A new friend
Aug. 18th, 2006 05:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ar_wahanOn Wednesday when I went to radiation, the woman I'd (finally) recognized on Tuesday was already there. We sat next to each other in the waiting room. Her name is Cheryl, just to make things simpler... For some reason, the treatment center was running behind schedule, and we waited an hour until I was seen (and she was to be seen after me). We gabbed the whole time. My husband had worked with her at the newspaper, and then, when he was at the university in the press office (where he still is), she had often talked to him as part of her job as a newspaper reporter. So he knew her well, I knew her only in passing.
She is a fantastic person! I was almost sorry when they called my name and said they were ready to see me.
I also learned that her husband's colon cancer had been successfully treated two years ago, not just within the last couple of months, and that he has also developed Parkinson's disease. I was wrong: Doug didn't work with my husband, he had an analogous position at Amherst College. He is retired. (Cheryl retired in May, was diagnosed with BC in June. She still writes an occasional garden column.)
Yesterday, we both showed up with books to read. We both talked a little about our books, and then ignored them to gab about other things some more. The wait was only 1/2 hour this time. I told her how I'd mentioned in an "online community" that someone I knew was having the same treatments at the same time and in same place that I am (in fact, we had the same surgeon and have the same oncologist), and a friend (stillslvyer ) had suggested this was not coincidence, and that I should invite her to coffee.
I'm going to invite them both to dinner, instead. I told Cheryl this, and she seemed delighted at the thought.
This morning, the wait was 5 minutes, so we had barely gotten started on the gab fest...
Yesterday I roasted the turkey I'd retrieved while defrosting the cellar freezer on Saturday. I should have used the recipe ideas bylurkitty and fairiegodmother -- the pineapple one was so-so. But maybe when I have Cheryl and Doug over, I'll use the same concept with a roast chicken. (Cheryl was telling me a story about how her daughter , age 30, was coming to visit for a few days from NYC. At one point, the daughter was vegetarian, but then had told her mother she was now eating chicken and fish. So Cheryl had just defrosted a chicken to roast Tuesday night (the night her daughter would come home). Her daughter had called her from the road, Cheryl had mentioned this, and daughter had said, "Mom! I don't eat chicken!" So Cheryl had had to quickly to change menus in mid-stream... But now I know she likes roast chicken.
She is a fantastic person! I was almost sorry when they called my name and said they were ready to see me.
I also learned that her husband's colon cancer had been successfully treated two years ago, not just within the last couple of months, and that he has also developed Parkinson's disease. I was wrong: Doug didn't work with my husband, he had an analogous position at Amherst College. He is retired. (Cheryl retired in May, was diagnosed with BC in June. She still writes an occasional garden column.)
Yesterday, we both showed up with books to read. We both talked a little about our books, and then ignored them to gab about other things some more. The wait was only 1/2 hour this time. I told her how I'd mentioned in an "online community" that someone I knew was having the same treatments at the same time and in same place that I am (in fact, we had the same surgeon and have the same oncologist), and a friend (
stillslvyer ) had suggested this was not coincidence, and that I should invite her to coffee. I'm going to invite them both to dinner, instead. I told Cheryl this, and she seemed delighted at the thought.
This morning, the wait was 5 minutes, so we had barely gotten started on the gab fest...
Yesterday I roasted the turkey I'd retrieved while defrosting the cellar freezer on Saturday. I should have used the recipe ideas by
lurkitty and fairiegodmother -- the pineapple one was so-so. But maybe when I have Cheryl and Doug over, I'll use the same concept with a roast chicken. (Cheryl was telling me a story about how her daughter , age 30, was coming to visit for a few days from NYC. At one point, the daughter was vegetarian, but then had told her mother she was now eating chicken and fish. So Cheryl had just defrosted a chicken to roast Tuesday night (the night her daughter would come home). Her daughter had called her from the road, Cheryl had mentioned this, and daughter had said, "Mom! I don't eat chicken!" So Cheryl had had to quickly to change menus in mid-stream... But now I know she likes roast chicken.
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no subject
Date: 2006-08-18 11:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-18 11:45 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-19 03:36 am (UTC)I'm glad both of you have each other.
that's great
Date: 2006-08-19 10:12 am (UTC)It's good to have support fighting any kind of illness, and we all need friends.
How is Audrey?
Re: that's great
Date: 2006-08-19 01:50 pm (UTC)Re: that's great
Date: 2006-08-19 02:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-08-19 09:01 pm (UTC)