pixler’s Neighborhood

I doubt if many people have noticed but I haven't been playing the vox game for several months now.  I didn't want anyone to think my absence was due to health problems.  In fact, I've been feeling very good lately.  My cancer is "stable" and the medication I'm taking is controlling the symptoms very well.  So for now we just monitor it with scans and lab tests every few months.  I'm working and busier than ever and that's the main reason I haven't been blogging lately.  I also finished my Master's Degree and graduated yesterday!

In case you're interested, I have started a new blog at http://memtony.blogspot.com/.

So why am I leaving vox?  Well, no offense to anyone, but I just felt like there were more satisfying things to do with my time then discussing politics with interesting strangers.  Now that I'm done with school I plan to play guitar more and travel with my wife.

LIfe is more than good, it's beautiful!

Who or what do you really love?

I REALLY love my wife.

My marriage has turned out like I had always wanted it to be.  The more we are together, the more we are "one".  She still makes me smile and laugh very often and I enjoy being with her more than anyone else in the world.  She knows me better than any other human and she still loves me anyway.  Life just keeps getting better and I'm looking forward to the next 26 years.

How do you want 2008 to be different from 2007? What will you change or do differently? 
Submitted by Becca-Pink.

I'll try to avoid cancer this year.

I know this might sound a bit morbid but I have found that a sense of humor helps.  (And I couldn't resist.)

I haven't posted anything for quite a while so I figured my Birthday was a good time to get back in the habit.  The great thing about being born on December 31 is that I always know (or at least I can easily calculate) exactly how old I am.  In the words of Mark Twain, rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated.  A few VOXers have checked up on my because my last post referred to surgery and then I didn't post anything.  I'm happy to say that my absence is mostly attributable to laziness and not to bad health.

2007 was full of excitement and surprises for me and my family.   My daughter was married 9 days before the end of 2006 so I have enjoyed being a father in law for over one year now.  In the Spring I continued my studies in the MIS program at the University of Memphis.  (I'll be going back on January 15.)  In the summer I had lots of fun with the Youth from church including a 3 day Youth Conference and a High Adventure trip in Arkansas that featured mountain biking, rock climbing, caving, and camping.

In August I had an unexpected surgery and was diagnosed with Carcinoid Syndrome.  (See previous posts for details.)   On November 20 I had another surgery to deal with the metastatic tumors on my liver.  The surgery went well and my recovery has been steady and encouraging.  I didn't really mind being in the hospital for Thanksgiving but I did feel bad for my wife, Marcia, because she had surgery on her foot exactly two weeks before my surgery and was still on crutches during my hospital stay.  The surgeon was able to resect two of the tumors but he had to use Radio Frequency Ablation (RFA) on another one because of the size and position.  RFA involves a really cool device that uses microwaves to cook and kill tissue.  We'll do a CT scan probably in the next two to four weeks to see if all the cancer is gone.  Meanwhile, we have done a lab test that indicated that my hormone levels are normal and I have none of the symptoms that I had prior to the last surgery.  So I have been able to stop the twice-a-day injections that I had been doing.  So now I have a 90 day supply of very expensive medicine in my refrigerator that I hope I'll never need to use.  I thought about EBay but somehow that doesn't seem ethical or even legal.

I've been back to work for a few weeks now and there have been some major changes at work.  My boss was promoted and has relocated to California.  He is a great guy and I really enjoyed working with him.  He even left me his collection of hundreds of CD's that he didn't want to take with him so I'm enjoying lots of new music.  Instead of replacing him, they decided to combine my work group with another group that was doing similar work.  I like my new boss and I see lots of opportunities for creativity and innovation from this minor reorganization.

My football team, the Memphis Tigers, had a difficult and even tragic beginning to their season but somehow managed to win 5 of their last 6 regular season games and got invited to the New Orleans Bowl.  My wife and I decided to celebrate our improved health (and our 26th anniversary) and make the trip to be at the bowl game.  We had a great time even though our team lost.  (Congratulations to Florida Atlantic University.  They really were the better team, at least that night.)  New Orleans is not my favorite place but it is very unique and I think everyone should go there at least once.  Parking near the French Quarter is scarce so you always end up walking a lot.  I just took lots of short rests and made it through the weekend with no problems.

Our basketball team is undefeated in 2007 and is still ranked #2.  The down side to their success is that tickets to games are hard to get and getting more expensive every day.  Don't get me wrong, I love the free market.  I just have to plan a little better to be able to enjoy watching a special season for the Tigers.

We had a very enjoyable Christmas with our children and friends.  We still haven't decided what we're going to do tonight for New Year's Eve (or, as I like to call it, the worldwide celebration of Tony Taylor's birthday).  We thought about making tamales using my brother-in-law's special chile mix but he hasn't been able to ship it yet so I guess we'll postpone that until the weekend.  We may go to a dance and we may end up just banging pots and pans in the kitchen.  In any case, I'm sure there will be a smile on my face!

The surgery I had last August worked out so well that we decided to do it again.

My previous post about cancer mentioned a radiation procedure that we were checking out at the time but it turned out to be approved by FDA only for certain kinds of cancer and mine (carcinoid) is not one of them.  But that's OK because now we're taking a more aggressive approach.  My first surgeon referred me to an Oncology Surgeon here in Memphis who is confident that we can remove most or all of the tumors on my liver surgically.  And if not, they have lots of other toys and tricks they can use while they have me open.  I have been reading a lot on the internet regarding the liver and surgery and I find the whole business very fascinating.  One site I have enjoyed is ORLive.com but if you don't like blood and guts, you might want to look elsewhere.

