Armadillos, Like Friends, Are Fabulous

While visiting friend Tami in Florida, I received a phone call from my friend Henri, who lives in Watertown, South Dakota.  He had tickets to see a group called the Fabulous Armadillos, who were going to be playing in Brainerd, and wanted to know if Mary and I were interested in joining him and his wife Pat.  With Mary's approval, anticipation of precious moments with the Lanctins had begun.

Mary and I had not seen them previously, but the Fabulous Armadillos have a reputation for great shows.  The theme for this show was "Guitar Heroes - Legends of the Six String".  Rock N Roll baby!!!  😄

Waiting with anticipation for the show to begin.

On Friday afternoon, Pat and Henri made the 3.5 hour drive to Little Falls.  We rode together for the remaining half hour to Brainerd and shared a wonderful meal at Prairie Bay Grill.  Then it was on to the concert.  Fourth row seats.  As Henri knows the lead guitar player, Stretch, we were educated with a history of the band and some of his interesting personal experiences with band members.

With fabulous friends, Henri and Pat Lanctin.
Notice where the speakers are located.
Rock n Roll!

The concert couldn't have been better!  Songs from legends such as Jimi Hendrix, Chuck Berry, Jimmy Page, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Les Paul, Chet Atkins, Eddie Van Halen, Jerry Reed (theme from Smokey and the Bandit), Allman Brothers Band, Dire Straits, Queen and much more,  A collection of riffs to Rolling Stones songs.  And a little AC/DC to really get the ear drums ringing.

Yes, Fabulous Armadillos are indeed fabulous, just like Lanctins that take Mary and I out for an evening filled with wonderful moments!

Makes a person dream of playing the guitar again.

Hair and no glasses.  Guess it has been awhile since I've tried to play!

Bob Medical Update - 4/22/17

PSA is 1.00 compared to 0.83 six weeks ago.  Liver tests are still very good.  Alk Phosphatase was high.  This could be because of liver issues or bone mets.  Since my other liver tests are good, my gut says this is up because of the cancer.  The real doctors will make that determination when I get my scans done on May 30-June 1.  A follow-up email from the team at Mayo Clinic stated they were not real concerned about the Alk Phosphatase at this time.

Even though the PSA is up, I am a little relieved as I was very concerned that the number was going to be much higher.  Knew from the last test that cancer was still growing, the big concern was how fast.  There is, after all, a couple of events coming up that I want to be as healthy as possible for.  Right now my challenges are some periodic lower back pain plus regularly tired and have some muscle weakness.  Hopefully some bike riding will help; I have 80 miles in so far.  Last year I didn't have that much until the end of June.

Keep the prayers coming!  😊

Southern Warmth & Hospitality

Despite some challenges with directions between navigator Bob and pilot Mary on the way to the airport, we were off to spend some time with Bob’s brother Doug and family in Georgia.  Arriving in Atlanta on Thursday morning (March 16), the temps were not much warmer than what we left in Minnesota, but once we drove up to Danielsville, family would soon have us feeling the warmth of Southern hospitality.  Bob’s first alcohol in a few months, a margarita, may have contributed to his warm feeling as well.  (Notice the pretty blue car.  It’s all about the color when renting.  😄)

(Doug and Dana's Home - A Nice Country Setting)

Friday morning we slept in a bit but then it was off to Atlanta to visit the Atlanta History Center as Mary and I both enjoy learning more about the Civil War.  The center contains both inside and outside exhibits.  It was an eye opening experience as we toured:

A slave home from the Civil War era.

High society life in this 1930s mansion.

An exhibit on turning points in the Civil War.

Along with all the many artifacts, the Civil War exhibit did a great job of taking us through all of the reasons for the war, along with strategies and outcomes for both sides during each year of the war, and the aftermath of the war.  As we were reminded, a lot of souls were lost during the course of the war.

