hello, sun in my face: sept. 25

i was going to wait til after my 3rd round of chemo tomorrow until i updated the blog, but then i thought, "well, i might be too tired or something to do it then", so i'm doing it now. it's late on thursday night, and DeAnna and DC just left after we had dinner here. tostadas with lots of avocados. and a spicy habanero sauce that DC took too much of and was both enjoying it and also inhaling a lot to cool off her tongue. she wouldn't admit defeat.

been awhile since an update. been busy, having fun, working, recovering, breathing in and out, yoga, walking walking walking, and am in awe and appreciation of so many people, so many things. ionah and georgina shaved their beautiful heads in support, and to raise money for the fundraiser. i found the day to be more emotional and deeper than i thought it would be, and i found myself having to go outside and sorta catch my breath, gather my emotions around the hugeness of that day. i've heard people say, "it's just hair", but it's much more and goes much deeper. i mean, i knew mine would fall out after a few weeks, but to have friends who'd choose to shave their locks in solidarity with me, well, those are strong, strong women, with huge hearts. and i love them. Melissa had a little get-together at her house after the head shaving event, and we all sat under the big tree with orb lights and a table full of delicious handmade/handgrown food. wine may have been involved too. and many stories.

my grandpa and PB celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary on the 8th of Sept. and we had a little gathering in their backyard. Grandpa said he thought there were about 30 people there, and we had a wonderful visit. I was so proud and honored to be there with them. my cousin elizabeth had her baby, a girl, veronica, on the 18th!! of course she's beautiful, and it's undetermined whether she'll have red hair or not. i cannot wait to meet her.

allison was in town to teach a workshop with mary ann, and so the 4 of us (with danny) got to go out for a "working" dinner at Ace, which also meant we got to play ping pong. talk about competition! i think allison took the cake, quietly, and consistently. danny managed to ping me in the front tooth, and i managed i think we all managed to break all the rules written on the chalk board. great to spend a little time with allison, but much, much too short.

the first 2 weeks after chemo for me have proven to be the most difficult. so, here it is the day before my 3rd round, and i am feeling pretty good. yesterday, i had my 2nd port placed, since the first port didn't like me so much and had to be removed because of infection. nancy took me to my appt today, and drove me back too, since i had to be sedated. then we met up with michelle at Union Station for lunch, and pete even came by for a bit (and half of nancy's beet burger). when i got home, i could barely keep my eyes open, and i went to bed at 7pm! it was a longer day than i thought.

so tomorrow. round 3 of chemo. half-way to 6. woo hoo! it should be celebrated. all of life should be celebrated. i think there are seven beautiful people coming to visit me tomorrow, and, of course, daniel is taking me there. my rock. ionah brought me a bunch of bone broth today that her husband hugh made, and a loaf of the most amazing homemade bread she made. all wrapped up in wax paper with a ribbon of string. i crave life to be this simple and so beautiful. i crave the grit. dirty pretty, as georgina would say.

a group of us stood out in the pouring rain on sunday night, listening to The National play, and even though they were aware that the sound was all messed up because of the rain/wetness, they kept going. and even though we were all drenched to the bone and the water was pooling into the edge of my hat and making a small stream down my neck, we all stood there and listened. because isn't life so much about listening? even when it's a bit cold and uncomfortable, there are still beautiful notes between the raindrops.