Category Archives: Cancer

Lots of Deer on a Birding Trip, 02-22-23

Around 9:00 AM this morning I headed out to the Gristmill Recreation Area for a walk even though my cancer was making my left leg hurt a lot (around a 7). I was hoping the movement would help to unbind the affected muscles in my thigh and hip area, but it actually started to make it worse. So I only stayed out there for about an hour.

In that hour, though, I saw quite a bit. There was a huge Bay Tree that was in bloom., the only tree in bloom besides the Almond Trees in the park. The Boxelder Trees were starting to push out their leaves and catkins, and the Mugwort plants and Manroot Vines were starting to come up.

The willow trees were all starting to “pussy” getting their early catkins. On the Arroyo Willows there were the old galls of the Willow Rosette Gall Midge, Rabdophaga salicisbrassicoides. They were all silvery black with age.

I saw a few birds including Ruby-Crowned Kinglets, Lesser Goldfinches, Bewick’s Wrens, and a Nuttall’s Woodpecker. I also caught sight of a Red-Shouldered Hawk sitting in the top of a tree with her breast to the morning sun. I saw it just as a group of birders further back on the trail behind me saw the bird. One of the birders with a huge camera on a tripod tried moving in closer to the tree to get some pictures of the hawk. I was able to get one shot in before the bird, spooked by the approaching birder, flew away. The birder was still moving and didn’t get any photos.

I went back to the car and took some pain pills and waited for a few minutes before heading over to the nearby American River Bend Park. By the time I got to the park the pain pills had kicked in and I was able to walk more freely.

The first critters I encountered at the park was a bachelor group of Wild Turkeys. During this time of the year their coloring is especially brilliant. I know some people consider the birds a nuisance, but I think they’re such handsome birds.

There were also deer all over the place on both sides of the road: does, yearlings and bucks. Most of the bucks were younger ones, spike bucks and 2-pointers. But among them was a large 4-pointer (going on 5-). He was stunning.

When I was getting a video snippet of one group of the deer, I saw something zooming back and forth in the grass, and I didn’t know what it was. When I got a better look I realized it was Black-Tailed Jackrabbits chasing one another. I got a video snippet of one of them dashing around.

CLICK HERE for the full album of photos.

There were Pipevine plants starting to show off with their calabash pipe flowers and heart-shaped leaves. They’re the precursors of the Pipevine Swallowtail butterflies and caterpillars.

Among the birds I saw were a Red-Shouldered Hawk, a Western Bluebird, Oak Titmice, Audubon’s Warblers, Acorn Woodpeckers [one of them chasing a Nuttall’s Woodpecker out of its granary tree], and a Northern Flicker. In the water, I saw Common Mergansers, Crows, Common Goldeneyes, a flock of Bufflehead flying over the river, Mallards, gulls, and a small Spotted Sandpiper.

On the other side of the river I watched some Great Egrets fighting over fishing spots, and a Belted Kingfisher nattering angrily at a pair of Canada Geese that decided to float through its fishing grounds.

As I was leaving the park, I came across a Eastern Fox Squirrel that was “bathing” itself on the perch of a tree stump. It was soooo cute!

I was out in the park for about 3 hours, so I walked for a total of 4 hours on this excursion. It was fun, and wonderful to be outdoors, but it was also very wearing and I crashed when I got home. This was hike #6 in my #52HikeChallenge for the year.

