Almost a Californian

Believe it or not, this crazy shack of a Comfort Inn we booked actually has wireless internet access. I tried logging on to update the blog and check some emails only to find that the signal drops to 1.0 mbps (It should be around 54.0 mbps) about every two minutes. Ultimately, I keep getting disconnected and can't stay on long enough to get my update posted.

Not to fret... I'm no dummy. I will prevail! I am typing this update in Microsoft Word and am leaving the window open on my screen. Then, when I find at least a 10-second window of decent wireless connectivity, I'm going to log on and simply hit ctrl c + ctrl v and copy and paste this update right into my blog. I should have thought of this last night. It's already 8:00 a.m. Indiana, and I'm sure many of you are wondering what happened at yesterday's consultation. Here is the lowdown:

Dr. Quocc Luu (he is Vietnamese by nationality, but born and raised in the United States) at Loma Linda University Proton Treatment Center is now my primary radiation oncologist. He has officially accepted my case. Not only that, he wants to get this thing rolling right away. He cannot believe how long it has taken to diagnose this thing, and was mortified that I've had the diagnosis since April and haven't begun radiation yet.

I am returning to the office this morning. I have an 8:30 a.m. appointment to get my radiation mask fitted and then complete another CT Scan with the mask on. Dr. Luu and Maryellen (his/my primary nurse) will then start running the plan immediately. Dr. Luu's goal is to have the plan completed by May 30, 2006. At first, he proposed that I return to California to start radiation on that day. I explained to him that I was hoping to start on June 12th so that I could be at home for the last week of school (and possibly teach full-time, administer exams, etc.), that week.

Long, Intense Side Note: The 11th is also the date I can officially move out of my apartment. We will be packing up most of our belongings and putting them in storage. Corlissa (and possibly Keesha) will be based at Karl & Danielle's for the summer and we are going to turn the basement into a makeshift one-bedroom apartment for them (Karl & Danielle had plans to finish the basement a little at a time. We're going to use some of the money I am saving by not paying rent at two separate residences for two months to get this ball rolling a little early. Karl & Danielle are going to be out-of-town off some of the summer. Corlissa will be in summer school ½ days for most of the summer and will be gone two full weeks at the beginning of July. Everything is really up-in-the-air with Keesha, but I'm planning the schedule as if I have to find coverage for her as well. This is why the U.S. History Trip is so important. Keesha has to take summer school to stay on track to graduate. This class counts for both the fall and spring social studies credits and frees up two slots in her schedule for her to make-up classes that she's failed due to attendance/her harried life. If Keesha is in the same class as Corlissa, I don't have to worry about transportation to and from summer school, they can hold each other accountable regarding homework, getting up on time in the a.m., and I know they have a writing assignment each day with a partner. Not only that, but we know that she will also be gone those first two weeks of July on the trip. That would give Karl & Danielle a nice little break in the schedule. Somehow, someway we have got to make this work out. There was one open slot left for the trip, but I think they are hesitant to add her because it is so late in the game. Keesha's mom wants her to go, too. We will have to hustle, but we can have her paperwork in and ready and meet all the deadlines that have been set for the other kids if we only get the green light to get going! That is going to be one of my top priorities the second I get back in town. It doesn't really matter whether Keesha is added to our family temporarily or permanently. I am about to become these girls' official "educational custodian" and will be listed as the primary person in charge of making educational decisions, calling in absences, and keeping them on-track to graduate. It is my responsibility to make sure this girl gets her diploma and graduates with her class. She is very bright. She tries to "save face" by acting as if she doesn't care about school, but she cheks STI (our online gradebook) almost every single night from home. She generally starts her homework immediately when she gets home from school, and I've seen her work on homework for four straight hours without complaining once. I know there are other teachers who see past the "save-face" attitude she gives, but it is just frustrating that, for the most part, the circumstances which got her in this predicament were totally and completely out of her control. UGH!


