. Next week the the Radiation Oncology doctor from another clinic will be contacting me to schedule an intake exam and treatment schedule.
I’ve left out a couple of health related issues that have occurred in the past month; I’ve lost 35 pounds, kidney function dropped, etc.
Targeted Radiation has its own set of side effects. I feel good about handling just one treatment course. Had one or more of the biopsies been positive I would be facing chemo in addition to radiation.
I was so relieved to get the good news this morning; nearly in tears. My family and more have been so supportive these past few months;prayers, hugs, chicken soup….
My goal has been to stay alive and relevant for as long as is possible. Today’s news gives me hope that I still have work to do and things to photograph in this crazy world we live in.
Blessings to all,
Fred,
The wandering photographer
📷🎞️
Flood Mitigation 2022/23: South Park, Seattle.
One of the locations that I have been shooting for the past decade is the South Park neighborhood in SW Seattle. Part of the reason for photo documenting this neighborhood is that I actually lived in the area for a short time before starting school. Also, it has been a neighborhood in transition for decades; it’s part residential, part light manufacturing and part indigenous heritage. This makes for an interesting mix.
This past winter we had both a very high tide and exceptional rainfall event. The result was that the Duwamish River overflowed its bank by two feet, which caused residential flooding. The city came in with a Laundry Trailer, which is still there, months later. Also, not pictured, is all of the POD units the city brought in for residents to store their non-flooded items. Basements were severely flooded in those houses closest to the river. The sandbags you see ( orange and green) were used to build a three foot wall, unfortunately this was done after the flooding event. The city has left most of the sandbags in place. I’m not sure what the overall plan is, going forward. In all of my years of spending time in this neighborhood I have never seen flood mitigation done on this scale. ( just as an aside- The Duwamish River was the very first EPA Superfund Site. Most of the offending industries have left this area, moving away from the river. However, after 50+ years, it is safe to say the federal government is slow-walking the cleanup. It would take a monumental dredging operation to clean up all of the heavy metals and toxins that have long settled on the river bottom).
I’ve been sitting on these photos and more for months as I just wasn’t sure how to present the after effects of an unusual flood event.
Bluestar2012's Photoblog 