After the Civil War exhibit, sister-in-law Dana decided we needed some cake to lighten our spirits, so supper was about treats.  Don’t know that Marrietta Diner really qualifies as a diner, but we would certainly go back.  Just need to remember to splits meals as portions are crazy huge.  And we took enough cake home for multiple sittings.  😋

Just a week prior to leaving for this trip, Bob was lamenting his activity levels due to the winter’s cancer treatments and weight gain from Prednisone to his local urologist.  She informed him that his body probably wouldn’t be able to do some of the things done in the past and that it would be a slow process rebuilding some strength.  The response to that:  to go hiking at Tallulah Falls State Park, which included doing just a few stairs.

The picture taking wasn’t great as the trees were just starting to bud and the hike would leave me very sore for a few days (which became an incentive to walk each day with my niece to work out the soreness), but it was still worth the adventure. 

We finished the day with a drive over to the town of Helen.  The whole town, even the chains, have redone their buildings to German looking styles.  It's a tourist trap nestled in the foothills of the Great Smokey Mountains, but it was an enjoyable trap and we would love to spend more time there in the future.

Sunday was spent taking Mary to the airport as some people still have to work.  But we were able to take in the World of Coca Cola on the way.  Amazing how this iconic brand has been a part of our lives over the years.  It’s not every day that you say you could have sat and watched more commercials (shown in one of the exhibits).

The next few days were spent with brother Doug learning about the aviary business and getting into deep discussions about politics.  (Sorry, we didn’t record the discussions that would have solved all of the world’s problems.  And we didn't even need alcohol to bring out all of that wisdom!)  Dana and Doug’s business is about providing the cages and birds (finches) that you find in many nursing homes.  In a four state area they provide cleaning and support services.  This picture shows some finches just being born at one of the nursing homes where we were cleaning.

One of our cleaning assignments took us to the Golden Isles of Georgia.  As a result, I was able to spend an evening and the following morning exploring Jekyll Island.  It did not disappoint!!!  Bike trails take you anywhere on the island and I was able to rent a bike and get about 8-10 miles in.  Could have spent another day there and that was only one of the four islands.  

Driftwood Beach

Bike path on the marsh side of the island.

Sunrise near our hotel.

Another sunrise picture.

While temps had slowly risen during the week, it was time to go farther south for more warmth and hospitality.  Saturday and Sunday involved going down to Panama City for a visit with my friend Tami and her husband Billy.  I arrived to find a driveway full of vehicles and a house full of dogs (5 dogs total).  This because their daughter Lindsay had moved home, plus Tami's sister Vivian and her husband Rick were visiting.  Billy's dad joined us on Sunday.  It was a great time visiting with all of them.  Tami, Lindsey, and I got a walk in on Saturday down by the harbor.  After Sunday services at Tami and Billy's church, I spent some time with 13 four year olds when Tami needed help with Sunday school while Billy sang – my turn to show some southern hospitality.  Was also blessed to spend quite a bit of one on one time with Tami on both days, including a walk/supper on the beach just down from St. Andrew’s State Park.

Of course, a trip to see Tami and Billy wouldn't be complete without a stop at the farm to visit with the horses.  Yogi hopes all of you continue to enjoy the special moments in your life, just as southern hospitality provided special moments for us.

Bob Medical Update - 4/3/17

Had a blood draw on March 9 to check my progress since I had radiation done on the two spots on my skull, cryoablation on my hip, heat ablation on the C7 vertebrae, and switched from the drug Xtandi to Zytiga and Prednisone.  The good news is that my liver numbers dropped in half, the best scores I have had in a lot of years.  The not so good news is my PSA was 0.83 compared to 0.81 prior to the procedures.  An indication that there are new spots as the ablations would have eliminated the cancer in those spots and caused my PSA to decrease.

As a result, Mayo has sent me a kit to get blood drawn on April 20 for another PSA check.  I was also informed that I would now be checking my PSA locally every six weeks instead of the quarterly checks I have been receiving since this journey started.  They added a second MRI for my pelvic area in addition to the MRI of my head and the C11 Choline PET scan.  Unfortunately they couldn't get all of these scheduled together until the end of May.

In the meantime we continue to live life as we learn what God's plan will be.