Hurry Up & Wait...Day 22

I've tried to come to these daily posts with as much optimism and good spirit as a I can muster...but today its a bit hard to put on a happy face. At least while at the hospital your facial expressions are truly masked!

Another week, another set of somewhat disappointing results at my weekly hospital visit. My ANC is stuck the 430's, as I still await multiple consecutive days in the 500's to prove my new bone marrow has engrafted.

I'm still in the window where there is no reason for concern or panic- just the annoyance and frustration of wanting to be progressing faster. I do feel a bit stronger, and that could indicate that my blood levels are fluctuating up and down more than they are stuck. They are going to have me come back for blood work again on Friday - to see if some of the additional "helper drugs" move things along by the end of the week.

I also have a bit of a hernia situation that seems to have appeared out of no where, connect to a stomach surgery I hate almost a year ago. They discovered it during some scans today - some short terms remedies to address that, and then they'll fix it for good as soon as there is less risk of infection.

Phew - I'm ready to get OUT OF THE HOSPITAL TODAY - enough news from this place for one day! Thankfully there are about to finish up my Platelet infusion - and Sherry is en-route to pick me up! The nurse just share me on this lovely GIF that I thought you would all enjoy, gotta love a Little Bart Simpson humor. The Simpsons always remind me of Ben, and I'm certainly missing him and thinking of his strength, sense of humor, and steadfastness on a day like today.

In the meantime - It's going to be above 60 degrees tomorrow - and yes I'm in WISCONSIN. The medical team is impressed with how much I'm moving, and says this is something to remain focused on and should also help alleviate some of the bone pain a well. Tomorrow rain or shine, I'm going to walk out my frustration, and walk towards a 500 ANC result...aiming for 10,000 steps tomorrow!

I've also officially enrolled in a clinical trial to study vaccinations and bone marrow transplant patients. Love being a part of scientific advancement! Now I just need to qualify by not only getting past engraftment but a strong enough set of blood work results to enable me to get re-vaccinated. Hopefully by mid-January, I can have Dose 1 all over again - its a bit of a deja vu I guess!

I neglected to celebrate a very special occasion earlier this week. The one, the only, MILLY TOLKAN turned 6 years old! (In dog years, she's now surpassed me in age). She is the most special wonderful human-like pet that's ever existed. She was born on a farm in Wisconsin (With an Irish Setter and a Poodle as parents - making her an Irish doodle), and lovingly gifted to Ben by Sherry and Jim for Ben's 32nd Birthday. She spent most of her first 5 years of life as a city Dog, strolling the streets of NW DC and the 14th Street corridor, but has also enjoyed suburban life as the hit of the Elm Tree / Ironwood Circle in Glendale, WI. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MILLY! We LOVE YOU! I miss you! A few more weeks and they'll let me hangout with you again...

What's Entertaining Us:

Curb your Enthusiasm

Succession Season Finale

Gilmore Girls Season 1

And Just Like That (Sex & The City Reboot) - as long as there are NO MORE FUNERAL EPISODES!

On deck:

We must get back to the movies!!! The Oscars are only 3.5 months away....Stay tuned.

What I'm grateful for today:

• Excellent wifi connectivity during this blood transfusion

• A nurse that has generously gone to the cafeteria to buy me iced teas on every visit

• A 2nd chance to learn if I've engrafted before the week is up!