A Road Trip, Reviewed

After spending some time at the Duke Chapel, we bid farewell to North Carolina and shipped ourselves up north -- through Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and to my mother-in-law’s home in New Jersey. Tomorrow, we head into New York City, to reunite with the city where we first greeted the New Year. The cancer-killing cross-country trip hasn’t stopped, but while we drove today, I took time to stop and reflect on the incredible adventure that began only a week ago.

First of all, it’s hard to believe that it’s only been a week since we left Los Angeles for the East Coast. It seems like our road trip has lasted for weeks and weeks, but I guess filling one’s days with so much culture, adventure, and fun makes the days seem richer and longer than a mere 24 hour period. I’ve packed a lot of living in to this past week, that’s for sure.

Since we left L.A. last Friday, we’ve lived and loved life in the following places:

• The Grand Canyon, Arizona;
• Albuquerque, New Mexico;
• Santa Fe, New Mexico;
• Amarillo, Texas;
• Oklahoma City, Oklahoma;
• Little Rock, Arkansas;
• Nashville, Tennessee; and
• Durham, North Carolina.

We passed through grassy flatland and National forests, mountain ranges and snowy hillsides, red rock mesas and frozen over rivers. We drove through snow, past tumbleweeds, over the Mississippi River, and under sunny skies. We ate delicious foods -- from green chile-infused dishes in New Mexico to a nut-based cheese platter in Oklahoma City to a sweet potato and black bean stew in Durham. I did some boxing, lifted some weights, and took long walks. I marveled at the beauty of the Grand Canyon, luxuriated at the spa in Santa Fe, and screamed my lungs out with glee at the Duke game. I spent countless, fun-filled hours in the car with my parents and hubby and puppy, visited with my friends all across the country, and kept in touch with my buddies back home via email and text. I wrote my posts and read my surgery prep book, took all my vitamins, got all my Lovenox shots, and managed to get at least 8 hours of sleep every night. And I spent time with my hero, Coach K, and his wonderful family.

How much living can you pack into one week? If you think that this past week was eventful, just wait for next week, when Dr. Sugarbaker and I give cancer the final deathblow.

But before I turn my attentions entirely to my upcoming surgery, it’s time to commune with the city that never sleeps.

A Perfect Day at Duke

I knew that today would be awesome. Walking around West Campus, grabbing some Chick Fil-A (don't worry, I didn't eat the chicken nuggets - I did, however, have the waffle fries), shopping at the Bryan Center, enjoying the Duke Gardens, and capping off the day with a Duke basketball game

But Duke in super-HDTV is more than awesome. It is magical, brilliant, and truly unforgettable. And that's what today was. 

Being on campus, like I said yesterday, was a homecoming. I walked around campus today, soaking in all the sights and sounds and remembering how truly special my time at Duke was and continues to be. The nostalgia and happiness I felt translated into my going a little crazy at the Duke store, buying a new hat and a new shirt and a new sweatshirt. While I was on my little shopping spree, the National Championship game from last year was playing on loop and I took a moment to watch the final seconds of the game - when we became National Champions for the fourth time. The same lump in my throat and wave of pride that I felt when I watched Duke win that game in person in Indianapolis last spring came back quickly. I'm proud to love an organization that not only stands for excellence and integrity and all that good stuff, but also wins often and in dominant fashion. It's the best of both worlds, really - you're proud of your team for the people they are but you're also proud because they're damn good at winning. That's the kind of pride I hope to inspire in my loved ones, to be honest. 

After a few hours of hanging out on campus, it was time to get ready for the game. We had our pre-game meal at Blue Corn Cafe - black bean and sweet potato stew followed by vegetarian fajitas for me - and got to Cameron Indoor Stadium about 40 minutes before game time. As we walked to our seats (Coach K and his assistant, Gerry, hooked us up), I couldn't believe where we were about to watch the game. Center court, right behind the folks who manage the shot clock (which had some troubles tonight) and all the A/V stuff. So essentially, we were seated front and center - the kind of seats that a Duke student would’ve spent at least a half dozen hours in line waiting for. I was a kid in a candy store, rockin' out to the Duke band, watching our guys warm up, harassing the Boston College players, and getting my game face on. Being a Cameron Crazie is serious business to me - the guys are out there trying to win, and I want to do my part to help them along, whether it's cheering them on, trying to get into an opposing player's head, or doing a little crowd management by keeping the opposition's fans in check (which I really had to do during that National Championship game last year since the crowd was about 90% Butler fans and 10% Duke folks). Being a Duke fan isn't for the passive or the fainthearted. 

