I spent last week in California chasing introduced exotics, wandering godwits, and doing a ride-along on Debi Shearwaters' last pelagic. It was great to be wandering around the coast, visiting L&SP and T&CU, and getting back on the water for one more pelagic.
The boat trip was a bit rough going into a head sea in the morning, but calm in the afternoon as we sheltered in Monterey Bay while the wind blew. Friendly Humpbacks were feeding all around the boat as we sat in neutral in the bay, coming far too close to the boat (not the reverse of course). A mass of California sea lions were feeding in a dense pack and charged at the boat as well, the sights sounds and smells were amazing! The bird highlight was the Brown Booby that made a couple of passes over the boat. Both the Hudsonian Godwit and the Bar-tailed Godwit put on a show in San Mateo Co. for our birding party on Monday. It was great to visit with the mass of leaders on board and to visit with my friend Captain Tinker. And I've never been on a boat trip that started with a champagne toast and ended with a mimosa on the bridge.
So back home, tired and replete after the best meal of the trip on Monday - artichoke soup and a calamari steak sandwich. The green chili soup was pretty awesome too. And I had leftovers for dinner. The flight was uneventful, and it is good to be back home.
Yesterday I went to see Doctor 7, the chemo doc, and get the biopsy results. Short answer is I'm not a candidate for immunotherapy, it's much better to not waste time on treatments that aren't likely to work. There will be more testing of the specimen for other weaknesses that we may be able to exploit but are not yet FDA approved treatments.
The bittersweet news is that it was my last scheduled appointment with Doctor 7, who has been a fantastic doctor for me. It's a damn shame we are losing her in the LRGV. The current medical miasma of permissions and huge patient volumes had something to do with her leaving, and the rest is the valley itself. We're pretty incomprehensible to outsiders at times. I found out that she owns a horse and rides jumpers. It's so unlike me not to talk pets earlier in the doctor/patient relationship!
Anyway we've decided on a plan and a way forward, starting with a short delay. We'll start treatment soon. But with the cancellation of Friday's treatment time slot I need a port flush. This damn port that was recommended from the beginning of my chemo has been used exactly three times for treatments and needs to be flushed every six weeks when not in use. It's not used for blood draws, IVs for CTs or minor outpatient procedures or other things. I am not a fan, I'm sorry I got it. It's annoying every time I roll over at night, with tightness in a weird place. And it doesn't help that the treatment that required it had no response. It hurts every bit as much as a needle stick (or more?) but at least they find the vein every time. The hazard for infection is such that I have to wear a mask when they access the port. It's quite a production.
So I have an appointment with Doctor 8, and I don't know who that will be yet. I've decided to stay in the office, but I don't have a say - yet - about who I will see next. I have an appointment for a day and time but no name. Very weird. Given that Doctor 7 and I have made a plan forward there's no changes until we do some treatments, so if I don't like the lottery winning doctor I can potentially switch before decisions or choices need to be made.
