Song of the day (VW): If you don't know me - Harold Melvin and the Blue
Rainy, rainy Monday and blimin cold. After a lazy morning we decided to head into London to window shop...you know that's never just going to happen but never mind! We headed to Covent Garden and went to Peyton & Byrne for lunch. They make the best chelsea buns, one of the reasons for going but sadly by the time we got there they had sold out so I had to settle for the following....Daniel of course took the sensible option of the chicken & tarragon sandwich.
Photo no.231 - breakfast muffin...carrot, courgette and apple.
Photo no.232 - the best fig roll I've ever tasted accompanied by a good builder's brew!
Photo no.233 - rainy bank holiday....behind me is Claridges..yes I would like to go in but sadly didn't! Next time....
Given the weather, it was the perfect afternoon nipping in and out of stores in Covent Garden and Oxford Street...though I was barefoot on the way home was my shoes and socks were soggy...nice!
Photo no.234 - new slippers....yes I'm turning into an eighty year old.
As I had to pull effectively two Sunday night dinners out of the bag this week, I opted to go for a safe option this evening. Always refreshing and a winner!
Photo no.235 - homage to Jamie's 30 minute Asian-style salmon accompanied by a 0% beer.
What a great bank holiday Monday. I love days that turn out much better than predicted such as today. I'd lost most of the aches so that was a major bonus. Of course the c word is on my mind on a daily basis but it's only when I'm faced with a mirror that I'm really reminded of it, particularly at night time. This evening, I began to realise that DW is constantly faced with this when he sees me. For this reason, I think this whole journey must be worse for him than me. Part one will be over soon. I made a wish for my eyelashes this evening, as they are definitely thinning...hang in there guys not much longer to go!
Tuesday 27th May
Song of the day (VW): Just the two of us - Bill Withers
Song of the day (LH): Salvation - Gabrielle Aplin
I love Just the two of us. It always raises a smile when I remember the version in Austin Powers with Mini Me...look it up. For extra measure I should throw in their version of Hard Knock Life...love it!
After dropping Daniel off at the station, I made a cheeky return to bed. I clearly needed it as I slept until 11...oops! I had mixed feelings of being annoyed that I hadn't achieved what I wanted to that morning and then happiness of being able to sleep and knowing me body needed it. Oh well.
Time for a manicure, for medical reasons you understand. ; ) During my manicure the lady doing it was mentioning her sister had gone through treatment for Hodgkin's Lymphoma. We chatted around the 'need' for nail polish, wigs and the highs and lows of chemo. I asked how she was doing....she sadly passed away last year. It's stories like that this that are so humbling and sobering. I was full of admiration for this girl in front of me talking so openly about her sister's battle and at the same time felt a truck come and crush me...will this be ok? My gut reaction says yes, I hope it's right. I'm treating everyday with such positivity not doubting that this will be fought and we'll be able to get on with our life adventure but just sometimes I'm hit with the what if...I can't dwell on this too long as it's not constructive. There is a stark reality to this. All I can do is remain focussed on getting through the medical process and hope my body reacts appropriately.
Post manicure I was taken for a cuppa, which was no bad thing as it meant there was less chance of me smudging the good work done! It was great having a chat with LT and she's doing amazingly well, supported by her lovely cat Daisy who I got to meet.
I arrived at work slightly later than planned due to the tea. What should have been a quick cuppa hadn't been! Helen had arrived back safely from Washington and had very kindly brought me back some Reeses' pieces...amazing...though all foods such as this need to be banished at some point! Reeses' pieces are addictive due to their saltiness, so good but this week of food needed to get healthier! It was hilarious seeing Simon try Hershey's chocolate for the first time. I'm sorry my American friends, it is one of the most disgusting things you can eat. Knowing this made watching him try it even funnier...then him trying to lure others in. I love the Home BU, despite being a large team of 50ish there is such a good team spirit and undercurrent of everyone being supportive. I would thoroughly recommend it as a place to work.
