Archive: November 2006

Last weekend I planted 22 lots of seed. All were asiatics, and most were tango at least on one side. Last year I started planting seeds mid-November and as a result transplanted almost inch-sized bulbs in September this year.

Got more to plant next week or so...

Planting more lily seeds today. 3 Lots from Joe H, and more of my own.

Expecting approx 100 tango seeds from Holland from Jan de Vries.

Where the heck do I put all of them? 

A friend is undergoing tests for vaginal bleeding. She has a positive attitude, but I know she is concerned. Hopefully she will know more next week.

Dang those uncertaincies.  

On a positive note, Bill seems to do well after his operation.

Sitting here looking outside at the gently falling snow, and a woodpecker visiting one of the bird feeders, there is a sense of peace. I almost feel like going out and putting up Christmas lights, but since the cancer and heart issues, I have not bothered. I am conserving mental and physical energy for those things that are really worthwhile.

Like the dinner we had at church last night. Pastor Morris is leaving for Vancouver after 10 years of dedicated service, so the dinner was in his and his wife Lucinda's honour. We shared a table with a lady from South Africa with such an engaging smile, as well as a young woman who spent years all over the world, lately in Israel. She's been here in Canada for two months and she misses the desert.

Had a date with my wife this evening. She is usually on the road a lot, but not today. With -25C (approx -15F) degrees, it was nice to stay in.

We decided to bring out the stone grill. A stone grill is basically a piece of granite that is heated and then you cook your food on it at the table. You fry meats (chicken, beef, veal, small meatballs) on the "stone" and dip them in special sauces. Small metal holders slide underneath the stone and hold veggies such as onion, peppers, and mushrooms, smothered in garlic butter.

French bread is a must and more garlic (or other herb) butter for those slices.

Salt is not needed as there is enough in the spices and sauces.

A dry wine is suggested to cut the fat and cholestorol. Indeed, if you are on a diet, check what you will be taking in.

Typically, this is to entertain or build relationships. You are seated at the table for an hour to an hour and a half, so you better have something to talk about.

After dinner, we put on a movie "The Eye of the Needle" with Donald Sutherland. Good flick to let the food digest with. 

I promised a follow-up but not much to report yet. Apparently there is a polyp in the uturus that is causing the bleeding.

She is waiting for a call from the hospital for a D&C. 

The seeds I planted from Joe H 2 weeks ago, started to come up today.

Received approx 100 tango seeds from Jan de Vries in Holland yesterday, and planted them today. 

A number of people, including some medical practitioners, have pooh-poohed my notion of chemo-brain. Today a Japanese study says "Chemotherapy promotes a short-term, but apparently reversible, shrinkage of key brain areas."

Partial quote:

These changes could explain the impairment of thinking, memory, and focus that many cancer patients complain of after treatment, a Japanese research team has found.

The changes are marked by a temporary dimunition of certain brain areas that help people concentrate, plan, problem-solve, execute, and remember. This shrinkage can bring on a general cognitive malaise often called "chemo-brain."

However, these reductions in brain matter were no longer evident three and four years after chemotherapy, the Japanese team reported Monday in the online edition of Cancer.

"These findings can provide new insights for future research to improve the quality of life of cancer patients," concluded a team led by Dr. Masatoshi Inagaki of the Research Center for Innovative Oncology, part of the National Cancer Center Hospital East in Chiba, Japan.

The current study both supports and contradicts prior research into chemo-brain.

For example, a study released last month by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, suggested that chemo-brain is linked to brain blood-flow changes that can endure for a decade or more.

Time for a new desktop computer for photo work. I am finding that I'm not very productive with 6mp images which will only get worse if I move to a higher mega-pixel camera next year.

Storage is also a problem with my current equipment. The new system comes with 500 mb, and can be expanded to 1 terabyte with an additional drive.

Should be here in 10 days or so. 

Almost the same thing is happening as happened in March this year. Had to reboot a number of times today to get the laptop going. However, FrontPage does not want to load. Safe mode, repairs, re-install, nothing works.

Before I muck around more, time for critical backups.

I will likely not be available much...