We got a new wee arrival to our family on Friday 19th september 2014.A beautiful wee girl called Chloe Isabella Harper was born.A first grandchild for Bill and me.She was a couple of weeks early,but is perfect in every way.well done Paul and Claire!

Chloe Isabella Harper

Proud grandpa Bill

Proud gran Anne

proud parents

On Monday 1st September , I  had an appointment to get a portacath inserted.The procedure was done in the radiology department of Gartnavel hospital.The staff were incredible-a professor , registrar , nurses , medical students , and radiographers - all there for little old me.Our NHS is just wonderful - hope it can stay that way !
In the afternoon I went to see my oncologist and was prescribed my treatment , including my new wonder drug , for the Wednesday.
Went to Beatson on Wednesday and was hooked up to chemo , which lasted about six hours in total .

My new line

ready for take off

Just chilling!

No problems during the infusion . Paul had downloaded some comedies for me to watch - Max and Paddy , and Phoenix Nights - absolutely hilarious ! Peter Kay is a very funny man.
Went home with my chemo pump in place and had it removed on Friday. One of the side effects of this chemo is the problems with nerve damage to hands and feet , made worse by coldness.Thankfully , the sun has been shining constantly since I got my chemo , although I am sure that will not last !
Went to see Paul and Claire's new house on Saturday-they have moved to a place called Woodilee Village , which is in the grounds of an old hospital - beautiful area , and beautiful home !

Decided to get my hair cut as it was getting unruly , don't know if I will lose it again with this chemo , but at least I know what that is like .

before

After

All my life I had curly hair , and all my life I wanted straight hair-be careful what you wish for !

On 14th August,Bill and I travelled down to London to attend the Loncon.

We went first class on Virgin trains, and it was a very enjoyable journey! We stayed at the Hilton Hotel in Canary Wharf.Very nice hotel and close to the Docklands Light Railway.
The convention was held at the Excel centre,which was massive-just as well,as there were ten thousand folk attending!
It was a lot of fun, and there were a lot of interesting people there, especially Guy Consolmagno

Bill with Guy Consolmagno 

There were loads of folk in costume as well - each to their own !

A highlight for me was sitting on this throne!

We had a great time there and I even let Bill visit the local football ground!

We went toWestminster cathedral while we were down-beautiful place!Bill got a photo taken there , too.

You would never guess he was a fan of Father Ted!


We came back home on the 19th August after a great time!






On 25th August,Bill and I celebrated our thirtieth wedding anniversary-quite a feat in this day and age!We are not "party people", so went for a meal at our favourite Italian restaurant , Qua,in Merchant City in Glasgow.

 Here are a few snaps of the evening.

Claire,Anne,Bill,Paul

Paul,Claire,Bill,Paul,Alan

Monday 14th July -was at the Beatson today , to see my doctor . He told me that my submission for Avastin has been approved - looks like I am getting it after all ! I will commence chemo with the Avastin at the end of August . Got a ct scan and bloods to get sorted out before then , and the little matter of the Loncon in London -Look out London , I am coming to get you !

Don't get too excited now-another post so soon? Maybe I have been affected by the sun-yes ,we do get sunshine in Scotland occasionally . Last Wednesday , (9th July) , promised to be a glorious day,so I asked Alan , my nephew , if he fancied a day out somewhere , as we were both at a loose end . I suggested the open top bus tour of Glasgow , as it was the perfect day for it - he said this sounded good. We got the train to Queen Street and then went to the bus stop in George Square for the tour bus. It was quite busy with tourists , but we managed to get seats upstairs-Alan had never been on an open topped bus before , so it was a novelty for him !

