Now I’m Sixty-Four

I am writing this blog update as I listen to my Beatles soundtrack for my When I’m Sixty-Four PowerPoint presentation at yesterday’s afternoon tea.  I had four very enjoyable celebrations for my 64th birthday that I am sharing with you along with some other matters.  Hope you enjoy the narrative and photo journey.  Thank you family and friends for making this a special week.

My birthday week was also my fifth round of chemotherapy.  And you know from the previous blog entry that Dr Lisa Horvath gave Barbara and I good news about how well the chemo is working.  This round was also had the easiest journey in the current chemo treatment, only took on anti nausea tablet.  My energy has remained good, though I am feeling a little tired today after a busy week.

During my chemo on Tuesday and Wednesday I finished constructing my two pieces of furniture as these photos show.  Tuesday I applied third coat of lacquer in the afternoon after starting the chemo at the hospital in the morning.  Wednesday morning I assembled the tall bookshelf and in the afternoon assembled the small shelving for next to my bed.  (Where is the back bedroom?  Is it in the shed at the end of the backyard?  No!  Is it a new structure in the backyard?  No!  In our home, we have four bedrooms upstairs – two large at the front, then a bathroom and two smaller bedrooms at the back of the house.  I am in that last bedroom.)

Tuesday evening our sons and partners hosted dinner (at Club 55) to celebrate Mothers’ Day prior to Barbara departing for the USA on Wednesday morning, when I took her to the airport.  Today, she is celebrating a wonderful Mothers’ Day with our daughter and her four siblings will all be with Mom on Mothers’ Day (photo at end of this blog entry).  Barbara attended a family gathering on Saturday.  So our family celebrated here at Club 55 and in Fredonia!

Celebrating Being Sixty-Four this Week

Celebration 1 – Sunday May 4

I enjoyed four official celebrations on being sixty-four.  Thursday 1 to Sunday 4 May our family travelled to WorldMark Horizons, Port Stephens.  My brother travelled from Wilpena Pound to continue fulfilling his promise (since I was diagnosed with cancer in 2011) of coming to my birthday each year.  Last year we enjoyed two weeks in April travelling in the Kimberley.  This year he (whose photos follow) came for two days here at Club 55 and then four days in Port Stephens.

Two of our sons, their wives and daughters came with us to Port Stephens.  We had a special time as our granddaughters got to know each other better and we adults enjoyed them and each other.  On Sunday we enjoyed a birthday lunch at the Inner Light Tea Rooms situated at the lighthouse between Nelson and Shoal Bays.  A cousin and her daughter joined us.

On Stockton Beach

At the Inner Light Café

With my cousin and granddaughter

Celebration 2 – Wednesday May 7

Family took me for a birthday lunch at Revolver Café, in Annandale.

Celebration 3 – Thursday May 8

On the morning of my birthday I thought there is no celebration on my actual birthday.  So, I decided to host a ‘Glebite party’ at the new pizza restaurant in St Johns Rd, near Ross St.  Lisa, daughter of the famous Frank’s pizza in Camperdown has opened her own restaurant.  For 44 years, Frank and his family ran their pizza restaurant on Parramatta Road.  Frank sold it six months ago.  Frank shouted (gave) us a bottle of red wine to enjoy.

Some of my family and two of our neighbours joined me.  We enjoyed an early dinner of delicious pizzas.  I forgot to take photos of this celebration even though I had my camera with me.

Celebration 4 – Saturday May 11

Forty-three people attended my When I’m Sixty-Four afternoon tea from 3 to 5pm.  Thank you for coming.  While so many gathering does not make for intimate conversations, I found the occasion special as there was family and many friends from different parts of my life: friends gathered over the years from the 1970s through the Glebe Christian Youth Club (Youngie’s [David young] Club), through Arthur from the 1970s and 1980s, through Petersham Baptist Church from 1980s, through clients of our own business from the 1980s and 1990s.  And other friends and neighbours too!  Thank you for bringing food or drink to share.  This made the catering easy and meant we could all have a good time with no one having to do too much work.  Thank you for serving yourselves and each other.

I woke up yesterday morning feeling tired from the chemo week and spending four hours on Friday putting together an iPhoto slideshow and finishing a PowerPoint presentation (snapshot of my life and feelings at 0, 17, 32, 48 and 64).  Went out for breakfast and returned, determined to be on top of things.  So, I vacuumed the house, upstairs and downstairs; rearranged the lounge room furniture and brought in tables and additional chairs; cleaned the bathroom toilets and got the dining room-kitchen area ready.  My eldest and his wife were a wonderful help at and after the party.

