"Only dull people are brilliant at breakfast"
-Oscar Wilde		 Brilliant at Breakfast title banner "The liberal soul shall be made fat, and he that watereth, shall be watered also himself."
-- Proverbs 11:25
"...you have a choice: be a fighting liberal or sit quietly. I know what I am, what are you?" -- Steve Gilliard, 1964 - 2007

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"...the best bleacher bum since Pete Axthelm" -- Randy K.

"I came here to chew bubblegum and kick ass. And I'm all out of bubblegum." -- "Rowdy" Roddy Piper (1954-2015), They Live
Sunday, June 16, 2013

Where I've been and where we're going
Posted by Jill | 6:38 AM
Kind readers,

No doubt you've noticed that I've been AWOL for the better part of the last six to eight months. And what a truly shitty time it's been. I suppose it all started late last September when my mother went through her near-death experience. That was followed by an inexorable decline during which my sister did most of the heavy lifting. Then Mom died in December and my vacation time from work was burnt starting the work of going through all the stuff in her house. My two weeks of this barely scratched the surface, and only in the last two weeks was my sister finally able to get now-remodeled house on the market. No sooner did I begin recovering from all this than we hit mid-March, when we found out that Mr. B. has bladder cancer. Since that time, it's been a nonstop whirlwind of procedures, doctor visits, consultations with specialists, CT scans, MRIs, blood tests and ECGs. It's one thing to become familiar with oncology through one's work, when you're building data collection forms and solving site data entry problems and patients are identified by nine-digit numbers. It's quite another when you find out what your own spouse's treatment is going to look like. It may be mildly amusing to tell your manager that "All the Visit folder stuff is being done on Monday", but when that which has been theoretical for five years becomes real in one's own life, one gets a somewhat different perspective on things.

Mr. B. has well-reputed doctors at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Institute handling his case, and so far at least, the information is mostly encouraging. There will be chemotherapy followed by surgery, and it all starts on Tuesday. I will be trying to juggle working full-time during all this, so I will probably have even less time to pay attention to the Doings of the World than I have for the last six months.

What this means for the future of B@B, I don't know. This blog has kept me sane for the better part of a decade, and I'd like to put out a "Best of..." compendium next year when we hit our decaversary. We're not going anywhere for the foreseeable future, and our good blogbuddy jurassicpork will no doubt continue his yeoman work of raging against the machine. I don't always agree with everything he writes, but he's done a great job of keeping the fires burning. Tata and Bob also have the keys to the kingdom, as does Melina. They will possibly pop in from time to time. As for me, I'll also pop in from time to time, but I'm also planning to do some journalling about what's going on, to keep family and friends informed. It won't be here, it will be in a private blog somewhere; I haven't decided where yet. If you are interested in following along, please drop me an e-mail. I can't say I'll give access to everyone, but even if you aren't given access, just know that I appreciate your readership more than you can ever know, and I hope that when we emerge from Cancer Alley, you'll still be with us.

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8 Comments:
Blogger Toby said...
I don't comment often but I do read frequently.
So much of what you have written about your mom and her passing has hit so very close to home. Often I've thought while reading "Holy crap, my mom had a twin?"
I sympathize with your loss more than you know.

You and Mr. B will be in my thoughts and meditations and I wish you both patience, optimism, grace and of course a good outcome.

I look forward to hearing from you the other side of this time.
6/16/13, 7:00 AM  
Blogger Bartender Cabbie said...
Keep at it when you have the time and inclination to do so. Hope all goes well for you and yours.
6/16/13, 9:51 AM  
Anonymous KanaW said...
Frequent reader, rare commenter here.
I'll be awaiting your regular return, with my very best wishes for a happy outcome for you and yours.
Virtual hugs to you!
6/16/13, 12:27 PM  
Blogger jurassicpork said...
Well, I'm glad to hear it's treatable. It was sounding grim for a while there. Tell Mr. Brilliant I envy him for his little freezer. I've always wanted one of those in my room for ice cream during the summer (to save me the ten foot trip to the fridge). But Barb won't let me have one. :-p
6/16/13, 3:51 PM  
Anonymous ravefan said...
Jill,
Like O said, I've read your blog for quite some time and have occasionally commented. I've always had an affinity for your point of view. I get the feeling you're about my age so I know how life is at this stage. Take care and take all the time you need for your personal issues. We'll solder on.
6/16/13, 6:01 PM  
Anonymous BNJ said...
I haven't been here much lately, but that has nothing to do with your blog and everything to do with crap going on in my own life. I'm saddened to hear about Mr. Brilliant, and I'm sending prayers to you both. I am agnostic, but I pray anyway. I figure it can't hurt.
6/16/13, 6:07 PM  
Blogger Matt said...
Sending positive thoughts your way.
6/18/13, 4:56 PM  
Blogger Batocchio said...
Sorry, and best wishes, Jill.
6/23/13, 1:06 PM  
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