New registrations

 Off Topic  No Responses »
Feb 192007
 

Over just the past week, I have had no less then 6 new people register/subscribe, to receive updates, for my blog postings.

And I have just received notification of another registration, literally as I am writing this post.

It just seems odd, so many registrations would occur in such a short time frame, especially when all but one (with a domain name of 16girlshogtied.info), and maybe one other, appear legitimate.

Is my blog really getting that popular, just at the time I am in a rut, and have so little to say? Or have a group of internet spammers found me, and are plotting some nefarious attack on my blog?

I have noticed a greater influx of spam comments lately, but not from any registered users. So….

Fortunately my spam filter plugins, Akismet and Spam Karma 2 have been doing their job, unlike my Subscribe to Comments plugin, which doesn’t seem to work properly.

I’ll keep you posted! :)

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 Posted by Marc at 9:14 am

It’s been 4 days

 Edie, Life, My MCL  2 Responses »
Feb 162007
 

And I can’t seem to come up with anything to post about.

Ideas keep popping into my head, but before I can get them down in writing, they disappear.

I can easily rationalize the reasons for this, like worrying about Edie, and the possibility I may need treatment soon. It could even be the weather (although that seems to be improving finally), but none of that makes it any easier to deal with.

Even playing golf, eating and drinking fine wine, doesn’t impart the same pleasures they once did.

The only thing that can still get me going is riding my bike, which I attribute to the fact when I’m on my bike, I’m exerting so much energy, and I am so focused, that for the time I’m on the bike, I forget about everything else. The only problem is, I can only go so hard and for so long, and eventually have to return to reality.

So here I am, back in reality, with nothing to say.

Hopefully that will change soon!

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 Posted by Marc at 9:24 pm

More bad news!

 Diagnosis, My MCL  3 Responses »
Feb 122007
 

While it appears my absolute lymphocyte count has stabilized, that is the only bit of good news.

First it was my platelet count dropping about 10% to 195 thou/mcl (the lowest it’s ever been), then it was my Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH) rising to 141 IU/L (the highest it’s been), and now my Beta 2 Microglobulin (B2M) rose to 2.98 mg/L.

At least the platelets and LDH are still within the normal range, but that is not the case for my B2M. The lab didn’t report the reference range, but I know 2.98 mg/l is getting up there, and is well above normal.

I’m sure very few, reading this post, have any idea of the significance of these three tests, so to simplify, I’ll just state they are an indication of disease progression.

The only question now is what to do? I’m still feeling fine, and certainly don’t want to begin treatment any time soon. There are too many other things going on, including worrying about Edie, and how her treatments are going. But at the same time I don’t want to wait too long, when it may be too late.

And on top of all that, my golf game sucks.

BIG SIGH!

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 Posted by Marc at 7:38 pm

My first interview!

 Health Care, Life, Off Topic  No Responses »
Feb 102007
 

I just got off the phone with a reporter from ASAP. ASAP is

AP’s new multimedia service featuring original content designed to appeal to under-35-year-old readers

She was doing an article on bloggers dealing with health care issues, and thought my blog was interesting.

I admit I was surprised, when she first approached me about being a part of the article, since I never thought too many people found my rants interesting, nor did I think that many people would even find my blog. (I guess my numerous comments on various health and health care related blogs were more effective than I thought.)

Among other things, she asked why I got into blogging, if I had any feedback from others, and if I was concerned about putting too much information on the internet.

I responded as best I could, but now that I have had time to reflect more on her objectives, I think I left out some important thoughts. Oh well, if she keeps up with my blog, she can call me back. She has my cell phone number.

Anywaze, there’s no guarantee I’ll be referenced in the article, but I’ll still keep an eye out for the article on the ASAP home page, and let everyone know when it is in print. I am anxious to know what the article will say.

And if I’m lucky enough to be mentioned in it, that would be an added bonus!

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 Posted by Marc at 2:12 pm

Maybe last months test wasn’t an error

 Diagnosis, My MCL, Off Topic  No Responses »
Feb 092007
 

Well for the second month in a row my absolute lymphocyte count was down to around 80K, which is 20% lower, and where it was back in June.

Under normal circumstances, I should be happy about that, but the percent lymphocytes is high at 97%, and this was the first time my platelets dropped below 200 to 195. They had never been below 218 before. (Low platelets is the first sign of bone marrow failure).

That’s still well within the normal range (140 to 400), but is reason for concern, especially since my spleen is noticable, and can be annoying at times. (The spleen has also been known to collect and destroy platelets, necessitating removal.)

There is too much too worry about if you let it. So I won’t, at least for now.

Of course if next months trend is in the same direction, I may have to start worrying. :(

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 Posted by Marc at 7:41 pm

Life’s too short!

 Life  1 Response »
Feb 072007
 

And there are no guarantees it won’t get even shorter.

I became keenly aware of that fact almost 5 years ago, as did my wife a year ago, and yesterday, so did Becky’s brother-in-law. (And this comes on the heels of being informed of the death of a bicyclist, two weeks ago, hit by a car on Colima Rd, in Whittier, in an area I frequently ride my bike.)

As I was driving home from work yesterday down Pacific Coast Highway (PCH), traffic was slowing to view, what appeared to be a very bad accident, involving a motorcyclist, on the opposite side of the road. I even managed to sneak a quick glance, which I don’t typically do, to see a person lying face down, stretched out on the ground.

It certainly wasn’t a pleasant site, but I managed to quickly put it out of my mind, and continue on my way.

It’s not that I am a cold, heartless person, but it isn’t at all uncommon to see accidents, or hear of others dying or being seriously injured in traffic accidents. It’s just that most people, myself included, tend to put it out of their minds, thinking it could never happen to them.

But when Becky emailed me yesterday evening, wanting to know if I ran into any traffic, on PCH, on my way home, and then informing me it was her brother-in-law, who was the one killed in the accident I passed by, it was no longer so easy to just put out of my mind.

Although I didn’t know either of the individuals involved in these two tragic events, I do know Becky’s husband (he did our backyard & barbecue), and I definitely can relate to the bicyclist, all of which adds greater credence to a post I did several months ago titled The future, don’t count on it!

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 Posted by Marc at 4:47 am
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