week 4The past weekend was Moon Festival, one of the four big holidays of the Chinese calendar.  In Taiwan they usually celebrate it with a family barbecue.  But this year everything was washed away by a big typhoon.  As for me, I’m still hanging in there.  The coming week will be crucial.  At the end of this week, there will only be two more weeks to go and I can start to look forward to the end of this ordeal.

Sept 15, Monday: Doctor Ding Day today.  It turns out I have a fungal infection in my mouth.  It’s too nasty to discuss in any detail, but it really hurts and makes it difficult to eat, drink and talk.  I got extra medication.  Yeah, and I lost two more kilos.

Sept 16, Tuesday: Regular radiation session and two doctor’s visits.  Professor Ko first.  He is such an irrepressible guy.  “You must come,” he insisted to Diane as he sprayed local anesthesia down my gob, “look at his mouth: it’s extremely red.”  Diane averted her eyes while pretending to look.  “It’s a normal reaction,” said Ko.  “Do you want to be admitted to the hospital?”  “No, not yet,” I replied hesitatingly.  Doctor Hong was next.  He had reports from a blood sample I gave yesterday.  “太好了 — too good,” he said.  “You don’t need to do a blood sample next week.”  I guess it must be all those walnut-wheatgerm-dragonfruit-banana milkshakes I had before the treatment started.  Today was the mid-point.  I now have less to go than what I’ve done.

Sept 17, Wednesday: The chemo day has become my favorite day.  Since I find it difficult to drink as much as I know I should, the liters upon liters they pump in as a chaser with the chemicals are very much appreciated.  I perk up like a wilted flower.

Sept 18, Thursday: I really am losing my hair!!!  Oh no!!!  I sort of scratched my head this morning and a big tuft came off.  And I was so proud of my Sampsonian strength.  Well there are only two chemo sessions left and a lot of hair to go.  It’ll be a race against time.  Despite the hairloss I felt great in the morning, but tired, and literally, burned out in the evening.  Today was two months since my diagnosis.  A lot has happened.  A very short time, but also very long.

Sept 19, Friday: Friday is always the hardest day.  Maybe because the effects of the radiation has built up during the week.  But I’m OK and it’s over now.  Another weekend lies ahead of me.  No one is going to shoot radiation guns at me for two whole days.

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