Elisabeth lives on the fourth floor. There's a buzzer and an intercom on the steps outside her building. When I got out of the taxi, which cost exactly what she had told me it would, I called her to ask which apartment, and she buzzed me in. Reminded me of Blue Ridge Shores in VA, only there is was buzzing cars through the entrance gate.

The halls are blue; the stairs have white treads; her doormat is shaped like a paw.

We agreed that I would meet Elisabeth at work at 4 pm to go to the temple, so she gave me the keys and showed me how to lock/unlock. She had me look out the livingroom window at the giant cows and chicken which grace the roof of the grocery store. I went there after washing up the dishes, to buy lunch things for me and dinner ingredients for tonight.

She also gave me directions to her office, neatly drawn and labelled on paper, and her "Not For Tourists" guide to NY, which is very handy and includes things like where to go the bathroom and where you can find post offices and drugstores. I bought a subway pass and was off!

I walked down 5th Avenue in Brooklyn to 16th Street, over to 7th Avenue, and back up to Union, where I cut over to 5th Avenue to her office. I just browsed in shops. They have quite a few vintage/secondhand shops, very neat and tidy with well-chosen things. There are also consignment shops, which are apparently like a year-round-yard-sale-in-a-shop, but very orderly with well-presented merchandise. I bought a pair of pearl-drop earrings (doubt they're real) because I accidentally left at home the ones I thought I'd packed and I tend to feel undressed without earrings. Especially with my man-haircut.

Surprise, surprise! I walked right past Chickpeas, Hailie's old preschool! It struck me then that Elisabeth works in the same neighborhood Sunitha and David used to live in. I remembered passing the hospital Sunitha did her residency in, and checked in the NFT guide. Sure enough -- there was Prospect Park. I also recognized the Barnes and Noble and a couple of bus stops we stood at eight years ago.

After I made it to the office and met Roberto, we headed to the temple, and I recognized bits of Manhattan. I am having a lot of fun, and being here with Elisabeth is very restful and interesting.

I'm on a plane headed to NY via Chicago. I decided before I started chemo that after I was done with treatments I would take a trip to visit Elisabeth, so here I am!

I have been having fun doing dishes, laundry, and cleaning the house. Kind of shocking, but when you consider that I've just finished 8 months of forced inactivity in that regard, it makes more sense. I was a little worried that so much time to lie around reading might make me love it so much I'd just want to keep it up, but apparently I don't.

Last week I scrubbed the tub. Watching the grime disappear, and feeling energetic the whole time, and not needing to lie down afterwards was a real treat. In addition, I have taken the moral stance that Reuben & I have to do a job first, and then we can do something fun, and then we do another job and something else fun. I find that I like this too. On Monday it worked really well, because Reuben had thrown Legos around the toy room, and the sleeping bags I'd aired out after the Disneyland/Beach camping trip were still laying in there. Within an hour we had the place entirely clean, and then we played Candyland!

Several people have had a quick 24-hr flu lately. Yesterday the only people who went to school were Steve, Chris, and Joe. So far Reuben, Chris and I haven't succumbed, and I'm praying that I'm not carrying it with me to Elisabeth, and that Jazon won't have to deal with more of it at home.

My hair now covers my head, no bare scalp showing, and is long enough to comb, part, and it brushes my ears. Never having had hair this short [at least since I have been old enough to care], I am wondering what to do with it. I don't think I want to spend nine years growing it out long again. Maybe New York will inspire me.

Today at church, Marci told me that Alex had seen me out riding bikes with Reuben. He came home quite excited and told her, "And Mom -- she has hair now!!!! It grew back!!"

That's how I feel about it, too. Happy happy happy.

Skyped with Schneve yesterday. Salient points were:

1. Now that I've graduated, I'm on "hover" mode. This means they want me to come in every three months or so for tests but we don't really know anything.
2. Since they took out my lump, there hasn't been time for any rogue cancer cells which may remain after being poisoned and burned to grow big enough to see. Therefore, I have blood tests as a form of "looking for weird things that tell us to look more closely", and I have two mammograms a year to keep eyes on anything unidentifiable and growing.
3. Hair lengths sound better in metric. Saying my hair is 1.3 cm sounds a lot longer than .5 inches. 13 mm sounds even longer. [I did actually measure my hair. Only 10 mm]
4. Not only have I been balder than Schneve, I have been balder than James, Paul, and David put together. Notice who didn't go bald in honor of me.
5. How strange it is that we as parents get stuck eating the yucky cereal, because we never stop to think that it might be on sale because it tastes lousy and no kid would eat it.
6. I shouldn't feel badly about the kids not getting the chores done, because my voice is gone and I couldn't yell. I should have used an alternative to yelling. Schneve once heard someone say "That wooden spoon was on my a*se more than it was ever in a saucepan." Actions speak louder than words anyway. Note to self: buy new wooden spoons, as most of mine have migrated to the sand box.
7. I should tell my children who complain about their lack of clean clothes that they wouldn't have to wash their clothes as often if they wore them first right side out and then right side in. A good missionary trick. Also works for dishes: eat off the top of the plate, then turn it over for dessert.
8. If you have to ask what Reuben is doing the blowdryer, you really don't want to know.

Be It Declared That
JANICE BUNKER
Has completed the prescribed course of radiation therapy with the
highest degree of courage, determination, and good nature on March 26th, 2009.
We appreciate the confidence placed in us and the opportunity to serve you.
Utah Valley Cancer Center
Department of Radiation Therapy

This is what my certificate says, which I was presented today, along with a bottle of Martinelli's Sparkling Cider.

I gave them an aloe vera plant and told them to name it Olivia. I also wore my last outrageous hat from KC and her grandmas, and Brooke took a picture of me because Marcie wasn't there and we thought she would be sad to miss the hat.

I now have quite a lovely triangle sunburn that covers my left collarbone, part of my neck, and my shoulder. The Biafine burn cream helps immensely, and I have refilled the prescription once. The size the prescription called for is huge, so I asked for one half that size, and now I wish I had the big one, because I think I will actually use it all. The burn actually feels hot most of the time, and the cream cools it down and takes away the pain. The area around my left breast is also burned, but not nearly so badly.

Reuben has forgotten how to be careful of my aches, so I try to be patient when I remind him. And I think everyone thinks I am back to being my old self, because I certainly feel as busy as my old self, although I'm sure I don't move as quickly as my old self, and I know I don't get as much done as my old self. I try to rest at least once a day, but we all know how that usually turns out. Sleeping is a little hard with the sunburn because I keep waking myself up when I shift position and feel the burn again.

I'm so glad this is only temporary.

Today Reuben went to Jane and Jaren's. He loved it! Ian and baby Janice were so fun to play with. Jane was nice enough to feed me lunch and we talked, and then since Reuben didn't want to come home, she said he could stay until kids started coming home from school. Another good friend I don't see enough of. I won't feel guilty, because what good will that do?