SheriM - Too Stubborn to Stop Dreamin' - SURPRISE!!!

[SheriM]

Well, yesterday's treatment went quite well, all things considered. The PICC line was a true blessing...no pain, no poking and prodding, just sit down, plug in and relax. Because it was the first treatment, it took a lot longer than it otherwise would, but susequent treatments should go faster.

This morning, I felt pretty queasy but they gave me some dexamethasone to take today and tomorrow. That really knocked the queasies down. It also helps combat potential fuild retention, which is one of the major side effects of this particular chemo drug. The dex also helps with my energy level, so after morning chores and a couple hours rest, I tackled the new baler.

It is still giving us some grief, but I managed to make about half a bale. One belt is too loose and kept twisting over on itself. Eventually, the thing plugged up too much to even tie the bale, but we did get it kicked out of the baler. We can still feed it, so I'm not worried about that. We took the belt off and tomorrow, we'll run it into town and get it cut to the right length and relaced. Theoretically, we could do that ourselves, but for this first one, I'd just as soon have it done professionally. It would take a lot longer to do by ourselves and I'd rather save my energy for the actual baling.

 

[keljonma]

Glad to hear the first treatment went well. Don't forget to save some of your energy for healing. Prayers being sent for your healing and that you also stay dry while haying....

 

[lorihadams]

Glad to hear that your are doing okay, darlin'. I agree with Kel, don't overdo it!

 

[SheriM]

Thanks for the encouragement. As expected, I'm starting to feel a little rougher. At least I'm beginning to get an idea of what side effects I'll be facing. Mouth pain was listed as one of the less common side effects, but I've never been a particularly common person. My tongue is swollen and my whole mouth feels like I ate a bowl of hot peppers -- which I could never do at the best of times. I hate spicy food. Even the mild chilli I made for DH's birthday is too hot for me now.

The baler is still down, too. We took the belt off and had it relaced, but now we can't get it back on. I think the wire they sold us that slides between the two sets of lacing is too big. We've also still got a problem with the locking mechanism on the end gate. This would be a big enough pain in the neck at the best of times, but I am completely out of hay. If I don't get some baled soon, I'll have to buy some. There's also rain in the forecast for the next few days which will put everything back on hold while we wait for the fields to dry again. Sigh!

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

Oh man I hope you are able to get your hay up!!

You can send the rain our way. We're 4 inches below average for the year, and we could USE the rain.

 

[SheriM]

If I sent the rain your way, the farmers around here would skin me alive. It may be inconvenient to have rain now for us hay people, but the grain farmers are desperate for more moisture. I've driven past more than one field where they are plowing their canola under because there just wasn't enough rain and warmth this spring.

 

[Quail_Antwerp]

Well, I wouldn't want you to get skinned!

 

[punkin]

Sheri,

best of luck with your treatments. I hope they don't get any rougher for you.

 

[justusnak]

Sheri, glad to hear the first treatment went "well" Hope your mouth feels better soon! Blasted on the baler...jeesh! Sounds like you are haveing terrible luck with it. Dont over do it tho...rest, rest, rest! Prayers are with ya!

 

[SheriM]

Oh, my goodness, what a day!!! I just barely had my clothes on (I'm not quite as quick off the mark these days and didn't get dressed till almost 8 a.m.) when my neighbors showed up to take a look at the baler for me. Turns out there was nothing wrong with the tail gate mechanism. I just wasn't pressing hard enough on the hydraulics. Easy fix! Yeah! But he found some badly worn parts that will need to be replaced before we can use the baler. Thankfully, they're easy to replace and shouldn't be too expensive, so it shouldn't take too long to get the baler up and running.

It was in the afternoon that the fun really started, though. I have been emailing back and forth with a fellow who is interested in buying all of my doe kids from this year plus a few older does I have been wanting to sell. We've been trying to set up a time for him to come and see the goats, but weren't too worried about when because the kids aren't ready to wean yet. Well, I get a call today asking if I'd be home. I'd planned an informal sort of drop-in birthday party for DH so it seemed perfect. I said come on over any time.

Not half an hour later, another fellow called who is interested in the guardian dog pup that was returned to me. He also wanted to see the goats, as he has sheep and might want to add some goats. He said he'd like to bring his mom and dad, as they're also interested in possibly getting some goats. So, at one point I had 8 people here looking at buying animals, plus the neighbors who dropped in to bring me a couple of square bales they'd made but were too damp to store.

I'm running back and forth playing salesman in temps somewhere around 30 degrees C. By this time, we were pretty well certain the first guy was going to take all the goats I wanted to sell, so there wasn't really anything to sell the other guy, but he did take the dog and said he'd be in touch next year about the goats.

So, to make a long story just a wee bit shorter, I have now sold all the goats I planned to sell this year except 5 buck kids and am now down to the right number of dogs. I got full price on the pup and a good, healthy deposit on the goats, which really helps the bank balance, too. By the time everyone left, I was totally exhausted, but it was worth it.

Now, if I'm REALLY lucky, I'll be so tired I'll actually be able to sleep tonight. I've hardly slept a wink since treatment. I had the same problem last time, too. I wake up it seems like every hour on the hour for the first week or so after treatment. Here's hoping tonight will be different.

(edited for typos)