Big Plans for the New Year

Just had a delightful chat with Ilse Sugarbaker -- my surgeon's wife and the lady in charge of the whole Sugarbaker operation -- about my upcoming date with the Sugarbakers. My pre-surgery consult is set in stone now -- January 3rd at 1pm at Washington Hospital Center (where the "pick it out/pour it in" magic will take place). We're going to discuss my CT scan results, the ins and outs of the surgery, and get a good look at each other. Ilse already said that I sound "above and beyond" the normal patient in terms of physical strength and fitness, and I look forward to proving her right when she actually sees me.

But before I meet the man (and the woman behind the man) who is going to save my life and make me a cancer-annihilating queen, I'm going to have a little New Year's fun...in New York City. Where else, right? 

I, along with my other three (plus Winston the Yorkie), will land in DC on December 30th, and will truck over to NYC on New Year's Eve. Exact plans for that night have not been made, but they will include a lot of friends and a lot of parties.  

The really, really exciting stuff happens on New Year's Day. Allow me to explain. 

On my birthday last week, I texted my best friend Rhett (who lives in NYC) to let him know that we'd likely be in the Big Apple for New Year's Eve. He called moments later with incredible news. He managed to find five, front row center tickets to Laura Linney's Broadway play, Time Stands Still -- at half price, no less. You know how I feel about Laura Linney, right? 

I had already planned to get out to NYC to see my favorite actress (tied with Meryl Streep, of course) do her thing on the stage, but I hadn't expected this stroke of luck. On the first day of 2011, I'm going to have the best possible seat to the matinee performance of Time Stands Still in one of my favorite cities in the world (tied with Los Angeles and London, of course). I can't wait.

But, I must wait, and I'd gladly wait -- because every day is a beautiful one, and every moment this WunderGlo walks the earth is worth soaking up and savoring.

Chemo Round 5

It took some effort to get my head in the zone for this round of chemo. After all, I've spent the last several days partying it up with my friends and family, receiving loads of love and presents, and indulging in red velvet birthday cake. It's like telling a kid to go back to school after the best, most exciting summer vacation ever.

But I went back to school today and rocked it.

Got up, took a shower (I don't get another one until Wednesday because of my trusty bag o'), and started focusing on the task at hand like an athlete preparing for a game. I wolfed down a healthy breakfast, listened to "All the Above" on the way to USC Norris, and, by the time I got my blood drawn, I was ready to go. 

I had a couple of guests for this round of chemo -- my out-of-town buddies, Junior and Rhett. It's always fun to have an entourage, and I've had a pretty consistent one since my time at Good Samaritan. That's probably an understatement as far as the hospital is concerned -- Good Samaritan was like a club during those two weeks I was in the hospital, with a line of awesome folks to see me and the notion of "visiting hours" completely ignored. Ahh, memories.

I got the best nurse today (the same one from my last round), who deftly accessed my port and sweetly called me young and beautiful while I guzzled up my chemo drugs. I'm pretty sure I've had the kindest, most wonderful people in the world as my caretakers during this whole cancer-killing extravaganza. Another lucky break for WunderGlo. 

Feeling incredible -- totally energized after my Benadryl-induced nap and a delightful burrito delivered to me by the hubby. Today marked my last round of Avastin, one of my chemo drugs, until after my surgery. I've had a blast with it, and I look forward to having it back in the ol' bloodstream post-surgery. Can't believe I've already finished 5 rounds of chemo -- time flies when you're having fun, right? I know it's hard to believe, but it really has been fun. Dr. Lenz is hilarious, chemo is pretty easy, and beating cancer makes me smile.

Well, my dear readers, I'm off to the gym. Time to teach this cancer who's boss (as if it didn't already know).

News about my New Year's Eve plans tomorrow. They are super-HDTV exciting, so stay tuned! 

Week in Review/Week in Preview

Honestly, I don't see how the weeks can keep getting better and better, but they do. Had an unbelievably awesome birthday week, and looking forward to blazing through Round 5 of chemo next week. I'm a very happy camper.