The next surgery will be on November 20 and should last five to six hours (if the surgeon can do all that he wants to do) so I probably won't be touching a computer after that until some time in December.

Have a great Thanksgiving!  I know I will!

Al Gore was recently awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work raising awareness on global warming.  Who would you award a Nobel Peace Prize to?

George W. Bush

In 2000, he kept Gore out of the White House where he could have done a lot more damage.

As if this were not enough, he also kept Kerry out of the White House in 2004.

There is much to dislike about his presidency, but I'll always be grateful for these two great accomplishments.

Finish this sentence: "I am glad to say that I have never ___." 
Submitted by chl*.

I have never consumed alcohol, smoked, or used illegal drugs.  I know it seems odd in our modern times, but I really don't feel like I have missed out on anything good.  It's so sad to see people have to go through great pain and suffering to stop doing something that they thought was going to be fun or enjoyable when they started.

More importantly, I have never had sex with anyone but my wife.  I can't think of any activity that brings more unhappiness than foolish sexual activity.  The most foolish sexual activity I can think of is adultery.  I have never met or even heard of anyone that ever said "I'm really glad I cheated on my spouse".  And yet many people make that decision every day...

It has been a long time since I have been active in the Vox world and I figure it's probably a good time to provide an update.  I had gotten pretty busy with work and other activities back in July and just didn't take the time to do more than comment occasionally on some political posts by other folks.

On August 22, I was excited about the idea of heading to a lovely condo on the beach for a long weekend with my wife, my daughter and my son in law.  Unfortunately I had been having some abdonimal pain for a few days and decided to go to the emergency room.  I had experienced similar problems a couple of years ago and it just kind of went away so I thought they'd give me some medicine and send me home.  But this time they did some x-rays and CT scans which revealed some serious blockage in my small intestine caused by tumors and they kept me in the hospital.  On August 24 they opened my abdomen to check everything out and they removed about two feet of small intestine which had the tumors.  They also confirmed that the cancer has spread to my liver and these tumors can't be removed safely through surgery.  So what I have is formally known as Carcinoid Syndrome.

Carcinoid is a fairly rare form of cancer that is very slow growing.  Most patients take daily shots to control the symptoms caused by the hormonal problems the tumors create.  Right now, we're looking at a radiation procedure that may be able to shrink some of the tumors before we start the shots.

My recovery from the surgery has been steady and rapid.  I'm feeling pretty good (although my pace is slower than usual and my energy level isn't has high as before the operation.)  My doctor prescribed some pain medicine but I haven't needed any.  I haven't yet read any of the thousands of blogs by cancer patients so I don't know what kinds of things people usually write about.  I'll just share some of the thoughts I have had over the last few weeks.

I am grateful for so many things!  Here are just a few.

1. My wife, Marcia.  She has done so much to take good care of me and to be by my side constantly!  She has done many things she doesn't like to do and has done them simply because she loves me.  We have had many long and deep conversations over the last few weeks and our love and closeness is greater than ever.
2. My faith and testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  I received a Priesthood Blessing the day I was admitted to the hospital and it has been a great comfort and cause for optimism.  I haven't had feelings of bitterness, anger, discouragement, fear, or confusion.  I feel close to my Heavenly Father and I am at peace, regardless of how much longer I have to enjoy this earthly life.
3. Many loving and caring friends and family members.  My life has been good and relatively free of major losses and tragedies.  Perhaps that explains why I was so pleasantly surprised to understand just how many wonderful people there are in my life.  I have been humbled and a bit overwhelmed by the many people who have visited, called on the phone, prayed, sent gifts and cards, and offered help.
4. Excellent medical care.  The hospital, the doctors and nurses, and other medical staff have all been superb.  Not only have they been extremely knowledgable and skilled but without exception, I have been treated with kindness, compassion, respect, and good humor.
5. A great job with a wonderful company.  I have good insurance through my employer and haven't had to worry about medical expenses while I have received first rate care.  My boss has been very flexible and understanding.  It's a true blessing to work for good people who care about me and my needs.
6. Technology.  I am convinced that without access to modern diagnostic imagery and surgical procedures I would probably be dead now.  Yes, it's expensive but life is worth the cost.

The weather here in Memphis is beautiful, my guitar is sounding as good as ever, and football season has begun again.  Life is indeed very very good!

Books:  Show us the longest book you've ever read.  (All the way through.)

The Bible-KJV

It might not actually be the longest book I have read but it sure seems like it.

Why do you live where you live?
Submitted by memtony.

I guess I should answer this questions because I asked it.

I live in Memphis, TN because of my job.  I grew up in Southern California thinking that it was the only place in the world that I ever wanted to live.  After a couple of bad job experiences in 1986, I was blessed by being employed at a wonderful transportation company headquartered in Memphis. (Yes, the one with white and purple airplanes.)  I had to go to Memphis for training and occasionally for other meetings and found that the cost of living was low and that Memphis is a beautiful place.  I couldn't see a way to afford a house in Los Angeles, so I applied for a job in Memphis and got it pretty quickly.  So we packed up the kids and moved from the Pacific Ocean to the Mississippi River planning to stay a couple of years before returning to California.  That was exactly 19 years ago. My career and my life here have been great and I plan to stay here at least until I retire.  Obviously, I consider moving to Memphis as one of the good decisions in my life.