Days 16, 17, 18 , - Technical Hitches

The last four days ( today inclusive) have been rather hectic and it didn't help one bit when my dialup connection to tmnet did not work. After numerous phone calls and investigative tests, we got it sorted out. My phone cable was kaput and I had to go out to buy a replacement to drag from the phone socket to the laptop on my desk. No one from tmnet was, alas , able to pinpoint the problem and I had thought that my laptop was kaput. It was only when that nice guy Alan at the SHC Pineapple store tested my laptop using their phone line that it was thankfully confirmed that my laptop is okay but not my phone cable. What a relief. It has also been a hectic 4 days so have not been able to hang out at Starbucks to catch up on emails. My mailbox was full when I finally logged on today.

June 29 (Day 16 of cycle 4)

My phone cable must have "died" on this day. I spent sometime seeking assistance from the tmnet call center but no one could pinpoint the problem. That was a real bummer as I was planning to surf the net for good deals to Bali to chill out after my last chemo and was going to go with my sis, her daughter and my brother. A friend from Sydney was planning to join us in Bali if the timing is right. As it turned out I spent the whole afternoon at my travel agent nearby and finally got all that sorted out. I am assuming and hoping that I will be fit for travel after my last chemo on July 27 and the ensuing 21 days after will be treating me kindly.


Other than the bowel "problem" and some blisters (on my lips now and therefore more torturous as it hurts even when I talk and move my lips), I am quite pleasantly surprised that I am coping rather well without any boosters prior to the 5 th cycle. Not yet anyway. I will find out when I go for another pre-chemo blood test on Tuesday July 3, 2 days before the scheduled 5th chemo.

My childhood friend came by to visit and shared photos of recent holidays in Russia and we went for dinner at Aji Don in P.Damas as Fridays is a day for good Mee Rebus Tulang. I need all the beefy goodness and it was good.


June 30 (Day 17 of cycle 4)


Today is all about my trip to Melaka, courtesy of my friend and her son, to whom I have sold my Acer desktop for Rm10! Since I haven't been to Melaka for a month or so, I shopped for some stuff to bring back, and to take to my Dad when I visit him. Also, the stock for catsupplies are running low according to my brother, so my friend's MPV was stacked with a bumper supply of catfood and cat litter for the ones in the big cage.

As it turned out we had a bit of an adventure as my friend's car had turned cranky over the last week and it's mood did not improve during the journey. It will not reverse when the reverse gear is set nor will it start if the engine is turned off for a while. So it was AAM and phone calls and all kinds of tricks. The funny thing is while waiting for AAM, it decided to move.


We have our hearts in our mouth throughout the journey. Syukur Alhamdullillah we managed to get to Melaka without any hitches as we took care not to switch off the engine, even when we stopped enroute for refreshments. It was rather late by the time we got to my house in Melaka and the first thing we did was to call in my regular mechanice there to take a look at the engine. It seems the transmission fluid was drained and while this an be easily topped up in the short term, the mechanice advised my friend to take her car in to her regular garage for a complete check.


It was late by the time we got to the workshop for the mechanic to top up the transmission fluid. We went to P.Balak for dinner by the sea, just to unwind after quite a tensed experience during the day. It was simply lovely to see my babies again and I have to wait until tomorrow to visit my dad to see how he is getting on.


July 1 (Day 18 of cycle 4)

We went to the Pasar Tani in Alor Gajah to get some more supplies. I got some red dragon fruit to take to my dad and some of his favourite kuehs ( kueh tepong talam and seri muka pandan). We decided that it may not be a good idea to stress up my friend's car further and save her for the return trip to KL. We were fortunate that my friend RJ had also made a change of plan that will see her coming home to Melaka to visit her parents and son and she had offered to drive us to visit my dad.


We stopped for lunch at the ever popular Ikan Bakar place at Cheng Heights and really od'ed on the fish - 3 types! I saw so many mouthwatering but spicy typical gulai kampung. There was Asam Pedas Ikan Pari ( a no-no), Asam Pedas Tetel ( another no-no as this is spicy and comprise of tasty unmentionables from the cow - assorted meats and tendons and fatty bits) and of course different kinds of gulai lomak cili api ( a BIG NO-NO) of ketam, ikan sembilang, ayam kampung and pucuk paku. Simple and delicious. As the pain of gastritis was still very fresh in my mind, I managed to will myself to not touch the assorted sambals and cili api and focussed on the Ikan Bakar and ulam-ulam.


My dad was having a nap when we got there. He looked fine but frail and seemed to have a lot on his mind. His face lit up when he saw the kuehs and dragon fruits but was too full as he had just had durians (!!). He is still very keen to start a dragon fruit plot and showed me the article that he read on it and it struck me as a viable project that now perked my interest. The cactus like plant will start bearing fruit after just 8 months, even shorter than a pregnancy! Hmmm, something worthwhile to pursue with a little bit more knowledge on the steps involved.


I decided to show off my current "look" and be real blase about it in front of my dad. I took off my scarf and showed him my head and told him I am okay with this as I know that by the 6th month after chemo, Insya Allah I should have a head of hair growing again. He seemed to handle it well especially when he sees that the "look" wasn't bothering me either. His 89th birthday is approaching soon and he asked if my sister from the UK is coming back this year. We always have a cake for him and pulut kuning with curry for family members, taking care to cook extra as cousins and relatives would also drop by. He will enjoy staying with us for a couple of days then, and this time around it will be a few days before my final chemo.


Something bugged me after the visit. It seems one of the kampung folks had visited him and mentioned that his payments were overdue (which is not correct as he is up to date) and was going to offer to take him to the bank for him to draw his money out. Thank God my dad was quite cautious and alert and told him that he had just paid. I am still wondering how I should handle this - get involved and find out why that had to take place or just keep out of it but strongly advise my dad not to go to the bank to draw his money out unless accompanied by his own children or trustworthy relatives.


We left for KL soon after RJ sent us back to my house. On the way we stopped by her place (she has a lovely house right in the middle of a 3 acre dusun) for durians-loads of it! I have been told durians and cancer don't agree, so I just sampled 3 "ulas" (lumps??) and drank lots of air suam with a pinch of salt to nullify the "heatiness", or so it seems.


The trip back was another tensed ride - we were so scared that the car might stall along the highway, with the cargo of desktop, shopping from the Pasar Tani and some durians that RJ had packed for my friend's son. In a way, it was a blessing in disguise that I have blisters over my lips and tongue or else I will be blissfully slopping over the exotic/authentic durian kampungs. My helper managed to "harvest" some bunga kantan, cili padi, bananas and rambutans to bring to KL. She had actually climbed up the tree to get to the ripened ones as most of the fruits are still green.


I was totally zonked out when we reached KL. There was a steady stream of traffic on the road all the way to KL and at places we were caught in a crawl but thankfully the car held on.

In Melaka, we have been eating out so I was not able to get my diet of kacang botol (cooked) and rebusan tulang but I pray that my blood count will be okay on July 3, that I will not need boosters and that my 5th chemo will go on schedule. I hope my blisters will be sorted out by then as I have been patiently applying the Gengigel gel that is supposed to accelerate healing of tissues in the mouth and gums. Having nausea and loss of appetite will be a real challenge if the blisters do not ease up as it will make feeding my system more difficult. I am also beginning to be concious of twitchings ( sometimes a wee bit stinging) in my surgery area and I hope it is part of the healing process. I will ask my breast surgeon when I see her next if it is normal or something that needs further investigation. Cancer exposes me to different kinds of pain that before I might have taken lightly, not knowing that such sufferings can be a major source of discomfort . But Insya Allah, are part of the temporary tests and dugaan.