Photo Workshop

I just finished a week of co-teaching a workshop here at the Asilomar Conference Center in Pacific Grove. Guy Magallanes http://www.guymagallanes.com/ and I did our second annual Watercolor/Photography workshop. It runs for five intensive days and evenings and covers the whole workflow from seeing an image... to recording it with a camera ...to painting it... to recording the painting... and, publishing the painting. Whew!

Guy and I were exhausted by the end of the week, but the participants were very happy with what they learned and produced. This year we added the challenge of creating a self-published coffee table book of images from each member of the workshop, with poetry, by the end of of the week. They did it! No one was more surprised than the participants.

I really like this work! It seemed as if there wasn't a minute that I wasn't working with a group or individual who wanted coaching. Daniel Dixon came by on Monday evening and told the story of growing up with his famous artist parents...one, Dorothea Lange, the photographer and the other, Maynard Dixon, the painter. Daniel is a writer, story-teller and musician. He is a smart and giving person whom everyone came to adore.

Kevin Woodson also stopped by Monday and did a demonstration of his watercolor method. He held the crowd in absolute rapture as he talked and painted at the same time. He completed a painting of a very complex bouquet of poppies in about 45 minutes and never stopped talking the whole time.

Jack Wasserbach, a Carmel photographer, came in on Wednesday to show his work from Big Sur. He also divulged that he is slowly losing his eyesight because of problems with detached retina. He is slowly going blind, but he is so experienced with a camera that he can still work and plans to go on even if he loses his sight. He was very moving and inspirational.

Dixie Dixon was in the workshop as a participant, but she switched roles on Thursday night and brought some of her rock band musicians along for an impromptu concert by the fire. She did some country swing, some jazz, and some rock. It was a cool clear evening, but we had a roaring fire in the fire pit and watch the sunset over the Pacific as we sang along. Dixie has a CD which will be released this Thursday. I have an advanced copy and it's wonderful!

It was a special workshop and it took me four days to recover from the effort. I'd do it again in a flash!

Major Gains

I'm getting into deeper and more challenging consulting engagements. In the last few months, I've worked with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, HP, Cisco, BT and Emulex. As I get healthier I am available to get into more complex issues. The issues are absorbing and the challenges of balancing work with health care and family life are greater.

I'm happy to have those challenges to wrestle with. A year ago, I was focused on getting well enough to undergo major surgery that was loaded with risks. It's taken a year to feel like I'm getting back to normal.

I still have to be careful. Eating is getting easier. I know better what I can eat and what I can't. Each person is unique and has to learn from experience. I have at least two more dilation procedures scheduled. Getting at least four dilation procedures following this surgery seems about standard from what I read on other patient blogs.

We have figured out that I can't wait for scar tissue to close the esophagus passage before I schedule a procedure. I need to anticipate and schedule the procedure before it gets closed off. You would think that someone in the medical profession would explain about the fact that scar tissue is going to cause problems following Ivor Lewis surgery. An intern said something about "opening up the passage if it became clogged". It would have been much better if a surgeon had said, prior to and after surgery, that scar tissue would very likely form and need to be dilated several times before it stopped growing in a year or two. The procedure consumes a day and is not painful or uncomfortable in any way. That expectation would have saved me months of discomfort.

I'm getting steadily stronger week by week. I can really feel the gains on the golf course and in the gym. I climbed three flights of stairs fairly quickly with a client yesterday and was not out of breath as I would have been three months ago. I walked nine holes a week ago for the first time and felt fine afterward.

I'm getting there!

Time March's on...

We set the clock forward an hour today and sprung forward with the rest of the country. It does feel like we are springing forward.

The procedure I we did two weeks ago worked well. I'm able to swallow with little problem. I've gained three pounds in two weeks. I've worked almost full time over the last two weeks as well.

I feel as though we have a new life here. We know a lot of wonderful people already. Sharon loves volunteering at the Monterey Aquarium. I love my work with clients. We both have joined the Unitarian/Universilist Church of the Monterey Peninsula.

I feel like time is finally moving forward.

It's Spring!