Photo no.236 - prawn and tomato conchiglie - VW recipe
This recipe has evolved over time. The original recipe is for a vegetarian dinner but living with DW, the question is where is the meat... So I devised this recipe - roast tomatoes (baby plum tomatoes are the best), garlic, shallot, red chilli (leave the seeds in if you like it hot) in olive oil in the oven for 15 minutes. Put the pasta on (conchiglie). Five minutes before the end of cooking the pasta, add raw king prawns and white wine into the roasting dish and put it back into the oven for the remainder of the time, ensuring the prawns are cooked before serving. I hope you like it!
Despite it being the end of May, it was still so cold. To add some sunshine to our day we had peach melba for dessert...for once the healthy version, just the fruit!
Photo no.237 - summer on a plate
So just under 5 weeks to go until my last treatment. On the one hand it doesn't feel that far away but then 2 treatments to go still feels rather large. Though having said all this, this time next week there'll only be one treatment to go. Just keep going VW and stop thinking!!!
Wednesday 28th May
Song of the day (LH): If you were here tonight - Alexander O'Neil
Song of the day (VW): And the beat goes on - The Whispers
Additional song....Stay - Lisa Loeb
Whoops! I had woken up when Daniel got up and had planned to drive him to the station. Just a few minutes more snoozing while he's in the shower........I woke up to a silent bedroom and realised that it was 8.10 and DW had left me sleeping and walked to the station. Oops! Clearly I needed the sleep but I felt awful for not driving him.
Looking out of the window I could see a large van in one of my neighbours spaces...just before I had the chance to press send on a text to her, I received an outraged text from her...the van owner wasn't doing work on her property...we didn't know whose it was. It was so rude! I quickly showered and got ready as I knew Rachel was on her way out to confront the van man...midway putting my tights on on I saw her walking to the van with a mission in her stride...the next second my other neighbour Jini was running out of her house to support Rachel...damn tights get on faster! I ran around the house trying to find a headscarf and keys to get out the back of the house....then I was out there! The guy was obliging and moved but still...don't park in other people's parking spaces without asking. Early morning drama in the square! Parking remains one of the biggest bugbears!
A morning of blogging followed and then I went to have lunch with Rachel and Maddie! It's so wonderful having them a few doors away and get some cuddle therapy with Maddie. Work time! It was fairly quiet in the office this week due to half term, which meant I could knuckle down and get some real work done. Each fortnight between treatments I set myself a target of completing a piece of work, be it a marketing brief or something similar. This seems to work well. That evening I was chatting with fellow late night office club member, Helen Isaacs regarding the Race of Life. Helen has been so supportive throughout the last few months, from general chats, to free rounds of drinks at Hawksmoor (big thank you!). Helen's part of the Pandemonium Drummers, who most of you will have seen at the London Olympics opening ceremony or Henley festival last year. On the same morning as the day that I'm planning to run the Race of Life in Richmond, this fine thunder of drummers (what is the right collective noun?), they're playing at a 10k run in Wimbledon. Helen, very thoughtfully, had contacted Race for Life to see if they could play at the Race for Life in Richmond. Sadly, Race for Life have said no, but Helen thanks so much for the thought. It's truly wonderful!xx
A quick dinner on my own with the truckers at work and then it was time to get goingfor the gig I was going to. Chameleon at Norden Farm. My brother's girlfriend plays in the band, hence the reason for going to support her. It was a great gig and the music was fantastic. Norden Farm is a great venue and with a slightly better seating arrangement the studio could be transformed into a jazz club...Aside from some great original songs the band also did some amazing covers of Ain't Nobody (Chaka Khan) and People get ready (Curtis Mayfield). Tomorrow's song of the day is dedicated to their brilliant version of a great Portishead song. To check out their sound (you'll love it) click here -
https://soundcloud.com/electriccameleon
Photo no.238 - stolen photo from the Norden farm website....here's Natalie in action!
Photo no.239 - a bad sneaky shot of the set up in Norden Farm...with some round tables and small red table lights you could be at Ronnie Scott's!
