WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[VelocityYellowRules!]

So ya, I could get into all kinds of a preface. Like how today I finally took the Z06 in to get the low headlight wiring harness recall done, or had them also install the clip on the connectors under the steering column so I hopefully don't get either the "Service Active Handling System" warning or worse having the rear left or right brake come on without warning. This has happened to me twice and let me tell you it is one freaky feeling. Or how what I thought was a UTI problem or prostrate, kidney or bladder issues turned out to be a kidney stone instead - now that was one cool experience when it passed, almost as cool as my first prostrate exam.

So at the same time all this was going on I had a mole removed from my upper left shoulder. I got called on Thursday last week - it's a melanoma baby. That is right, old VelocityYellowRules! has gone cancer again - WTF! Nine years later and now this S H I T (sorry for the profanity) all over again? Wow memories that I did so well repressing that I now have to think about again, dying, my son etc.

So I have an appointment with a surgeon in GP tomorrow at 3. The plan is to enlarge the area around where the mole was that they are going to remove along with digging a little deeper and trying to find the lymph node the mole was connected to and removing it.

So ya, it could be a big deal and nothing further happens. Just have to get the surgery done as soon as possible and see what they learn from that.............

I wonder how fast Manny could do my camshaft.....................??

Maybe 9 years of life was all I am going to get??????

You've all been such great people to allow me to vent off on my non-Corvette issues these years, about my farm etc. and thanks for letting me get this one off my chest..................

Cheers,

Garry

 

[Black 03 Z06]

Garry I am glad you feel comfortable enough to vent and share this with us. Staggering news.

The words of support you know will come, the hopes for the future. We just need you to stay as positive as you can, hope for the best and never give up.

We will he here if you need to talk or vent.

Garry, my thoughts are with you.

 

[VelocityYellowRules!]

I am thankful for to my ex-wife who upon my telling her I had a lump had me in to see the Dr. the next day. I learned my lesson on delaying and putting things off for like 9 or 12 months after i first found the lump under my arm.

In this case, I mentioned it to my gf and she got on me right away. I knew that by telling my gf she would get me going in the right direction immediately.

Oddly it was while dealing with my urine flow or lack there of issues with the Dr. that I showed him this and at first he thought it was a simple mole and was just going to freeze it off with liquid nitrogen so I never gave it much thought.

It was when the Dr.'s assistant called and while of course she couldn't tell me anything herself, it was her tone and that the Dr. wanted to see me THAT day to discuss the results that got my attention. I just have to hope that it is early enough and it has not spread anywhere. Normally, early caught melanoma's are 98% curable. But if they spread somewhere else then it drops drastically.

26 above, going to BBQ chicken, keep myself calm for the next 24 hours.

I'm not sure how much the Dr. tomorrow will be able to tell me. I'm assuming that it will be to have him give me a look over and schedule the surgery but they'll need to remove something to test it yet before I know the situation..............

Thanks for your kind words!!

I even saw a nice blue 71 Stingray when I was in town I'd never seen before..............

Cheers,

Garry

 

[Hiroki Soki]

I hope that everything goes well for you.

 

[nascar03]

Garry...
We are here to back you with your cars, family, farm and your especially your health.
You can count on our thoughts and support as you go forward.

Graham

 

[12cents]

My prayers our with you Gary. You will beat this one too. Just try to take it one day at a time.
My mother has beaten cancer twice now and she is 78.

 

[VelocityYellowRules!]

9 hours to go. I'm not ever really sure what the point is of seeing the Dr. today anyway. No mention of any CT scans or x-rays or anything. Maybe he just wants to poke around physically, see exactly where the mole was etc.

I slept well but got up a bit earlier than usual. The weather has been pretty nice recently which is a bonus after all the rain we've had. Not like those poor folks in Dawson Creek, they really got hammered, roads washed out, I think 3 or 400 homes had to be evacuated.

I had planned on talking the Z06 but got roped into taxis service instead. Dad is going to go to the engineering company he works for to do some stuff there and I'm also giving mom's friend a ride back to GP to her daughter's place before she flies back to the US where she is living now and mom of course is coming along. I would have liked the time to just drive and reflect for a bit. I have the impression that this is sort of like a funeral, it is more for mom and dad than it is for me since while I appreciate their support it doesn't have to be physical in nature.