As the opening buzzer was minutes away from sounding, my hero, Coach K, appeared. He walked over to our bench, and just before he started doing his thing, he scanned the crowd, made eye contact with me, and gave me a nod and a thumbs up. My heart skipped a beat and I smiled and raised my hand. I could hardly believe it. Did that just happen? I turned to Will and asked, "Was Coach just looking at me? Was that thumbs up for me?" He laughed at me - "Yes! Of course!" You should've seen my face. Pure happiness.

The game itself was brilliant. Our guys played extremely well and with a lot of heart. Nolan was awesome, as usual, leading the team in points and assists and making me scream my lungs out during this one play where he stole the ball at mid-court and flew in for a decisive slam dunk. All of our other guys played great, too. There were many, many moments that had me jumping out of my seat, howling with joy. We beat Boston College by 16.

After the game, Gerry came by and took me to see Coach K. But before that, I spent some time with my old buddy and classmate (and Coach K's daughter) Jamie, along with Mrs. K. We talked about my upcoming surgery, the blog, chemo, my philosophy on cancer and doctors, and the game. I loved catching up with Jamie and Mrs. K, and moments later, the man himself joined us. Coach K asked me questions about my surgery and gave me some advice on being a competitor but taking it easy on my body immediately after surgery. He's pretty much the only person I'd actually listen to on the "take it easy" advice front, and I was humbled and grateful by Coach's pre-surgery coaching. After several minutes, we all said our goodbyes with hugs all around, and I left Cameron with my three nurses and Jamie, almost walking on air. Honestly, you'd be hard pressed to find a more lovely group of people than the Krzyzewskis. Incredibly wonderful people

As if that wasn't enough, as we walked to Jamie's car (she drove us to our car, which was in some far off parking lot), we ran into Nolan signing autographs and taking pictures. My mom asked if I wanted to take a picture with Nolan and I said no because I'm a little shy around Nolan. But then Jamie said, "Yeah, you should! Isn't he your boy?" I smiled and answered, "Well, he is my favorite."

That's all I needed to say. Jamie went right up to Nolan and asked him to take a picture with me, then added that I was the president of our senior class and the big woman on campus back in the day. We joked around about how much Duke has changed and improved since the dark ages of 2004, and Nolan and I took a pretty cute picture together. 

I polished off the day by polishing off a veggie burrito at Cosmic Cantina, trying to let the awesomeness of my day sink in. It still hasn't. It was an unbelievably incredible day, and one that I’ll never, ever forget.

In conclusion, I think it’s safe to say that your pal WunderGlo lives a charmed life. Never let some silly thing like a cancer diagnosis ever convince you otherwise.

D-U-K-E

You know that feeling when you get home after a long time away? Your favorite spots are just as you remembered them, all the good memories come rushing back, and you're feeling at once connected to your past but just as excited for your future because you're home, and everything just feels right.

Tonight, we arrived at Duke. And I came back home.

My first stop was one of my favorite spots on campus, a place that represents excellence, passion, and pride: Cameron Indoor Stadium, the home court of Duke Basketball. My friend Rosie snagged us tickets to the women's game, and although we got there pretty late, we managed to watch our girls whip Clemson like I whip cancer. Duke won 92-37. Very impressive. I shouldn't fail to note that while we watched the game, my friend Junior and his girlfriend Christine sat in our rental car and watched Winston. How nice is that? I know Winston is a cute dog, but man - I've got some great friends.

