The countdown begins...

Ah ... Three more days (or 2.5) until Silas and I fly the friendly skies and find ourselves back in our "homeland." We are both getting uber excited about the fact that we'll be back in SC and seeing my crazy family. I hate that Miss Sarah won't be able to make the trip. But, she's still dealing with family stuffs after her father's passing. Please continue to keep her and her family in your thoughts and prayers. I know they really need it right now.
We are, basically, settled in now at our new home in Mountlake Terrace. It's been a long road. But, we are comfortable and happy and focusing on the future. Dear Don will be watching our menagerie until our return.
Today, I printed out all my maps for my road trip. I cannot WAIT to stop at the shanties on the side of those southern highways and pick up boiled peanuts, sweet grass baskets, and the like.
The conference is gonna be immense. The Hotel looks fabulous. The Seattle gals have some lovely "Soul Food" dinners set up while we are in Atlanta. So, I'll be sure to share the fare that we experience.
I'll also share what we learn from all the newest studies in breast cancer and the young survivor. I look forward to seeing all the latest advances in research and science.
If I don't post before I leave, I'll try to post while I'm in the Beautiful South.
Until then ...
xoxo
Anna

Godspeed Pops...

Sending some love to my dear girl Sarah T. Her beloved father passed away on Friday.
Here's to having another guardian angel on our side ...
I love you, Sister.
xoxo
Anna

Freedom Cry ... Deep Forest.

This has been one of my all-time favorite songs since college. Would listen to it before doing shows, as it gave me a sense of strength and peace. "Freedom Cry" by Deep Forest is an old Hungarian song that was modernized ... as most of Deep Forest's songs tend to be. The song is based on a man that was imprisoned, struggled, and was singing out from his cell to be relieved of his strife and set free:

Úgy hallgatja (j)az eso suhanását,
Engedjék el nem rig (rég?) látó (látott?) urá(hoz?)
Korán reggel feltekintek az égre
Kényes bugyli, (a) komisz kinyírt (kenyeret) levágják
Boci baja az is itt lett elvág(va).
Korán reggel feltekinték az égre,
Mé(g), kisangyalom!

Úgy hallgatja az eso suhanását,
Engedjék el nem rig (rég?) látó (látott?) urá(hoz?)
Korán reggel feltekintek az égre
Van egy madár, aki elhordja majd,
Mé(g), kisangyalom(?)

Bele vagyok elevenen temetve, elevenen
Sárgulok is, de nagyon,
Anyus, majd megírom, hogy mikor szabadulok,

Még, kisangyalom
Úgy hallgassa az esot,
Van egy madár, aki elhordja majd,

Még, kisangyalom

Korán reggel feltekintek a polcra,
Úgy hallgatja az eso(t)..
Van egy madár, aki elhordja, még
Engedjék el nem riglá (rég látott?).

Yes, I know: most all of us don't have a damned clue what I just wrote. The first time I heard this song, it sounded like a celebration song to me. I assumed it was such a song for years. It wasn't until later that I found out about the true meaning of the lyrics. After finding out what this aged song was based upon and reading the translation, it took on a totally different meaning. It was the perfect dichotomy. Both meanings make sense and the music perfectly reflects that to me.
Such an amazing old story.
xoxo
Anna

It's snowing in Charleston!!!!!

I can only imagine ending up there in a few weeks and going sledding past the palmetto trees.
xoxo
Anna

Belated Christmas visit ...

Not quite certain what happened to my new computer last night, but I've finally (I think) figured out how to get these pics downloaded and posted. We had a great visit with Grammie and Grandaddy on Sunday. Got to open some great gifts ... many of which will bode us well when Silas and I make the big trip to SC/Atlanta. Flying with a four year old, when not prepared, can be a damned nightmare.
We ventured out into our new neighborhood of Mountlake Terrace and discovered that pretty much everything we need is right here ... and I mean EVERYTHING. All I have to say is that I'm glad that I'm not a gambler. "Cause I've got about 5 casinos within a 3 block radius and things could have gotten nasty. Well ... I'm not a gambler at the present moment, at least.
We're beginning to settle in quite nicely. Still have most of our shit to get out of the old house. But, I've moved the dogs up here so they can be settled by the time we are officially "in."
My only complaint is that damned commute. It still perplexes me: The Seattle Driver. I've no clue what is going on with the left lane addiction in people that tend to drive more slowly than the rest. But, it drives me bat shit crazy! There will be a line of, like, 20 cars going 30 MPH in a 40 MPH zone ... all being passed on the right side. It's like they are in Olympic training for the damned Funeral Procession Event. Maddening, I say.
Ahhhhh ... change. Never been a fan.
But, as they say "once one door closes, another opens."
xoxo
Anna

Stats are bullshit...

From Ehow.com:

Stage 3A
# When receiving a diagnosis of Stage 3A breast cancer, a woman likely has a tumor that measures up to 5 cm in diameter. In addition, the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes in the armpit. The cancer in the lymph nodes has likely joined together and/or is attached to other structures within the breast, armpit and collarbone region. Another diagnosis garnering a Stage 3A diagnosis includes a tumor that is larger than 5 cm but has spread only to the lymph nodes in the armpits. Stage 3A breast cancer carries with it a five-year survival rate of 51 to 56 percent.


Sooooooooo ... it is being said, online, that I, basically, am looking at the "fact" that there is a 50% chance that I will die within 5 years of my diagnosis. Wow. I gotta say, when I was first diagnosed, I read stats like that and nearly shit myself. It crushed me. I would lay in bed at night when the house was quiet and think about my son and how he'd never know how much I love him. I'd think about monumental happenings in his life that I would never witness. I thought of him calling another woman "Mama." I thought about the fact that I had never owned a home or a horse or a salon or a "classic" car ...
But, the years have passed. And I have have been so fortunate to meet so many people "in the know" ... in the cancer world.
I have learned that these stats don't take into account all the new meds that have been out for the past 5+ years. And, I have been fortunate enough to be a candidate for quite a few of them.
Even if I was NOT a candidate for those meds or others that we will be blessed with in the future, I would not and never will accept the idea that I am a "stat." Never.
I urge everyone that knows someone that is dealing with a chronic illness to educate themselves about these "stats" and the fact that many/most of them are WAY too old to hold true, as the they don't include new and fabulous treatments.
Just a thought.
xoxo
Anna