For Real Really

Once again, it has been acres since I've updated, but here I am.

It's my last day in the hospital after 4 days of chemo.  I got word last night that the transplant date has been set.

     I go in on Sept 18 for 5 days of chemo to "create space".

     Sept 23-----Transplant.

Joy and fear.  Now it's real.

The transplant itself can so smoothly, and there are likely bumps.  And the bumps can be big.  But it can also go smoothly.  I won't bore you with all the details, but this is an allogeneic transplant...meaning using a donor.  I'm sure Google would be the place to poke around for details.  But the bumps include host vs. graft disease, infections...those sorts of things...my new immune system potentially attacking me as foreign weirdness.  The good news is that with this kind of transplant, there's a 50% chance this goat-ass cancer can be cured.  And that's the trade off.  Danger in the transplant...possible cure.  If they used my own stem cells, there's really no chance of curing this, since my own immune system has seen this cancer, but doesn't seem able to kill it.

'Das it.  Home today.  Start working on a documentary film (based on a book called "Cowboy Ethics...What Wall Street Can Learn from the Code of the West").  Hopefully I'll get music recorded by the time I come back for the transplant.  Oh yeah, and do my taxes.  Can't forget that!  And visit with friends.  And cook.  And eat.  And have lots of tests in the hospital.  And cook.  And eat.  And visit with friends.  And write music.  'Cause once I have this transplant...

"Times, they are a changin'"....

love, love, love.......