Week in Review

• Birthday week!! Kicked off the celebrations with a little scary movie night in the theater of my building (Sky Lofts) with buds Aymee and Anna, Will, and my mom. Watched Wrong Turn 2 (gory and fun), then the thought-provoking, Laura Linney-starring The Exorcism of Emily Rose.
• Disneyland on my actual birthday (the 8th) -- nothing like smelling that water on the Pirates of the Caribbean Ride and taking the wildest ride in the wilderness on Big Thunder Mountain.
• Settled down and rejuvenated myself post-Disneyland with acupuncture with Mary Ellen and a massage at Cariño Massage
• Had a birthday dinner with the family (and Rhett, Tim, and Aymee) at Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill at L.A. Live. Wolfgang himself was in the house, and he took a picture with the birthday girl.
• Had my birthday bash on Saturday at the O Hotel in downtown L.A. I had a blast seeing everyone (I had friends from elementary school, high school, Duke, Stanford, and O'Melveny in attendance) and telling stories (mainly about how awesome Coach K is and how easy chemo is). The location was sweet, the food was delicious, and the red velvet cake I ordered from Lark Cake Shop in Silverlake was divine. We capped off the night with a little breakfast at IHOP. Then I opened my presents (guess who got an iPad?!) and fell asleep around 4am with a big smile on my face.
• Spent Sunday watching my best friend, Nick, conduct his hand bell choir students and advanced band students as they played holiday songs at the Orange County Museum of Art. After the concert, my crew and I played with some hand bells, saw Nick's school and classroom, and had a lovely dinner at Le Creperie in Long Beach. I'm not sure if there's such a thing as laughing too much in a given day, but we pushed that limit if there is one.
• Hit the weights at Educogym this week. Pushing myself a little harder these days and enjoying the challenge.
• Had a great time with my awesome friends who came from out of town to celebrate my birthday with me -- big shout-outs to Junior, Rhett, Jesse, and Morgan. I love hanging out with you guys!
• Got an awesome birthday email from Coach K which made my heart very, very happy -- seriously, this man is the greatest. 
• Took all my vitamins, got all my Lovenox shots, continued to impress in the bathroom department if you know what I mean, and continued dominating cancer. 

Week in Preview

• Chemo Round 5 -- primed and ready to keep kicking some major tail.
• Spending quality holiday time with my OMM people -- our annual Day of Giving is on Tuesday (we do volunteer work for a specific charity during the day and party down at night) and our O'Melveny Latino Attorney dinner is on Thursday night. I'll be performing at the karaoke portion of our Day of Giving party, along with my singing partner, Tim (who actually has a good voice, as opposed to my average one). I make up for my lack of stellar singing abilities with bravado, though.
• Going to a screening of The Kids Are All Right with Aymee on Wednesday night -- Q&A with the director after the show. It's good to have friends that are fancy-pants Hollywood types.
• Acupuncture with Mary Ellen on Friday -- where will the needles go this time? Excited for a great session, as always.
• Hitting the gym every day this week for Project Gain Muscle. Need to focus on eating protein instead of birthday cake this week.
• Keep working on the "Love Life" paintings, the book, and the blog. 
• Take all my vitamins, get all my Lovenox shots, drink more water than last week, get back to eating super healthily (it was my birthday week! I deserved to splurge!), and continue making cancer look like the little punk that it is.

Have a wonderful week, everyone! WunderGlo loves you and appreciates all the well wishes.

WunderGlo Party = Great Success!!!

More pictures to come soon, but I just wanted to write a quick post to let you know that my birthday party was incredibly awesome. A massive thank you to all my friends and family that made my night so beautiful. It was, by far, the best birthday bash I've ever had. I'm the luckiest 29-year old that ever lived.

The Calm Before the Storm (of Awesomeness)

A wonderfully kind woman is painting my toenails right now, and, in moments, I'll be off to a soothing 75 minute massage. This is what I call the calm before the storm...of awesomeness.

After that massage, I'll be off to the races. My best friend Rhett lands around 5pm, I've got a family birthday celebration dinner at 7:30 in downtown L.A. (family includes blood relations as well as Rhett, Tim, and Aymee). After that, my great pal from Duke, Junior, will be arriving at my door all the way from Durham. Tomorrow, my friends Morgan and Jesse will be touching down from San Francisco, and then -- the party.

The projected attendance for the party is pretty staggering -- about 80 of my closest friends will be there, and I cannot wait to see each and every person. Being with people, especially my loved ones, is incredibly energizing. I've got a feeling that that energy will be even more striking this weekend, when so many of my favorite people will be all together and in celebratory spirits.

Party stuff is finalized, and I've even chosen the after party location (the 24-hour IHOP across the street) as well as the after-after party location (my place, which is only two blocks away). My dress is picked, I've set aside plenty of time to get gussied up, and the cake will be delivered at 8:30 tomorrow night. All I have left to do is enjoy the ride.

The fun, laughs, and love are going to be at an all-time high today and tomorrow. And in preparation (and to keep myself from getting too crazy-excited), I'm relaxing my body and spirit with a little pampering.

Tough life, right? I'll admit it: this cancer warrior lives a charmed life.