An Unusual Birthday But a Good One

We started our morning very early (too early for me) with an 8am appointment with the new medical oncologist.  Dan and the new oncologist are bonding nicely which meant that they both had fun picking on me this morning. Great, I am outnumbered again just like with the last oncologist.  The doctor did say that Dan and I should do stand-up comedy because we are very funny. I assume this is because I was half asleep but then again you never know.  ;-)

I took this picture when we were leaving the first appointment because it always makes me smile. This is the baby grand piano in the atrium of the cancer center at Johns Hopkins. When we arrived this morning someone was playing the piano.  I know it sounds silly but having music at the hospital is definitely comforting.

One thing that always strikes me when we are at the cancer center at Hopkins is how sick everyone else seems to be.  Many of the patients are wearing masks to keep from being exposed to “any germs”.  Additionally lots of the patients can’t walk or they have no hair.  I saw one woman today pushing an IV pole whose wounds absolutely broke my heart. She was definitely younger than me, possibly by a decade, and she had big round black spots on her legs that looked to me like dead skin. I assume this was from targeted radiation therapy but I didn’t ask.  I am telling you all of this because I realize that not many people get to see what I see in regard to the impact cancer has on people. 

Please, if you are on the fence about changing your diet don’t wait!  Pounding down nutrition in the form of vegetables and green smoothies can only help by providing your body with the raw materials that it needs to fight disease. I hear people say all the time that “being vegan is extreme” and I would disagree.  Eating vegetables, fruits, beans, seeds, nuts and whole grains is normal.  Getting surgery, taking drugs and getting chemo or radiation is extreme.   Modern medicine definitely has a place in the world and I am not saying you should avoid it.  However there is nothing to be afraid of by adding natural foods to your diet. I am not saying that Dan is doing as well as he is completely due to good nutrition but I know that it definitely plays a role.  As you probably know I am very passionate about this and much of that is due to what I see.  I only hope that some of you are listening and moving closer toward eating a whole-food plant-based diet.

Okay on to brighter stories since cancer is not exactly upbeat and perky birthday talk.  You did realize that my hubby likes technology right?  ;-)  I think we have settled on the specific new cell phones but Dan will make the final call since I am not exactly technology girl (a serious understatement).  One of the phones I tested this afternoon takes panoramic pictures which I think will be very useful.   Okay I should say it will be really fun if I were being honest.  Let’s hope that particular phone turns out to be the winner (hint, hint …if you are reading this Dan).

Once we left the cell phone store we stopped for Indian food in Towson at The Kathmandu restaurant. We explained that we were vegan and they had no difficulty modifying the dishes for us.  Nice!  Here is what we had:

Dan “had to” order the vegetable samosas which he loves.  The pastry around the spicy potato and pea filling was so thin and tender. Seriously, the crust was the best I have had outside of India!  Really, really good!  If you are local you should check it out.  I am sure that you won't be disappointed they were delicious.

Then we ordered the vegetable jalfrezi and whole wheat flat bread stuffed with potatoes and peas.  Both were very good but the samosas literally stole the show.

We spent the afternoon at the boat. Where else would you expect us to be?  Dan had to be on a conference call and I spent that time visiting the nice people in the marina office and feeding my duck-daughter and grand-duck.   Yes I did say singular grand-duck. Sadly there is only one little baby left which upsets me. However I am trying to focus on the positive side of things and the one remaining baby is very lively and adorable.

In addition to taking the day off to hang out with me and taking me to lunch Dan also bought me something that I have been hinting around about literally for months.  I really wanted to upgrade my camera and Dan got me a new camera. Woo hoo!  I am not the proud owner of a Canon 60D.  Everyone needs an 18 megapixel camera don’t they?  I realize that this is not actually a need but really more of a want.  However I really wanted it!  ;-)  I am very excited to have a new fancy camera, now I just need to figure out how to use it.  Somehow I will manage to find time to play around with my new camera soon.

Happy Thoughts:

Thursday has been a good one which means that I have many things to be thankful for and some of them are the following:

• Yesterday was a gorgeous day.  It started off hot but cooled down in the evening and resulted in beautiful views.  I never get tired of the scenery at the boat, as you have probably noticed. ;-)
• Today I was reminded how important it is to be thankful.  Spending time at Hopkins is always humbling and reminds me that our situation is vastly better than most people.  I only wish that everyone understood that there are actions that they can take to help themselves.  Maybe one day more people will realize the power of good nutrition. Until then I will continue to spread the word.
• I am thrilled to have my husband take the day off to spend with me.  He never makes a big deal about his birthday but he knows that it is important to me so he makes a fuss about mine. Dan is a good hubby; I think I will keep him.  ;-)

• I love the camera that Dan bought me for my birthday present.  Wow, this is a very powerful camera and I can’t wait to use it.  *happy dance*
• The weather has been gorgeous for my birthday. Thank you Mother Nature!  We have had beautiful blue skies and moderate temperatures (mid-70s).  Definitely nice birthday weather if you ask me.
• Later today we are going to go for a nice walk along the harbor and get in a bit more exercise since we were up and out of the house so early this morning we need to move around more. Besides we definitely have a big Indian lunch to burn off. ;-)

Signing off:

Dan is off his conference call, my webinar is over and the ducks are fed so it I time for me to get off the computer and spend some time with my hubby.  I hope you are having a wonderful Thursday.  Talk with you again tomorrow.  J