Nicole's Notes

I went to the doctor yesterday. Car wouldn't start because the cold zapped the battery or something. The doc gave me some stuff that's supposed to make the lips heal faster (GelClair) and some painkiller spray that's ten times stronger than the goop I was using before. They're going to change up my chemo regimen to once a week, every week, for 2.5 hours, and hope that's somehow better than 5 days in a row and then 3 weeks off (how it could be, I'm not sure, since it sounds like the dosage is the same). All the nurses reactions were the same, "Oh, you poor thing." Don't tell me I'm a poor thing, sign me up for a lip transplant! The doctor suggested I could have a new career as a ventriloquist, I'm becoming so adept at talking without moving my lips. Ha ha. Very funny. Gimme the painkillers, doc.

My Dad offered to fly down here to keep me company (Mom's visiting Grandma in Calgary) but I told him I'd only be tempted to talk (which hurts). He offered to just come down and hold my hand (c'mon everyone, "awww!"), but since I know he'd fidget like a 2 year old in need of a bathroom just sitting round here watching me heal (slightly more exciting than watching grass grow, but only because we've got a TiVo), I turned him down. I guess Toronto (where Dad is, for those of you who haven't been keeping track) has gone through a major cold snap (-38 with the windchill... at that temp, it doesn't matter if it's Fahrenheit or Celcius, it's just damn cold!) and random water mains (including the one on their street) have burst. Yuck. Makes my car issue look puny, eh? Anyone who makes fun of me for saying "eh?" can just shut up. I was tempted to edit the "eh" out, like I do mentally when I'm talking to American friends, but what the hell, I am Canadian and I have cancer so you can just fuck off. So there. Ha!

Sorry, I'm ravenously hungry and therefore a weensy bit testy. Jason has gone out to procure more of the insidious Carole Nelson Douglas books and a vanilla milkshake. I sent him to Kate's Mystery Books, one of the best places to find obscure mysteries that are out of print, or just not stocked elsewhere. The people there are really nice and able to recommend books that fit my taste. They'll even advise against books by authors I know, if they think that I won't like them. They also stock used books, which appeals to my (occasionally) frugal nature. Sure, I could go to the library, but considering I've procrastinated for over a year on getting a library card, what makes you think I'd get around to returning anything I checked out?

So I'll keep using the GelClair, and hope that my lips heal enough that I can return to work on Monday, or at least eat some normal food someday soon.