PET Scans and Prestonsburg Pics

I haven't been around much lately, I know.  I have been very busy at work.  Then an assistant who had been with me for 13 years "retired effective immediately."  No replacement is planned at present so those of us left must pick up the slack.  Two days after that, my wife, Ann, was diagnosed with breast cancer.  A bad week became much worse.   Learning out of the blue that you have breast cancer (or that someone you love has it) makes for a very stressful day.  And that stress continued to grow as we waited for the PET scan to make sure the cancer had not spread.  Finally, she had that scan on Thursday.  The oversimplified explanation of a PET scan is this:  one is injected with radioactive sugar; one sits quietly for an hour or so while the radioactive sugar is circulated through their body; the scan is performed and takes only a few minutes; one is advised to avoid close contact with pregnant women and young children for six hours because they are radioactive (?!); one goes to their oncologist to get the report.  This test is very accurate because, you see, cancer loves sugar.  Something to think about during your next dessert.  Or maybe something to try not to think about.

We were joined at the oncologist's office by our two children and Ann's friend, Liz.  It is hard to imagine a more stressful time than waiting on a PET scan result.  Unless it is, maybe, getting bad news from it.  Unfortunately I know first hand the stress of the wait.  Thankfully, I don't know the stress of getting bad news as the scan indicated that the cancer had not spread.  A cheer went up in the conference room.  After two weeks we could exhale.  The good news, as it turned out, was that my wife can now have surgery (a lumpectomy we anticipate), chemo and radiation.  Now you may think it is not a great day when that is the good news, but everything is relative, and for us it was a great day.  My wife has a blog about her journey, called Keeping You Abreast.

This morning, for the first time in weeks, I found the time and inspiration to go out for a Sunday morning outing.  It wasn't a particularly long one and I didn't return with a ton of great pictures, but it felt good.  It was a beautiful morning.

The Old Bridge

Birdbath Fly Trap

Out of Business