How It’s Going
Sitting through another round of chemo. They have me tagged like I’m fresh produce.
As I start writing this, there’s a thunderstorm outside and it’s 4:40 AM here at Moose Lodge. The thunder is loud, and the lightning is close by and low. These are the thunderstorms I live for and one of the things I love most about being out here. I wish we had more of them. They were a rare thing in the Seattle area, and now I can’t get enough.
Now that I’m CEO of Hudson Cloud, headquartered right in downtown New York City, life has taken another turn. I’m working long hours in the new role alongside other client work. I’ve not made it to HQ yet because of chemo, but I plan to fly out either in late July or early August, depending on how I recover from this last round. They’re moving into bigger offices next week. It’s been a little over a month, and I’m now mentally immersed in the role. Like any good CEO, you start to obsess about solving problems. I credit all the work that’s come in, especially the new role, with my resilience during chemo. Nothing has done more to keep me on track and in a routine that matters. Work has been the best medicine so far.
I’ve had hundreds of well wishes from Quorans (what we call others who hang out on Quora) as the word slowly gets out. I’m not writing as much there because something has to give somewhere. I’m also waiting for the quality of the questions to come back up. The support and notes have come from all over the world, especially from fellow cancer patients. We’ve had a few laughs about it too.
With chemo comes a lot of limitations, especially when it comes to physical activity. I had one week where walking five feet took real effort. All of these events were somewhat temporary and a bit like a maniacal obstacle course. It reminded me of military agility training in bad weather with someone yelling at me. The hardest part has been maintaining social interactions with friends while staying on top of both work and chemo. Next week marks six months to the day since cancer treatment began in January. Chemo didn’t begin until March. I saved the biohazard chemo bags they use when shipping my meds because they’re kind of cool.
The exterior of Moose Lodge needs some sprucing up, and I walked it with someone who’s going to do the work. I want to be outside doing it too, but for now I’m just focused on this last round. I look too much like a plastic yard flamingo as I slowly walk around the exterior of the house.
The entire experience over the last six months has been remarkable. Yes, difficult, but mostly remarkable. I’ve seen a lot. You don’t go through this without it poking at every corner of your character. Sometimes we don’t know who we are until we’re faced with the challenge. It’s only then that our character pops out like a jack-in-the-box. I was surprised to learn that some people quit this process entirely. That never crossed my mind until my oncologist asked. It’s never been a consideration. Ask me next week.
I promise to write more as I start to feel better. That should be in roughly two weeks, and then the slow, steady climb out. For those facing chemo, I want you to know that if my doc said I needed a second round just for fun, I’d do it.