Many of their song wanted me to get up out of my seat and dance away. Sadly no one else was, so it was just some chair bopping!
Aside from tiredness, I was feeling pretty darn good, probably due to the power of music. I'm inching closer to the finish line but there's also a realisation that this is only part 1 of 3, well 4 if you count the drug I have to take for the next 5 years but lets stick at 3 parts shall we, as I'm sure I can cope with a daily tablet. I think during week 3 of a cycle there's a slight impatience growing as you can tell about wanting to finish faster...I know this is a marathon but of course at times I wish it was more of a 100m race!
Thursday 29th May
Song of the day (VW): Glory Box - Portishead
Song of the day (LH): Fragile - Sting
A not so great sleep but remarkably I was feeling fairly alert, so got up and this morning actually took DW to the station. Achievement! ; ) I had a target to get some blog finished before someone came round for tea...they brought biscuits with them, which were swiftly replaced with a bowl of strawberries and the biscuits going home with them!!!
Post my tea date leaving I had some texts from them telling me it was a difficult day for them...music always makes me feel better, so what followed was a barrage of some happy tunes. I hope they helped.
Happy - Pharell
Little Bird - Annie Lennox
Keep your head up - Ben Howard
I'm coming out - Diana Ross
Moving on up - M People
Bump n Grind - R Kelly
The only way is up - Yazz
Reach for the stars - S Club 7
Superstition - Stevie Wonder
Move like Jagger - Maroon 5
Crazy - Seal
Roxanne - Police
The drugs don't work - The Verve ......yes they do or at least I'm hoping they are!
Kiss - Holly Valance
Respect - Aretha Franklin
We are the world - Michael Jackson
Let me blow ya mind - Eve & Gwen Stefani
That afternoon at the Haven I did a class on how to help prevent lymphoedema. At the Haven there is a beautiful stained glass window, so it was wonderful to do this class in front of something so magnificent. In terms of the exercises they were helpful and confirmed the exercises that I'm still doing from physio are right to help prevent this. Only 1 on 4 people get this post surgery, so lets hope I'm in the majority. One exercise we learnt was called the breath of joy. I would recommend this to anyone who needs a deep breath moment...you raise both arms to the side with your palms facing up, taking a deep breath as you do so and then rotate the arms and bring them down as you exhale. Very calming.
Post this session I had time for a quick green juice (no takeaway bottles available, so good for the bank balance) and some lunch. Then it was time to go to John Lewis towers to have a well overdue catch up with many friendly faces and also send a true treasure all the very best for his retirement. Naturally, there was some apprehension about going as this was the first time that I see the majority of people since February and the news it brought. Clearly there was no need but these things can't be controlled. After a quick tea with Lisa P, I walked down to my old team and was greeted by a massive wave and big beaming smile from Meera 'Slinky' Solanki! It was the best greeting and closely followed by the rest of the team that I had the pleasure of working and spending many evenings in bar 171 with. Disruption to the quiet office environment achieved! ; ) I love all of you guys and really need to see you more often as it's so much fun! Next time I'll be able to drink and we need some karaoke! xxx
A swift half or two later (mine was coke) we all headed to the main man's party. Glen Fowler you are a true legend, having worked in JL for 36 years. Some of the stories from the past were incredible to hear and I feel truly privileged to have worked with you and your infamous tracing paper! Glen was also so sweet when we got married as he arranged a special dinner for us for our honeymoon down in Cornwall at this amazing B&B. It had a dining room which was like a stone hut in the garden, aptly named The Shack. We had a memorable dinner and met some wonderful people. The premise is that up to 8 people share dinner together around the same table. We didn't stay there but would like to at some point (http://www.bosue.co.uk) and have another amazing dinner. Glen, you're a real gem. Good luck for the next part of the Fowler adventure, no doubt it will be full of laughter and good times.
Photo no.240 - the main man leaves the stage....
Photo no.241 - the man of the moment!