Species List:

  1. Acorn WoodpeckerMelanerpes formicivorus
  2. Almond Tree, Prunus dulcis
  3. Anna’s HummingbirdCalypte anna
  4. Audubon’s Warbler, Yellow-Rumped Warbler, Setophaga coronata auduboni
  5. Bay Laurel, California Bay, Umbellularia californica
  6. Belted Kingfisher, Megaceryle alcyon
  7. Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans
  8. Black-Tailed Jackrabbit, Lepus californicus
  9. Boxelder, Box Elder Tree, Acer negundo
  10. Bufflehead Duck, Bucephala albeola [flyby]
  11. Bumpy Rim-Lichen, Lecanora hybocarpa [tan to brown apothecia]
  12. Bushtit, American Bushtit, Psaltriparus minimus
  13. California Buckeye Chestnut Tree, Aesculus californica
  14. California Camouflage Lichen, Melanelixia californica 
  15. California MugwortArtemisia douglasiana
  16. California Pipevine, Dutchman’s Pipe, Aristolochia californica
  17. California Scrub JayAphelocoma californica
  18. Canada Goose, Branta canadensis
  19. Columbian Black-Tailed DeerOdocoileus hemionus columbianus
  20. Common Chickweed, Stellaria media
  21. Common GoldeneyeBucephala clangula
  22. Common Merganser, American Common Merganser, Mergus merganser americanus
  23. Coyote Brush, Baccharis pilularis
  24. Crow, American Crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos
  25. Eastern Fox SquirrelSciurus niger [rusty belly]
  26. Flies, Black-Margined Flower Fly, Syrphus opinator
  27. Gold Dust Lichen, Chrysothrix candelaris
  28. Great Egret, Ardea alba
  29. Gull, Herring Gull, Larus argentatus
  30. Gull, Larus sp.
  31. Lesser Goldfinch, Spinus psaltria
  32. Mallard DuckAnas platyrhynchos
  33. Manroot, California Manroot, Bigroot, Marah fabaceus
  34. Mistletoe, Broadleaf Mistletoe, Phoradendron macrophyllum
  35. Mosses, Bonfire Moss, Funaria hygrometrica
  36. Mourning DoveZenaida macroura
  37. Northern Flicker, Colaptes auratus
  38. Nuttall’s Woodpecker, Picoides nuttallii
  39. Oak Apple, California Gall Wasp, Andricus quercuscalifornicus
  40. Oak TitmouseBaeolophus inornatus
  41. Oak, Interior Live Oak, Quercus wislizeni
  42. Oak, Valley Oak, Quercus lobata
  43. Powder-Edged Speckled Greenshield , Flavopunctelia soredica [pale green, lots of soredia]
  44. Red-Shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus elegans
  45. Rio Grande Wild TurkeyMeleagris gallopavo intermedia
  46. Ruby-Crowned Kinglet, Regulus calendula
  47. Spotted Sandpiper, Actitis macularius
  48. Towhee, Spotted Towhee, Pipilo maculatus [heard]
  49. Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura
  50. Western Bluebird, Sialia mexicana
  51. Western Gray Squirrel, Sciurus griseus
  52. White HorehoundMarrubium vulgare
  53. Willow Rosette Gall Midge, Rabdophaga salicisbrassicoides [on stem]
  54. Willow, Arroyo Willow, Salix lasiolepis
  55. Wren, Bewick’s WrenThryomanes bewickii

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A Lovely Drive at the Yolo Bypass, 12-09-22

Since I last posted, when I quit chemotherapy, things haven’t changed a whole lot. But I do see little improvements in my condition. I can walk a little further without getting winded; over the last few days the vertigo has receded a bit and only seems to get triggered if I bend over. Every tiny improvement helps.

Today, I was literally in tears when my friend Roxanne took me out to the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area. I hadn’t been outside in Nature for a MONTH, and was getting very depressed about that. We were out for about 5 hours, and because we stayed on the auto tour loop I never had to get out of the car. The vertigo wasn’t as issue as long as she didn’t drive too fast taking turns… and was only triggered when I needed to use a porta potty and had to bend over to lift the lid on the toilet. Hah! 

The other issue for me was that I catch a chill really easily now – I don’t know what that’s about – so I was in my heavy coat and knit cap.  When we’re birding from the car, we keep the windows open so the camera can see out without obstruction. It was maybe 53º outside, but with windchill it felt like 47º.  Luckily, Roxanne has a car that lets you set different inside temperatures for the driver and passenger, so she set her side of the car to 66º and I set mine to78º and we were comfy even with the windows open.