After the game, we ran to our hotel, dropped off our luggage and Winston, and met up with Rosie, Junior, Christine, and my other Duke buddy Jessica at one of the most delicious dining establishments in Durham -- Cosmic Cantina. We chomped on delicious burritos (mine was filled with beans, rice, and guacamole), caught up on old times, came to the collective realization that we weren't as young as we used to be (it's been TEN YEARS since we were freshmen in college), and had lots and lots of laughs.

On the way home, at around midnight EST, Will took us on a driving tour of Duke's campus. We first went to East Campus and stopped briefly at Lilly Library (where lots of late-night paper-writing was done) and our freshman dorm, the mighty and legendary Giles. Serving as the president of Giles during our freshman year will always be one of my favorite leadership positions.

We kept cruising around campus and eventually, we made that familiar turn down Chapel Drive, making our way to West Campus and the gorgeous Duke Chapel. I had to fight back a tear or two as I approached it all. This was Duke -- the place where I learned, loved, partied, studied, stressed out, blissed out, and became the person I am today.

All in all, it was a perfect evening. I'm filled with energy, gratitude, and happiness. I'm blessed to be a Blue Devil, plain and simple. Could it possibly get any better? Funnily enough, I've got a sneaking suspicion that it could...and it will.

Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Tennessee: Non-stop Fun

Our day has been filled with fun and adventure and still hasn't ended. I'm writing this post from the car, about 90 miles outside of Nashville, at 1:30am in whatever time zone I'm in at the moment. It's snowing outside (I like to call it a wintry mix, but it pretty much looks like just snow out there at this point), we're rockin' out to a little Gloria Gaynor ("I Will Survive" is a perfect song for me these days, isn't it?), and we've had an awesome day. Allow me to review.

I did a little research on the Internet last night on Oklahoma City's fine restaurants, hoping for a vegan one or one that had a handful of decent vegan-friendly options. What I found blew my socks off. 105degrees is a raw, organic, vegan, gluten-free restaurant, shop, and culinary school that serves up completely delicious, unique, and diverse meals that are oh so good for you. We headed in around noon and I started salivating upon reviewing the menu. I ordered the kale apple celery lemon parsley juice (a cancer warrior like me needs to make juicing a way of life), the cheese platter as an appetizer (the cheese was all nut-based and insanely good -- one traditional cheddar, the other blended with red chile, and the other spiced with basil), the caprese salad (nut-based mozzarella, of course), and the reuben sandwich (portobello mushroom, sauerkraut, and vegan thousand island). My dad got the portabello sliders which I snuck multiple bites of, and I ordered a sinfully delicious smoothie to go -- the Oaxaca, which consisted of dark chocolate, almond milk, bananas, and thai chili. We washed everything down with a shot of wheatgrass. Are you kidding me, Oklahoma City? One of the best and healthiest meals I've ever eaten.

As we left the restaurant, my old pal from Duke, Evan, swung by and welcomed us to Oklahoma City. Evan is a great guy, and it was awesome to spend a little time with him (and give him a WunderGlo bracelet).

We knew we were off to a bit of a late start (ok, a seriously late start) given the fact that we had over 650 miles to traverse today, but somehow that didn't deter my three nurses from pulling off I-40 to hit up a casino just outside of Oklahoma City. They joked that they were going to pull over, and I totally didn't believe them and kept my nose in my book, but lo and behold, I felt the car slow down, I looked up, and there we were. Firelake Casino. We spent only 30 minutes there, I lost only $20, and it enhanced our already exciting day, so no complaints from WunderGlo on this one.

We cruised out of Oklahoma City without incident -- well, actually, there was one incident. The highway turned into one lane, and it created a pretty serious back-up for about five minutes. I actually got out of the car and stood on I-40 which was fun and something I'd never done before. Moments later, another motorist came up to our car and told us that there had been a helicopter crash up ahead. A HELICOPTER CRASH?! My three nurses were taken aback, but I was not moved. "You guys, it's not true. Trust me," I said after the man returned to his car. Minutes later, the traffic cleared up and we were on our way. We never saw a helicopter on, near, or within eyeshot of I-40. I'm going to go ahead and say that my gut instinct was right. That guy was telling us a tall tale.