Alan about to set off on bus tour

Being a Glaswegian , I feel I know quite a lot about the city , but there is always something new to learn . We both listened to the banter of the tour guide , although I must admit it was a bit embarrassing that he only spoke the one language - it is for tourists , after all! I have been on bus tours in other cities , and the tour guides were multi lingual . He came across as a bit smug as well , but the tour was good , especially as it was lovely and warm . The tour is "hop on hop off " , which means you can get off at any stop and resume your journey whenever you like . We decided to get off at the

Riverside museum

Riverside museum , beside the River Clyde . Very fancy building , which has replaced the Glasgow Transport museum . After spending two hours wandering about the museum , we went out the back door and straight on to the

Tall Ship . Alan absolutely loves this ship - he worked on it for a while , and I think he would love to work on it again !

Alan scrubbing the deck!

The River Clyde

The River Police on the Clyde
                                                              

Another exciting instalment ! I have been refused Avastin-all political , I am afraid. If I lived in England there would be no problem , but living in Scotland , things are different. Anyway, my oncologist said there is an appeals procedure and that we should go ahead with that , as he thinks the drug would benefit me. I have written a patient statement ( basically a begging letter ), and it is now in the hands of the gods , or the board , to be more accurate!

I met up with my workmates for a long overdue catch-up and lunch . I have said before that my workmates are the best , and I stand by that! We went to Zizzi's in Glasgow and had a terrific time , and a terrific meal !

Bill and I haven't had a holiday for about five years , and it is very expensive to get travel insurance when you suffer from a condition like cancer . I was quoted £1,500 for one week's holiday in Europe-no chance , sorry! I started venting my spleen on Twitter , and got a message from a company called Flexicover to contact them as they said they could help - they sure did ! I got a quote for Bill and me for £29 for the week - big difference- will definitely recommend them!
So , Bill and I went for a week to Dublin - not too far away as I am still on daily injections of Heparin  , after the blood clot , and don't want to do long haul flights.
Was amazing-had never been before . Stayed in The Doubletree by Hilton -well , we are worth it! Dublin was very busy , more geared up to younger folk , I would say , but was very enjoyable . There are a lot of landmarks as Dublin has a great history and some very famous sons and daughters. Got my photo taken with a statue of the late Phil Lynott .

 A highlight ( for Bill ) , was a tour of the Guinness factory , , or the Guinness Storehouse , as it is known . It is seven floors of all things Guinness !

Was very interesting and very busy ! We got a chance to attend a tasters masterclass , which means we can call ourselves

Guinness tasters - I can't stand the stuff , but Bill enjoyed it! He also found his new favourite pub!

Another highlight was a visit to Dublinia . Had never heard of this before , but it was very interesting , and lasted about two and a half hours . The city bus tours were great , with some of the drivers singing Irish songs along the way . There was so much to see , that I think we will go back soon !

A few days after we got back from Dublin , Claire and I went on a wee trip to Manchester ( Claire's treat-thank you ).

We stayed at the Hilton , courtesy of Paul H. ( thank you ). It was very grand , if a little high up .

Our room was on the fifteenth floor - the view was terrific though !



We went on the

Coronation Street tour - which was fun . I am a great fan of "The Street" and it was a real treat for me. Claire and I got a couple of photos together .....

 and you might be able to see her bump, as she is carrying my first grandchild - something lovely to look forward to in October x x x

While in Manchester , we caught up with Paul , who has made his home there and is enjoying his drive time show on RealRadioXS.

We also visited the Trafford Centre-never seen anything like it in my life - amazing place - you could spend all day there ! Claire enjoyed the shopping experience !

                                                  

There is a "tweet-up" next week (5th July) down at Southwark cathedral in London , with a lot of my bowel cancer friends going along. I dearly want to go , and just might! you never know! Watch this space x x x

1st May: Went to Beatson today for results of ct scan.While the cancer hasn't spread to any other organs,there was no improvement noted after six months of chemo.The upshot is,I will be starting more chemo next month.Doctor wants to give me a bit of time for bone marrow to recover,and I will then start on my new regime- 5FU,Oxaliplatin,and Avastin. Oh well,let's party !!