Cycle 2 has officially started (what started, I’m already past the IV injections of the first week!), and what better way to celebrate a new chemo cycle 2, than to…
…2cycle!
That’s right, I dusted the old Torpado (it’s not old, less than a year I’ve had it), blew half a can of WD-40 on the chain and the brakes (not the brake shoes, no), as the last time I used the bike was on a very rainy February day when I decided to dry myself and just toss the fiets in the locker room — result is the chain being basically a rusty piece of fixed metal, an art piece in the shape of a bicycle chain… but as we know:
If it moves, but it shouldn’t: Duct Tape.
If it doesn’t move, but it should: WD-40.
But where was I… oh yes, cycle^2, cycle 2, 2cycle, bicycle, that sort of thing. (By the time I came up with this title, I had to google “bicycle” just to see how to write it. I’m distracted easily, but that’s the Prednisolon and it’s lovely side effect, sleep deprivation. Anyway, where was I. Right.)
The above picture was actually taken on the 3rd day of chemo IVs. I came home, had a good hour of sleep, then went out for a 8.3 km Giro d’IJburg. On chemo day. I had some nausea, easily managed with my friend, Ondansetron — 1 pill, when the max is 3/day. Also, I’m getting the sleep problems again (it’s the ‘roids), but the worst part of this is actually being pissed off at 3:30am on why you can’t sleep — if you accept this, maybe read or do some stuff (blog, for example, and organise your photos), it’s not that bad. Other than that, and dare I say, cycle 2 so far has been better than cycle 1.
It seems the more fitness you do, the better you take these IVs. Side note: I also love my veins, as Juli can tell: they are in pretty good condition now (chemo supposedly will impair them significantly), and I believe (and see, actually) that doing even the walks, and in general keeping blood flow and circulation up helps them a great deal. It also helps the nurses who need to find the vein for the IV if the vein is nice and thick and hard. (Yes, we are talking about veins.) So I think keeping fit is probably the most important thing you can do for yourself if you are doing this kind of treatment.
Weather’s also treating me nice these past couple of days, I did these panoramas in beautiful early summer Amsterdam weather:
And this Tinyplanet (Google Photosphere/View will be added to Google Street View soon):
Bottom line: sports are good. Do sports, people.
(By the way, I’m using Endomondo. You can Friend me there, and see details of my rides.)
Oh, weight status: 79.6 kg. I didn’t make the 80 kg mark as planned by end of cycle 1, but I almost did. I practically did. If my phone is in my pocket, I did. Shit, even then it’s only 79.73 kg… Maybe my keys also?…
[And a distracted Gergo walks away contemplating on weight of small objects in pockets…]
