Talk on Sunshine Coast

Did a talk today on the Sunshine Coast for the local psychologist's group. We are happy to be up here as we will be able to sample the food at the local street market, including Polish food, esp. pierogis!

Gifts!

Arlene's lovely birthday gifts arrived as an "unbirthday' surprise - this lovely cat figurine was among the loot received with thanks!

Pipe Behind House

Views of our house from the pipeline behind our house. Hopefully once we plant some fast-growing trees the pipe will be less noticeable....

Rainbow Lorikeets on Porch

The rainbow lorikeets were out on our porch this afternoon.

Great Food in Melbourne

Went to meetings in Melbourne today, my hearth light at the prospect of an excellent dinner with good friends - and I was not disappointed. Had a lovely meal with my friends Simon and Jan at MoVida, a Spanish Tapas bar in the heart of the city. We had:

Pollo escabache al Miguel (Spiced chicken escabache tapa on crisp croutons)

and

Croqueta (Fried cheese croquette flavoured with mushrooms)

plus lovely specials of barramundi and pork and a fabulous flan for dessert. Yum!

Temperatures Dropping as Winter Sets in

The cats are starting to huddle for warmth at night as the temeratures plummet to the low 60's....

:)

Check-up Brings Excellent News

Today I went to see the hematologist for my two-monthly check-up. He gave me some terrific news. First, the nerve conduction tests all showed that I have no peripheral neuropathy (nerve damage) in either my hands or feet as a result of the chemotherapy. I had been having tingling in my hands but this has resolved and he says we may never know the exact cause but such short-term symptoms which resolve are common after chemotherapy. Then, unexpectedly, he said that not only was the CT scan of my ches looking excellent (they are having trouble even seeing the tumor anymore!), but that an area of damage in my lungs, which they thought was due to the radiation treatment, seems also to have healed somewhat. So now I go to three-monthly check-ups, and I have my last CT scan in September, at one-year anniversary of ending chemotherapy.

Tim's Thesis Corrections Handed In!

Today Tim handed in his thesis corrections. Hopefully in a few months he will hear positive news and become Dr Kastelle! He plans to graduate at the ceremony December 2008.

Labour Day

Today is not only Cinco de Mayo, the traditional Mexican holiday, it is also Labour Day here in Australia, a federal holiday. We've decided to spend it hanging out with the cats and feeding the birds (here, our friend the Magpie).