Not knowing what my energy levels were going to be like, I'd arranged for DW to pick me up at 8pm to get some food and then head home. As it turned out I wanted to party for longer! D'oh! Still some time with my favourite man, what's not to like. He'd had some time to consider what he wanted for dinner so off to Polpo we went.
Driving up the Mall, the flags were out....it's stunningly beautiful most of the year but when the flags are out, it's so special.
Photo no.242 - British pomp and glory
So there is a trend that the best (affordable) restaurants don't take reservations so you know you're likely to be in for a wait, particularly if you show up at 8.30. So a 30 minute wait was on the cards...not too bad all things considered. For those who haven't been Polpo, it's a bàcaro, serving Venetian tapas. Personally I prefer Brindisa but tonight was DW's choice. I consulted with DW and he felt that I was able to have a glass of wine. Yay! You may think this was an odd choice but I opted for a red Lambrusco, no not the sweet drink of the 1980s but the real Italian stuff, which makes a great summer drink. Give it a go!
Photo no.243 - Lambrusco emilia
What a day...it was amazing fun! xxx
Friday 30th May
Song of the day (LH): Love it or hate it - The Game
Heartbreaker - Bee Gees
Song of the day (VW): Lost in music - Sister Sledge
I feel for you - Chaka Khan
Many songs today but no photos! The previous day my right boob had started to ache and I was wondering what it could be. Well this morning I found out why...period time again! Grr! No periods was meant to be a chemo perk but clearly not for me. Plus it had come earlier than my normal cycle...lovely! Thankfully it has been far less painful than the last one but still, give me a break!
You'll probably say it's not surprising but I felt exhausted this morning, so post the station drop off I got back into bed for a while, followed by a lazy morning. I never felt like I had woken up that morning, so headed sleepily into work. For the non-retailer readers, Christmas is being worked on, well it has been for quite a few months already. This afternoon's task was going to mock up some hamper ideas for a product that will be sold over the festive period. Sarah B and I had thought this was going to be a quick and easy task....wrong! 2.5 hours later we finally got back to the ranch. I was feeling exhausted but had a can of full fat coke to perk me up...the plan for the evening was dinner with my lovely ladies who dwell at Ivy Crescent, meaning driving to Chiswick. DW was due to meet me there later on after he had had his dinner date and drive me home, as I knew that I would not be able to even with matchsticks propping my eyes up. Finishing the last bits of work before enabling the out office meant I left work at 6.30. If we had been going out for dinner, I would have bailed on the plan earlier in the day but Emily was cooking and I felt I couldn't pull out....I called to say I was on my way and that my chauffeur was going to pick me up later on. Emily then pulled me up and said to stay at home and get your priorities right...good advice, sometimes I just need someone else to tell me!
So instead of her delightful fish dinner (pictures were sent that looked amazing), we had a curry takeaway, as DW's dinner date had cancelled on him...oh so healthy VW but very welcome. A relaxing evening on the sofa followed by the much needed sleep...listen to your body more! I just hate the feeling of letting people down, but as someone told me early on your true friends will understand. I am lucky to have many of these, particularly the Ivy Crescent ladies. xxx
Saturday 31st May
Song of the day (VW): I see clearly now - Jimmy Cliff
Song of the day (LH): We don't have to take our clothes off - Jermaine Stewart
A good sleep and a relaxing morning later, catching up on a couple of episodes of the Great British Menu, seemed to have done the trick in relieving the previous days tiredness. We spent most of the day bimbling around the house doing the chores that you always want to put off. Now and again a day like this is really relaxing. I also had some time to write this post...to keep me going I found my Easter egg from Debbie....argh!!!
Photo no.244 - half an egg down...the other half was eaten the next day!
Photo no.245 - the writer poised for the afternoon's writing.