Very similar to the people on the forum. Your support gives me a lot of energy and while say it would have been fun to do a road trip to GP with a bunch of you, reading what you write here gives me a strong boost.

More than anything it is a case of not knowing what the situation is. I find that the answer is not as bad as not knowing.

I also resent the feeling of the loss of control in my life, the feeling that I beat this once and now I might have to go through it all over again.

I even had the thought that I might have to give back my license plate since it is a case of not possibly being in the category of "NOCANSR" anymore!! And I also really resent that while I made it to plus or minus nine years of being cancer free, that I either had or have cancer once again so the clock will once again be starting from scratch - I hope!

I even thought worse case I'd be seeing what it would cost to fly Dave down with a camshaft and rent time at HP Solutions in Edmonton. it might be less expensive to do that than to ship the car to Breslau................

A wandering mind eh?!

On top of that worrying about the final 4 fields I have to spray and when the wind and ground conditions might allow me to do, more rain and showers in the forecast over the next few days..................I'd like to get this off my plate too.

The worst thought I have in my head, if things do head south how to I tell my son? When I had cancer before he was 3, now he is 11. He knows that I had cancer before but I haven't told him about this current situation. How do you tell an 11 year old that his father is going to be dead at some point in the upcoming future?? Do I tell him or just wait until the end game approaches? Weird thoughts that I find myself thinking about.

And I hope that I'll be luck enough either like your mom or that it was confined to the mole and hasn't spread anywhere else yet. I hope that I learned from my previous experience and moved on this quickly enough. I know for one thing, that without my gf it is unlikely I would have done anything about it. I don't go for regular physicals and unlike the lump under my arm I'd never have associated the mole with being cancerous..............

9 more hours to some information and possibly some answers - so spare me a thought to two at 3 pm Alberta time if you can!!!!! I'll take whatever you can spare me.

Cheers,

Garry

 

[Black 03 Z06]

Thoughts with you Garry. One day at a time man.

 

[smackYYZ]

Stay positive! And hope all goes well for you today.

I hear you about having the time alone driving to reflect, it's a great way to do it. But be thankful you have a family that really cares about you.

Good Luck.

 

[Rruuff Day]

Chin up Garry. I know those are easy words for someone not going through what you are but my partner and I went through cancer and major surgery 19 years ago and I watched and shared her positive outlook and absolutely know that her mind helped her body. So no regretting the "NOCANSR" license plate. You're going to need it again. Thoughts are with you.

Eric

 

[Dub]

My thoughts are with you, and your family. I know I don't personally know you, but I truly do hope the best for you and if there's anything any of us can do, please let us know.

 

[VelocityYellowRules!]

Thanks everyone!

In some ways it was a great day. I went in to surprise my son (not going to get him until Thursday after school) so he was so happy to see me. We walked together before school started and then I ran with his class, well with those that run anyway, and then headed off to GP.

So I kept my mind occupied by doing some shopping. I saw a black C6 convertible, a red GTR, white Audi R8 convertible or spyder and a really pretty C7.

So how did things go?? Well not so good but hard to say. The melanoma is considered to be "advanced". So they are pushing ahead with surgery pronto, within a month. I'm going to get a chunk of skin removed maybe 6 inches long and in an oval shape 2 inches wide. We laughed that I had stomach surgery and lost weight so I have some flabby skin on my arm so I don't have to get an arm tuck now!

So, the problem is with the melanoma advanced to this stage, has it spread to my lymph nodes. So after the skin is removed they are going to inject me with a radioactive tracer and using a geiger counter find the lymph nodes this mole was draining to. Remove a few and then have them subsequently tested to see if there is any cancer. With luck it has either not spread, or if it has, not past my arm, or not into my chest or not into my neck. He has to schedule the surgery so that if the tracer indicates that he needs to go deep he wants a more experienced surgeon on hand. So at this stage hard to really say anything in terms of how serious it is until they start rooting around and even then not until what they remove gets tested.

The Dr. did say that with a melanoma this advanced, the range is from 27 to 57% that it has spread, the average being 30%. I hope he wasn't just being kind...............

Not sure about the doctor, he seems sort of pessimistic but then again never having met him before I'm not sure what his normal demeanor is. This could be the way he normally is. Maybe he was having an off day, I don't know how to judge him.

Impressed but always scared that they move this quickly and the Dr said that if they can't schedule the surgery in 4 weeks he will be bumping someone else, who hopefully was only scheduled for elective surgery.