Well, not according to the calendar, but try telling that to the thick, rich yellow daffodils fighting for space in our raised bed to the right of our driveway! And, try telling that to the pink and white Camellias that are pushing hard on the redwood fence that surrounds the garden. The warm, moist air won't listen. The low hanging fog around Point Lobos will just continue to slide by in it's springtime easterly direction whispering "Itsss ssspringggg!" ever so softly.

Exactly one year ago I was half way through chemo and radiation. Only now do I have the stomach to go back and read what I wrote. It is an out of body experience. It's about 10 months from surgery and I'm doing very well. The doctors told me that it would take a year to get my energy back, and I think I'm a little ahead of schedule. I feel great!

There are still occasional problems. I've had increasing problems swallowing and digesting certain foods. It's unpredictable. I'm going to have a second endoscopy with a balloon dilation this Thursday at Stanford. I'm sure it will help. It may take a few of these procedures to beat back the scar tissue that continues to grow around the area where my remaining esophagus meets my stomach.

There is evidence of a pseudo-cyst in there somewhere as a result of surgery. We have to scan it every 6 months to make sure it doesn't grow and require more surgery. These things are more hassle than danger. They often go away on their own. I can tune out the hassles and get back to work.

I'm going to try to work four days instead of two this week and next. I believe I can do that without getting too tired. We'll see.

I feel born again....physically, emotionally and spiritually. Like Spring!

I can breath again...

When you have a day scheduled such as last Friday you hold your breath as the day approaches. I was to hear about the status of the Pulmonary Emboli that was discovered three months ago. I was also to hear the results of the ultra sound scan of my legs where the clots were produced. I needed another breathing test. And then, there is the dreaded contrast CT scan and those results.

And, at the end of 48 hours of breathless anxiety, I could sigh with relief. My lung capacity went from 82% six weeks ago to 97% on Friday. That's amazing! I had been gaining 2-3 % every six weeks and I thought it would take a lot longer to get back to normal.

I also passed another scan with no sign of cancer. They don't need another scan for six months. The pulonary emboli are cleared up. My legs are clear. My weight is stable. I'm working out a lot and gaining muscle back a lot faster than I imagined I would.

I probably need to go back and have my esophagus dilated again in a few weeks, but that is expected, routine, and relatively easy to get done.

Life is getting better and better.

It's still raining...

We managed to stay warm and dry as the rain continued to come down over the weekend. There is no sun in sight on the 10 day weather forecast, but we needed the rain to prevent the drought conditions that often affect the Monterey Peninsula.

Sharon loves her orientation workshops at the Monterey Aquarium. It's the best organized and managed non profit organization that she has been involved with including Kew Gardens in London. She is studying to be a guide.

We also are joining the Monterey Unitarian/Universalist Church next Sunday. We haven't had the time to be involved with a church since our Middletown days. It's been very enjoyable to connect with so many caring people in a church which is so inclusive.

My health continues to be good. My weight is stable. I'm eating a wide variety of food. Occasionally, I have trouble swallowing and I have to eat slowly and carefully. I saw a story the other day about medical researchers who have worked out an esophagus transplant for people with esophagus cancer that is made of a pig's bladder coated with stem cells. It seems to work. I've worked hard to avoid piggishness and I don't think I'll be one of first to try it.

I have follow up CT scans again in a couple of weeks. Those are always unnerving, but I don't feel any symptoms that give me any concern, so, once again, I'm expecting a good outcome.

We had a video conference with our grandchildren yesterday. The technology is improving and it really helps to see a video image of them as well as hear there voices.

Deep in Rain Season

I was exploring the rocks, with my camera, at low tide this afternoon during a break in the rain and came across this Great Blue Heron. He didn't seem to mind my presence. He was regal as he picked little fish from the tide pools and swallowed them in one gulp. I really like my new camera. I had the 300 mm lens that I got for a birthday present.

We came home from a week of deep freeze in the East to non-stop rain on Sunday and it feels great.

I did some work in New York City late last week and then went on to Springfield, MA where my in laws are trying to adjust to the idea of moving out of their home of 50 years and into a new senior apartment in a nearby neighborhood.

This was the first real travel and business trip since going back to work part time. It was touch and go because I came down with a cold that robbed me of my voice for the first half of the week. I gambled that I would get my voice back before the workshop. I did...30 minutes before the workshop. Close call.

All in all, I did fine. I'm looking forward to stepping up my work hours over the next few weeks.