I'm growing more cranky of late. Or
maybe I'm less inclined to suffer idiots in silence. Something is
causing me to be more testy in public than ever have been. Last week,
I was nearly run over in an intersection near the library. I was in a
designated cross walk and crossing with a green light. The driver of
an expensive SUV decided that making a left turn before on coming
traffic reached her was more important than my well being. That was
terrifying. Thus, when I reached the next major intersection, I was a
little angry. I grew furious when the driver who was correctly
waiting for me to cross before making a right was being honked at and
cursed at by the three cars behind him. I made sure to lean down to
eye level as I gave each of them the finger and asked if they'd
rather the man run me down in the street. The drivers correctly
assumed that I was seconds from smashing my shopping cart over the
hood of their vehicles and moved on without comment. I considered
letting one of them hit me, but the cars were crappy and unlikely to
get me much money in a lawsuit. A Lamborghini turned up a few minutes
later. It was tempting. That car costs more than the budget for our first feature. It
was probably rented though. There is a high end car rental spot near
here. I couldn't take the risk.
Testing Time
Since February of 2010, I've made a
monthly trip to the Oncology Clinic at LA County USC Hospital to get
a B-12 shot. For some reason, the Docs won't allow me to do the shots
myself. I even know a registered nurse who is willing to teach me
how. Beats me. The upshot is that I have visited with the lovely
group of nurses who work in that clinic many, many times. There are
also reminders of how far I've come physically each time I visit.
Some of the patients who were being treated at the same time I was
turn up. Some look amazing. Others are clearly declining. Despite all
of these reminders, I often forget that 'normal' life for me is
measured in sixth month intervals. Granted, I get blood tests every
couple of months to make sure that the various markers are normal.
They have been normal each time I've had the test since being
declared in remission. The last test was just a month or so ago when
I went to see my primary care Doc there. Everything looks great. So,
I shouldn't be worrying, right? HA! That's not in human nature. And
on a more serious note, I am a member of a forum for people who have
endured this particular cancer and their caregivers. It is a place of
great inspiration and support. It can also be a stark reminder of how
everything can go wrong. That's very difficult to push from a
mind completely. So, the day after the CT scan, I'm exhausted. I have
90 plus pages of manga script to edit. I also won't get back the
results of the test until Tuesday morning. That makes for a long weekend.
Brighter Notes
It's not all gloomy in my world. There is a lot going on that is exciting for my career and very satisfying creatively. And then, there are the intangibles. After all, it has
been a beautiful summer. I have been beyond happy with the produce
I'm finding at the Farmers Market. The array of heirloom tomatoes has
been fantastic. I have never had sweeter nectarines and plums. I have
found what the fresh food folks say is true. It is very easy to eat
properly when the good food tastes good. It's great to have tomatoes
with flavor. I've been looking for those since moving away from my
beloved Jersey maters. Salads with those, some sweet onion and tender
spinach only need a tiny bit of balsamic vinegar to be heavenly. No
oil necessary! And the fruit is even better than most desserts.
Eating these wonderful treats actually lifts my mood. I felt lucky to
have two Farmers Markets in my neighborhood. Now, there is a third!
There is a small one on the route I take to Marina del Rey that
started just last week. I'll have a choice between Sunday, Tuesday
and Friday. Also, the food trucks have returned to Culver City and
Marina del Rey has them on a different night. The foodie in me is in
a joyful place.
Updates
The new books are coming together
nicely for the West Hollywood Bookfair. We'll have a page dedicated
to the even up in the next week or so. We're also gearing up for
appearances at two conventions in the fall. I'm writing a lot of
pages to get ready for those in time. Updates on the web series will
be posted on Saturday.
Stay tuned.
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