Not as positive as I would have hoped but then again it is a wait and see situation.

So now I have to buckle down and get back to getting on with my life.

A blood test tomorrow and a CT scan is scheduled and then wait for the call for surgery.

What a life!

Still sort of pissed I have to go through this again. Kind of glad that I don't drink!

Thanks all for listening and for your words of support. You're so much more than just a group of Corvette fanatics, you're good people and I am so much better for the experience of the car and the people I have met as a result.

The time to worry is when you suddenly hear Manny/Dave have been found to book a flight to Alberta..........................!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cheers,

Garry

 

[nascar03]

Garry..
We're here to support you when you need it and be a distraction when you need that too!
Your attitude is what impresses me... You are strong.

We're here to help.

Graham

 

[henkz06]

Don't give up Garry, miracles still happen.

 

[VelocityYellowRules!]

The morning after the storm I guess. There was one bit of positive news I recalled now that I had time to go through everything again. The Dr. did give me a good check over from head to toe and repeatedly felt under my left arm where lymph nodes reside. He couldn't feel any swelling or lumps so maybe I will be lucky. I mean I was sort of crestfallen when I was so stupid with the previous cancer that I waited maybe a year when I felt a good sized lump under my arm, I went into denial and all that sort of stuff. But this time I swung into action, I thought, fairly quickly.

One problem is that while I could feel the mole and see it if I twisted in the mirror, it was not something in plain sight and so I sort of just thought it was a mole mole. One clue, late into things, it that it became itchy and it would bleed when I scratched it but it never healed like a normal scratch. A clue I suppose but while I was attentive for cancer signs like night sweats and things like that, which didn't happen with this.

So my prescription for this morning, I'm taking the Z06 and going to run with my son and his class again, something that I love and makes me so happy.

Plus I want to get some seat time to see if that clip solved the active handling warning light issue and if not then move onto perhaps the next step which is to get steering wheel sensor replaced. Got to look after myself better now and the Z06 as well!!

There was a real thunderstorm here last night, 10 mm just as things were drying out and I was getting hopeful I could start spraying again. I'll have to talk to dad and see if it came down there as well................

So please send all strength and positive energy this way - I'll be happy to take whatever can be spared!

Cheers,

Garry

 

[Black 03 Z06]

Garry you are giving great advice for things people need to watch for.

Keep the activities, running and racing around going and it will keep your mind off it. Enjoy the run with the kids.

Thoughts with you.

 

[Riley P]

Well that sucks to hear Garry!

However, first things first, you've beaten cancer once, you'll beat it again. And from what I've read, there is a better chance that it has not spread than that it has spread. Good to hear your doctor is acting quickly. Lots of thoughts and prayers that it'll be limited to the area of the mole and after the surgery, you'll once again be using your license plate.

 

[VelocityYellowRules!]

The drive was just awesome, the run was tiring but I had so much fun! No doubt, all things considered I still maintain my position as worlds luckiest SOB...............................off for blood work now...................and yes if you were wondering, it was movie and pyjama day........................

 

[Black 03 Z06]

Nice picture Garry. Does not look like there are too many shy ones in that group.

 

[VelocityYellowRules!]

Good afternoon Riley, Murray,

The girls are such muggers. Normal (or what passes for normal) 11 year old girls most of the time but let them catch sight of a camera and the mugging and posing breaks out. The pouting lips I especially find funny, along with the posturing that they do. I hope they still find this funny when (as it my plan still) I give them copies of all the pictures I took over the years when they graduate!

You know, as much as people seem to be critical of the health care system, at least as far as Alberta goes it has really surprised me. I remember when I cancer before I was really surprised how rapidly they got me into chemo after the test results confirmed I had cancer, maybe it was 2 to 4 weeks.

Well I met with the Dr. yesterday, I go the call for my CT scan for Tuesday in PR, surgery in GP on the 11th. Now how is that for rapid??

I like to think that if I was a basket case they would not be doing things this quickly and granted while they don't know until they remove some lymph nodes and test them, considering I was told it would be up to a month and now it is two weeks away I'm pretty pumped!

Had a nice day 300 km in the car, huge fun running with my son and his class this morning, what a super group of kids!

Saw some spirited driving, no SAHS lights yet either! Hope that is history now that the clip is installed.

So two weeks to surgery, hopefully no more than a week after that and I should know what's what!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cheers,

Garry