And, oh my gosh, as I said, I was literally in tears with happiness when we first headed out to the bypass. And I was surprised to hear the sound of my own voice laughing over our in-car chatter as we drove along the auto tour route. I literally hadn’t heard myself laugh for over a month. The chemo has taken so much from me, it was nice to get a little joy back. Nature heals…literally. Before I left the house I took my blood pressure and pulse. They were 141/81 and 129. (My pulse has run real fast since chemo.) When I got back home from being out in nature, they were 127/87 and 113.  I needed that sooooo much.

CLICK HERE for the album of photos. I may add more to this as I process more of the photos.

While we were out we saw over thirty different species of birds, but the coolest thing we found were American Bitterns. They’re somewhat secretive birds that usually hang out in the high grasses and tules, so we’re happy when we can spot one. Today, we spotted FIVE of them. I was so excited!  

We also came across two young, “orphaned” Snow Geese in different ponds. There was no flock of Snow Geese anywhere around them, so we surmised the youngsters couldn’t keep up with the flock and either dropped out when the flock was flying over the bypass, or had been left behind when the flock left the bypass. They seemed healthy enough; I hope they’ll be okay. 

We did see quite a few dead birds in the water, and I wondered if they had been affected by avian flu.

As I said, we were out for about 5 hours and got back to the house around 1:30 PM. It was SUCH a nice day; I hope to be able to get out again soon.

Species List:

  1. American Bittern, Botaurus lentiginosus
  2. American Coot, Fulica americana
  3. American Kestrel, Falco sparverius
  4. American Pipit, Anthus rubescens
  5. American Wigeon, Anas americana
  6. Ash, Oregon Ash, Fraxinus latifolia
  7. Bisnaga, Visnaga daucoides
  8. Black Phoebe, Sayornis nigricans
  9. Brewer’s Blackbird, Euphagus cyanocephalus
  10. Cinnamon Teal, Anas cyanoptera
  11. Common Gallinule, Gallinula galeata
  12. Coyote Brush, Baccharis pilularis
  13. Gadwall Duck, Mareca strepera
  14. Great Blue Heron, Ardea herodias
  15. Great Egret, Ardea alba
  16. Greater White-Fronted Goose, Anser albifrons
  17. Greater Yellowlegs, Tringa melanoleuca
  18. Grebe, Pied-Billed Grebe, Podilymbus podiceps
  19. Green-Winged Teal, Anas carolinensis
  20. Gull, Herring Gull, Larus argentatus
  21. Gull, Larus sp.
  22. House Finch, Haemorhous mexicanus
  23. Least Sandpiper, Calidris minutilla
  24. Mallard Duck, Anas platyrhynchos
  25. Meshweaver Spider, Family: Dictynidae
  26. Northern Harrier, Marsh Hawk, Circus hudsonius
  27. Northern Pintail, Anas acuta
  28. Northern Shoveler, Anas clypeata
  29. Pigeon, Rock Pigeon, Columba livia
  30. Red-Shouldered Hawk, California Red-Shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus elegans
  31. Red-Tailed Hawk, Western Red-Tailed Hawk, Buteo jamaicensis calurus
  32. Red-Winged Blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus
  33. Rose, California Wild Rose, Rosa californica [pink]
  34. Saltbush, Big Saltbush, Atriplex lentiformis
  35. Snow Goose, Chen caerulescens
  36. Snowy Egret, Egretta thula
  37. Sparrow, House Sparrow, Passer domesticus
  38. Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, Passerculus sandwichensis
  39. Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Melospiza melodia
  40. Sparrow, White-Crowned Sparrow, Zonotrichia leucophrys
  41. Tule, Common Tule, Schoenoplectus acutus
  42. Turkey Vulture, Cathartes aura
  43. Western Meadowlark, Sturnella neglecta
  44. Wren, Marsh Wren, Cistothorus palustris