Due to it being a sunny Saturday of course a BBQ was on the cards. We had arranged to go over to Glenn and Rachel's and I promised to take over some chicken and veggie skewers. The chicken skewers were glazed with the Pitt Cue & Co house rub mixed with some olive oil. For the veggie ones I mixed a couple of recipes that I found online...so on my skewers I placed aubergine, orange pepper, plum cherry tomatoes, halloumi, courgettes (ribboned) and red onion. The glaze was great and would make a fab salad dressing. It consisted of 1 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tsp lemon thyme and 1 tsp Dijon mustard. Prepare all of the veg and then toss in the dressing. Then have fun threading the pieces onto the skewers...leave longer than you think for this bit!
Photo no.246 - veggie skewers pre cooking!
We arrived at the Regan residence and DW was bowled over with a plate of tortillas......
Photo no.247 - tortilla heaven!
Time to grill, tonight the grill master was Glenn. Controversially, we cooked on gas. I know there are gas BBQ fans out there but it's just not the same. Still I wasn't about to grumble too much with someone cooking my dinner!
Photo no.248 - le grill!
I'm not one for blowing my own trumpet but my god those chicken skewers were good. Of course it helped that they were cooked to perfection but definitely one to repeat!!!
We had a fab evening as always and Little Miss Regan slept blissfully through the whole evening. Fingers crossed she gave her parents the much needed sleep they were craving.
A lovely relaxed day. So goodbye May, lets see what June brings us!
Sunday 1st June
Song of the day (LH): Over the rainbow - Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
Song of the day (VW): Over the rainbow - Melody Gardot
Hello June!
After breakfast with some slight trepidation, I decided it was time to go for a well overdue run. To put this in perspective, I hate running. Give me a zumba class any day and I'll be there, even two but running, no, it's not the sport for me. Still, in two weeks I need to be running 5km so I needed to see how well my body would cope with this, given the fact that aside from weekend walks I hadn't done any exercise since early February.
Photo no.249 - first training run...
Aside from my calf muscles burning and realising my lung capacity wasn't quite what it had been, it was a pretty good first attempt. I took the philosophy of run, walk, run, which seemed to hold me in good stead. Some more practice required!
We had planned to go to Richmond park this afternoon and despite a longing from both of us, we didn't want to get stuck in traffic so decided to walk from Hambleden to Henley and back along the river. It's such a beautiful stretch and given the fantastic weather today, it made it absolutely stunning.
Photo no.250 - a swan and her cygnets.
Of course one of the things keeping going to get to Henley was a mocha frappucino...my summer coffee drink of choice! We were both were wearing flip-flops and I had made the good call of taking some trainers with me as at the half way frappucino stop I needed to change footwear. It's necessary to endure some flip-flop blisters before they're fully broken in!
Photo no.251 - a special island.
I don't need to recall the reason for this island being special. Looking at this photo, I can see that my eye lashes have lost some of their lustre and it does give a different appearance. Still only 4 weeks until they hopefully start making a full appearance. You're probably thinking that I'm so vain but it's not that, it's just that certain things make a difference to your appearance and for me losing my eyelashes changes the way I look.
A good walk, it's about 6 miles so a worthy Sunday afternoon stroll.
Time to prepare this week's Sunday dinner, thank goodness only one!
Photo no.252 - BBQ'd monkfish with a lemon zest and rosemary crust, crispy pancetta and asparagus; served with Jersey Royal potatoes and lemony mayonnaise. Accompanied by a Portuguese white.
Thankfully this received high praise, it's always the most pressured moment of my week!
; )
After dinner, DW lit the chiminea so that we could relax by the open fire. There's something about watching the flames bounce around that is so captivating. A great end to week 12.
Well week 12, you've been good. Tomorrow is the penultimate (I hope) chemo session. DW is working tomorrow so my chemo team are Kim and newcomer Eoin, I'm sure it'll be fine. Of course there is some apprehension about how I'll react, hopefully no reaction....that would be the best result. We'll see. There's nothing I can do until I'm plugged in tomorrow. As ever a massive thank you to everyone who has shared this week with me. DW, I know you hate a week 1 but hopefully this one will be uneventful....and mean that there's only one more to go. Right, I'd best go and get some sleep. Until next time. xxx
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