Why this celebration with so many friends?  Now that my cancer has grown again, I am thinking about how I want to live the rest of my life.  Rather than have people turn up at my funeral, I want to see and be with people now.  Some of you have expressed concern that I might be attempting too much.  I would rather be active, on the front foot, than sitting around awaiting developments.  I am enjoying doing these things.  When I was really sick earlier this year, I could not do much.  Now thanks to my body’s great response to chemotherapy (poison that does good) I can be active and enjoy life.

As I wrote in an earlier blog entry, my outward focus is The BezCan Project, which I talked about at the end of my PowerPoint presentation.  Thank you to those who donated $1,354 to The BezCan Project towards Canaan School buying its own land so it can build its own school over the next 2.5 years.  Thank you to those of you who let me know you would donate by direct credit this coming week.  Thank you for your trust in The BezCan Project Governance Group and me, that we will ensure that 100% of your donations are used for this purpose.

Enjoy the photos (provided by friends), after which you will find a description of my reprise delight from today.

In the dining room/kitchen with the food

David with Geoff and Chris (back turned) with Graeme (L)

L -R - Michael & Lee (gave me the When I'm Sixty-Four
T shirt, Pete, Dianne cutting quiche, Chris, Jo, Chris

Perfect granddaughter and son photo

L-R - Bill, Pete, Chris & Jo

L-R - Noel, Michael, Liz, David, Lachlan, Pete & Jennifer

Mary and Chris

Lee & Michael with Joy & Graeme

Selection of teas and coffee

Food provided by guests

In the backyard

Front L-R - Dianne, Jennifer, Maree & Chris (standing)

David with Julia and Glenn

In the lounge room

L-R - Lachlan, Gabriella, Stephen, Cameron, Harvey, Robyn

Geoff and Lorraine

Patricia and Lynne 

'Not Your Average Accountant'
Peter (our accountant) and Reyne performing 3 songs

Audience listening to my presentation

Audience listening to my presentation

First slide or my presentation

When I'm Sixty-Four Cake

Kate bring the delicious, purchased carrot cake

Enjoying them singing 'Happy Birthday' with '64' candle

Chris asking me to cut cake

Reprise –  Now I’m Sixty-Four

This morning, I went out for breakfast, yet again!?!?!?!  Afterwards, I walked to our granddaughter's place.  She loves her Mum.  So, this morning was the perfect finish to a wonderful week of celebrations when she asked (by reaching out her arms) for a cuddle with me in the dining room and then again at the front door, as I was leaving.  She even waved goodbye to her Mum and Dad before reaching out to her Mum.

This Week’s activities are: Monday to Thursday in Tamworth visiting relatives and friends; and Friday night at EFSNG (Every Second Friday Night Group).

Barbara in the US with Family

This morning (Monday), Barbara emailed me to share the joy of her weekend family gathering.  Here is a photo of Barbara with her family.

Barbara with her Mom and siblings

One Third Reduction in New Liver Lesions

This is a brief update to share the good news of my health improvement.  In a few days time I will write a blog entry celebrating our recent Port Stephens holiday and this, my When I’m Sixty Four birthday week!

Today (Monday 5 May) Barbara and I saw Dr Lisa, my oncologist.  Last Wednesday I had a CT scan and this morning a blood test.  The CT scan showed that the ten new lesions in the liver were reduced by more than a third following four rounds of chemotherapy.  The old lesions remain ‘calcified’ and dormant.  My wild hope is that the new lesions will be completely zapped!

My blood test showed great improvement in the liver function.  Dr Lisa anticipates the liver function will return to normal after this or the next round of chemotherapy.

I am fortunate that my body responds so well to chemo: I am at the top end of improvement.  Thank you for all your love, care and prayers.  I am now feeling pretty normal.  Dr Lisa thinks it is likely that I will be able to make a three week trip to Uganda in November.  I am going to Tamworth next week to visit family and friends there.  My plan is to live as normally as I can.

Meanwhile, during the first two days (Wed 23 and Thurs 24 April) of my fourth round of chemotherapy, I began building a narrow bookcase and a low set of shelves for my new bedroom at the back of our home, Club 55.  This is part of creating a space that I can keep files and work on my computer in this back room.  It will be easier to heat in winter as it is much smaller than our main bedroom.

Then the weather changed and I did a lot of work on The BezCan Project.  The Governance Group met for the first time on Easter Monday and discussed our approach with each school.  We made some decisions to be actioned this and in the following year.  I am grateful for the Governance Group's contribution to my Uganda adventure.

Easter Tuesday I went with one of my sons to where he attends woodwork classes.  His generous and talented teacher helped me cut the wood to size as per my working diagrams.  Now I have straight edges and saved an enormous amount of work.  In the above photo you can see the shelves after their first coat of clear lacquer.

The pieces of the tall narrow bookcase are lined up ready for me to lightly sand and paint on the second coat of lacquer.

The happy worker painting the second coat.  I have one more coat to apply and then the challenge of assembling the two pieces of furniture.