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Chemo Infusion and Aftermath, 12-3-22

As you probably know I started chemotherapy on Tuesday, November 8th, to try to address my cancer. When Wilson, my tumor, and his offspring first showed up, I told myself I would NOT go through chemo or radiation to deal with them (as I had years ago when I had chemo for breast cancer) because I didn’t want to spend months having the treatment take over my life – with no guarantee that it would accomplish anything. My oncologist, however, kind of talked me into chemo saying it was much different these days than it was when I had it before, so I decided to give it a try.  It  WAS very different from the previous chemo I’d been through, but not in a good way.

I was signed up for 6 infusions of Taxol and Carboplatin, each infusion about 3 weeks apart, with lab tests within 24 to 48 hours of each infusion. Well, I sat for the FIVE HOURS of the first infusion on the 8th, and had taken a buttload of anti-nausea medication beforehand, so the infusion process itself wasn’t bad (although the drip for the second chemical of the cocktail was set so fast it made my hand swell and ache for days afterwards.)

I felt okay for the rest of that day, and really didn’t have much of a reaction on the day after that, so I thought I would be able to tolerate the future infusions. Wrong.

On the 10th, I awoke to lower back pain, and around lunchtime was hit with myalgia pain that struck every muscle in my body. It was like everything had tightened into one big knot of pain. I literally couldn’t move my thighs much at all, so walking was nearly impossible.  The pain persisted throughout the night, so I got no sleep, and then continued through the next day.

I emailed my infusion doctor, and asked if my symptoms were “normal” for a first infusion. He didn’t really answer the question, but said I was probably just “sensitive” to the Taxol. I asked him if he could lessen the amount of Taxol I was given over my protocol, and he said, no. The only alternative would be to come in every day for smaller infusions… which would mean a drive of 30-minutes each way to the infusion center every day, AND lab work every day. Well, I thought that was ridiculous. I wasn’t going to let the infusions take over like that, disrupting not only my life but my sister’s, too. (I also didn’t understand why a cocktail of different chemicals couldn’t be used.) I’d just try to see if I could tough it out, I thought.

Over the next few weeks, the myalgia pain dissipated, but I was then faced with every other symptom known to chemo-dom: vomiting, diarrhea, breathlessness (I couldn’t walk from one end of the kitchen to the next without being out of breath), bone pain along my shins, restless leg syndrome (on a few nights), and vertigo.  I couldn’t catch a break. Keep in mind, this was after just the first infusion. When I had chemo before (in 2003), I didn’t have these problems until near the END of the entire protocol as the poisons built up in my system.  I was shocked by how brutal this was.

On the 16th, I had a Zoom meeting with a social worker and doctor in Kaiser’s palliative care division. They kept trying to tell me I’d get through it, and they’d figure out a pain management system for me, but they wanted me to keep my infusion schedule. They were very nice about it, but I sort of felt as though I wasn’t being listened to or taken very seriously.  I cried through most of the appointment.

Since then, the diarrhea and vertigo persisted, which meant I couldn’t walk or drive anywhere by myself, so I couldn’t get out into nature, and most days it was difficult to get out of bed.

Being so sick in so many different ways had just sucked the joy out of every single day. By the 22nd, I’d had enough. 

I cancelled all of my doctor’s appointments and infusion dates, and only kept the appointment for lab work on the books. As soon as the cancellations started showing up at Kaiser, I started getting phone calls. The assistant from the infusion doctor’s office wanted to know if I wanted to keep that appointment, but do it virtually, so he’d know what was going on with me. I told her, no, I was composing an email message for him, but I needed to gather my thoughts first. She asked me the same question three more times, using different verbiage… which once again made me feel as though I was not being listened to or taken seriously. No means no.

