My Powerful Car, California Sunrises, Back In The UCSFMC, Thank You For The Energy, Daily Yoga, Everything Is Good, An Army May Be Likened To Water

Aloha,

I drove back from San Francisco last night. I love my powerful, black, fine, German automobile with the Bose Stereo and heated leather seats.

I stayed this week in Lake Wildwood, California. I was fortunate to see a few beautiful California sunrises over the rolling Sierra Nevada foothills.

I took two blood tests yesterday at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center (UCSFMC). One was a pre-taking my clinical trial drug blood test. I then took my drugs after the RN validated with a pharmacist that the drugs I was taking were really the drugs in the clinical trial. Four other blood tests were for some genetic research and “normal” blood labs. I then took some written tests and met with my oncologist Dr. Chang and her nurse, Anne.

I felt a little apologetic for a moment. My father, his friend, and Dr. Chang all agreed that I take too long, and I am more descriptive than necessary when explaining how things work and why I do things. I was explaining why I put my Weekly Pill Case with Daily Doors in a zip lock baggy. I do this because even if a daily pill door opens unintentionally, the pills remain in the bag and not scattered in a parking lot or in carpet fibers. You see their point? The baggy was my Mom’s idea.

OK, Dr. Chang was listening to me breathe as I was laughing and trying to defend my verbosity. I felt so bad knowing that I unintentionally blasted Dr. Chang’s ears with a burst of laughter. Hopefully Dr. Chang will not try to get me back by prescribing me something that will make me vote in November. Dr. Chang and I are very grateful for the positive energy you all have been channeling to me in the form of prayers, well wishes, kind thoughts, and kind deeds. Thank you for the energy and I am enjoying the benefits.

I was doing my daily yoga and thought of you all and thought I would share. My daily yoga can be, and is generally quite simple. It involves me engaging the bandhas when I walk to get a Florida Orange Juice not from concentrate from the refrigerator. I practice my breathing and actually seem to become lighter with good breathing practice. I became very good at breathing when I busted up my back and ribs last June. I also practice my mantra when my head is cluttered with "noise" and I want to concentrate.

Everything is good. Clinically, I have no symptoms of active tumor growth. I have no neurological symptomatic adverse reactions to the surgery, radiation or to the chemo therapy. None of my other body systems seem to be adversely effected by this experience.

I am healthy other than the hair loss, peripheral nerve damage on the right side of my forehead, and some lymph swelling due to poor drainage lateral to my right eye.. These symptoms should be temporary according to my doctors. One of my oncologists has shared that some adverse effects can show up later but my tolerance of the initial therapy is a good prognosis for future effects of treatment. I like and trust my docs.

Weaknesses and Strengths #27, "Sun Tzu The Art of War".
"Now an army may be likened to water, for just as flowing water avoids the heights and hastens to the lowlands, so an army avoids strength and strikes weakness."

Peace and Love,
Jack Burton
"When I was younger, I could remember everything whether it happened or not. Lately, I can only remember things that never happened." Mark Twain