Our time in Arkansas was marked with the most wonderful hospitality from a native Los Angeleno. My friend from high school, Jennifer, and her brother Jonathan welcomed us into their home. Jen ran out and got us some delicious vegan pizza (tomato sauce, artichokes, kalamata olives, and mushrooms - yum!) and a Greek salad (sans feta cheese), we watched the State of the Union together (Why is Boehner always on the verge of tears? Was Justice Ginsberg falling asleep during Barack's speech? How much do I love Hillary Clinton?), and we refueled our minds, bodies, and spirits before hitting the road again. I only wish I could've stayed in Little Rock longer but, as I've felt with all of the places we've seen during this cross-country trip, I'll make it a point to come back soon.

And now, here I am. Blogging from the backseat, with a snoozing Yorkshire Terrier and husband beside me, looking at the snow that lines the highway and listening to my iPod on shuffle. I'm officially on the other side of the Mississippi River, content from a full day of fun, and going full steam ahead, as strong as ever.

A Happy Tummy and a Happy Heart

I’ll tell you one thing about Santa Fe (besides the fact that the greatest spa in the world is located there) -- the food there is g-o-o-d. Better than good, really. Really, really delicious.

After my uber-relaxing time at Ten Thousand Waves yesterday, we grabbed dinner at Maria’s New Mexican Kitchen, a restaurant that makes its own green chile on site and sticks to the recipes that its founder (her name is Maria, as you could have probably guessed) created fifty years ago.

Dinner was out of control delicious. I had vegetarian fajitas, and chowed down on them with Maria’s homemade flour tortillas. Although I generally avoid white bread/pasta/rice like the plague (these things break down into sugar, so they are almost as bad for me and any other cancer patient as eating candy), I had to try this tortilla. Holy cow, people. Incredible. I am happy to report that I used extreme discipline and didn’t even eat the whole thing.

Breakfast was even better than dinner, if you can believe it. We headed to Café Pasqual’s, and had a green chile-laden feast. My mom and I each had the makeshift vegan huevos motuleños  (we had tofu instead of eggs), which consisted of a corn tortilla topped with black beans, tofu, peas, cilantro, banana, and green chile. Spicy and delicious, I had multiple glasses of water with my yummy meal.

The culinary hits kept coming. As we crossed through Texas, we grabbed some incredibly good Mexican food in Amarillo at a restaurant called El Tejavan. Homemade guacamole, homemade corn tortillas, and beans and rice makes WunderGlo’s belly happy and healthy.

On the way to Oklahoma City, our destination city for the evening, I made some progress on a book I’m reading in preparation for surgery called Prepare for Surgery, Heal Faster: A Guide of Mind-Body Techniques. The first main subject it tackles is the process of relaxation -- how you can relax your body and mind to find an inner peace and tranquility that will heavily aid you in post-op recovery.  Part of this relaxation process, and one that stuck out to me, is to focus on the feeling of love, of a person or a pet or of nature or anything, really. The book says, and I quote, “The antidote is love. It is profoundly healing emotionally and physically.” The book goes on to discuss a study that supports the notion that the feeling of love helps supercharge the immune system. The book invites and coaches the reader to think about loved ones and to let your feelings of love flow freely through your heart.

Focusing on love, ladies and gents, is probably one of the easiest things for me to do -- and its one of the things that my family, friends, and all of you help me do every day, every hour, and every minute. I’m always grateful for the love I receive from my loved ones, but now we’ve got some support for the fact that that love is actually a part of the fuel that will help me beat the hell out of cancer and get back to fighting shape double quick. If this book is even halfway right about this love leads to relaxation leads to quicker recovery time equation, your pal WunderGlo will bounce back from Sugarbaker’s surgery in no time.

After Day 4 of my cross-country cancer-killing trip, I’ve got a happy tummy and a happy heart, and I'm more ready to face down "the cancer" at my February 3rd surgery showdown than ever before.