Back to the radiation schedule/prognosis: Dr. Luu thought the 12th would be fine, but everyone sensed his hesitancy. In fact, Jeremy and Corlissa were there for the entire appointment and Corlissa actually spoke up and said, "Girl, if you don't start when he wants to start...." We all agree that there is no significant risk in waiting the extra two weeks; however, it is not optimal. My other issue is that I would only be at at home a partial week before returning to live in California. That is simply not enough time to find a place to live/car to drive out here. Ultimately, we've settled on a compromise. I will be returning to LLUMC and starting radiation on June 5, 2006. Dr. Luu wants me to undergo an 8-week dose of proton radiation. I can't leave the second it's over, though. They generally keep patients a week longer for monitoring. Any way you look at it, I'll still be home by the beginning of August and possibly even by the July 31 date that I had planned. The only difference is that I'm going to have to tack on an extra week at the beginning. We've also decided that I'm going to stay with either Jeremy or Kristin for the first week I'm here (their wedding isn't until July 1, 2006, but their new place is available on May 26, 2006. They still haven't settled on who is moving into the new place until the wedding, but I will be living with whomever that is the first week of treatment. My goal is to narrow the housing search down to three properties before June 2, 2006, fly out the 3rd, visit each property and then work on getting the lease signed and moving in the next week. We are looking for a furnished 2BR so that all I have to do is have my clothing and personal care items shipped out to Jeremy and Kristin's and we can move right in. If you know me, you know I like to be one step ahead of the game. So, I stopped at JcPenney last night and bought an extra set of luggage. I way over-packed for Hawaii, so I took out several summer outfits, toiletries, etc. and re-packed us for this trip. I'm actually packing two separate suitcases that Jeremy and Kristin are going to keep in the apartment for me. It is now feasible that I could just fly out on the 5th and have enough clothing to last me this entire week if I can't get things shipped here by that date. It will be much cheaper to ship things like shampoo, makeup, etc. than to buy stuff here because tax is like 8% out here right now.

On the bright side, Maryellen (great nurse in Cali), has already helped out a ton with some housing connections and helped us decide that Rancho Cucamonga is definitely the best bet as far as my central location. She also told me that the American Cancer Society will reimburse me for all mileage I drive to and from treatment while I'm here. It's just a matter of contacting them for the right paperwork and having LLUMC verify it. She has been instrumental in getting this ball rolling and keeping it rolling. I have a really good feeling about her. Many thanks to all the others who have put in phone calls on my behalf to help secure housing and transportation. I will definitely be getting more info. and getting in touch with your contacts. Some of you have called and left messages for me to call you. I am not sure what will happen with my cell in Hawaii, but since Kelly has been emailing me/updating her blog from HI, I'm fairly sure there will be some way for me to do so as well. Can those of you who have contact names/numbers email them to me? I definitely want to start making contacts even from HI if I do have cell phone service.

On the not-so-bright side, one area where Dr. Luu differed from the other specialist was his outlook for my physical condition during radiation. He expects me to have a pretty major burn on my face and that I will be in significant pain. They will work hard to manage the pain, but the medications could be intense enough that I would be ordered not to drive. Essentially, I am going to need to have a contingency plan to cover this. According to the schedule I've been working out, it appears as if enough people are planning to come and stay with me that I could feasibly have visitors each day I'm in California (hurry...there are only a few slots left for you to book your no-lodging-cost vacation to Cali this summer!). Sorry, you may have to drive me to radiation for 30 minute each day as compensation for the free place to stay :(

Digressing from bright to not-so-bright into the forces of darkness news: Anthem still has not signed my pre-determination paperwork to approve Loma Linda as my treatment facility and Dr. Luu as my treating physician. Alane (my insurance specialist in California) says that the original pre-determination was coded incorrectly all along. She isn't sure if the mistake was made on Bloomington's end or Anthem's end, but the treatment listed on the original form was not coded correctly ever. Since the codes are changing, we have had to start the process over from scratch and were told that the same 4-6 week delay is quite possible. Amazing people have dropped everything to try to intervene with Anthem (again). No one knows where we're at with this paper, but it I am scheduled to meet with Alane at 7:30 a.m. (10:30 for most of you in Indiana) to settle this. Since Anthem will just have started the business day, everyone is skeptical that this paper will get signed in time. In fact, we worked out a plan yesterday, and I am planning to write a check for $9,600 to Loma Linda University Medical Center at that time. It is LLUMC's policy that the patient must pay for 20% of the entire course of treatment up-front if they want to proceed with appointments before securing insurance approval. Thus, the figure is a little higher than expected. Either way, it just doesn't make sense to do wait. The appointment is on the calendar, waiting will cost us valuable time, and I would return from Hawaii and have to turn around and fly right back to LA the next day to get this done. That will cost more money out-of-pocket in both the short and long-term. I just don't see any way around it. UGH! No one needs to panic, though. We've got a plan in place to cover the funds. I am not about to bounce a check this morning or anything. We've basically witnessed one miracle after another leading us to California. The day is young. I'm not ready to box God in just yet!

I'm scheduled to leave the hotel at 6:45. Should have plenty of time to spare to get to LAX for the flight because they think the appointment will only take an hour and I'm the first one on the schedule. Pray for smooth traffic on the west-bound 10. No accidents and we should even have time to go out to lunch!

I'll be offline until we arrive in HI. We're schedule to land at 5:20 p.m. local time (It's three hours later than CA, six hours later than you). I probably won't be back in touch until tomorrow (but it will likely be evening on Wednesday your time before I would update the blog or start trying to call people). Until then!

Add one to the list of miracles: I got a decent connection! I can't change the font at all, so who knows how this text will appear on our screen.