I then got a call from one of the nurse practitioners at the infusion center, wanting to know what was going on. I told her what I’d been going through, and reiterated the laundry-list of persistent symptoms I was having… and she said, “A lot of that sounds like you’re extremely dehydrated.”  And, yes! That made sense to me. Finally, someone who listened to me and offered me some useful guidelines to work with. 

She wanted me to drive in to the infusion center or go to the nearest ER to get some extra fluids to jump-start my body, but I wasn’t going to do that, so I opted instead to focus on forcing fluids myself, and ordered some Gatorade to get some extra electrolytes. She also suggested I get some Imodium to see if that couldn’t squelch the diarrhea. So, I ordered the Imodium along with some packets of electrolytes that I can add to my water bottles and had them delivered to the house.

Oh, and a new symptom showed up around Thanksgiving. While we were eating breakfast, I felt something fall onto my shoulder. I checked to see what it was, and it was my hair.  My hair didn’t fall out during my last chemo until about halfway through the protocol; I certainly wasn’t expecting it after just an initial infusion this time around.  It made my sister wonder aloud if they’d given me way too much of the drugs. I worried about the same thing. My eyelashes have also fallen out and I expect my eyebrows will follow suit.

I believe my hearing and eyesight have also been affected by the infusion, but the persistent vertigo is the next big hurdle to overcome; I can’t do much of anything on my own outside of the house until that’s controlled, or at least goes down to a dull roar. I’m not sure how to do that, so I have an appointment with my GP on December 13th to discuss it.

All of this being said, I’m glad I stopped all of the other infusions, and won’t be subjecting my body to any further plant-based or heavy metal poisonings.  And I’m looking forward to feeling better, reinstating my joy, and being more of a help to my sister as things move forward. 

Hopefully, too, the next post will be a happier one outside in nature.

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In Agony at Effie, 10-19-22

I wanted to go for a walk again after being “down” because of leg pain, but was actually in a lot of pain even as I headed out to Effie Yeaw Nature Preserve again. I chose that location because it’s close and I know all of the trails there – and where the benches are. Despite that, I barely made a single loop of the main trail, the nerve pain in my left leg was so horrific.

I had to sit wherever I could and got to the point where I was shaking and sweating, and felt like I was going to faint. I leaned over on one of the trail signs — and vomited. Then I stayed there, hanging onto the sign until I felt I could walk a little further. I made it to the picnic tables in front of the nature center, but was feeling pretty fragile. Fainting can wreak havoc on my blood sugar level, so I found one of my glucose tablets in my bag and sat at the table for about 15 minutes until I felt the fainting symptoms resolve.  Then it took me several minutes more to get myself up and over to the car in the parking lot. Gad!

Despite the agony, I DID get to see several deer, including a 4-point buck. There was one group that included the 4-pointer, some younger spike bucks, a single doe, and another doe with a fawn. The big buck followed the females, sniffing the air, to see if they were in season yet. Neither one seemed interested in him and just focused on eating.

CLICK HERE for the album of photos.

Later, one of the spike bucks challenged the 4-pointer. It was a hugely unbalanced fight; the 4-pointer was physically larger than the younger bucks, and had a more deadly rack of antlers. It looked to me like the 4-pointer was playing with the smaller buck; they fake-jousted for a few minutes, then ran back and forth chasing one another. Buck zoomies!

I don’t use my left leg to drive, so I was able to get back to the house without too much difficulty. Still, I spent the rest of the day in bed. I just can’t seem to get ahead of the pain…It’s so frustrating.

As an aside:

Just FYI. Because the cancer is rearing its head again, and I have a calendar full of doctor’s appointments, chemo classes and lab work, it may be a while before I post again…and posts may be fewer and far between. I’m still around — unless you hear otherwise — just not at my laptop or in the field.

Species List:

  1. Acorn Woodpecker, Melanerpes formicivorus
  2. Columbian Black-Tailed Deer, Odocoileus hemionus columbianus
  3. Coyote Brush, Baccharis pilularis
  4. Western Gray Squirrel, Sciurus griseus

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