2011 was a rough year. 2010 had ended on a sad note, but things seemed to go well for a while. Norbert got into the best high school in the city. (Kvell!) He graduated from eighth grade in May and went on a trip to Israel with his 8th grade class. We planted a beautiful vegetable garden at the cottage, as well as three beautiful apple trees. We went to my family reunion in June, which was a great deal of fun, and we spent 3 out of 4 weekends at the cottage in Michigan. In July our friend and neighbor in Michigan, Dave, started getting sick and in August he was diagnosed with Stage 4 esophageal cancer. In September I had major hand surgery which kept me off work for a month and in physical therapy for another three months, which brings us to December, which is when I was diagnosed with Stage One melanoma. I'm doing fine. I'm as lucky as anyone can be. I've had a few resections and subsequent biopsies and I figure if we catch it every time at Stage One, I can take it.
The day of my first cancer surgery I got on the scale and forgot to tell the nurse not to say my weight out loud -- I had other things on my mind -- and when she said the number, it was so obscene, I gasped. January 1, 2012, I went on a diet and have lost 23 pounds to date. I am eating less and working out 3 or 4 times a week. I figure, if I have to fight cancer, I better be in fighting trim. So I plan to loose another 27 pounds between now and December.
What is happening in December? In December, Norbert and I are taking a two week trip to France -- 11 days in Paris and 3 days in Normandy. I've been talking about wanting to take Noah to Paris since he was about a week old, and I decided that someday was a terrible time to schedule a trip. His summer is really scheduled, so Winter Break was the only time we could do it. Myfanwe, who has no interest in going to France, has decided to stay home with Mitzi and make it a father/son trip.
My beloved friends, George and Maxine, gave their daughter, Little Bird, a baby brother in February. I was honored to act as Sandek (Godfather) at Lil' Elvis' bris. George and Maxine and Little Bird had moved last August to Hollywood so that Maxine could be a Physician to the Stars. I took my first trip to Los Angeles for the bris and, while enchanted, I realized almost instantly that a) I could never be thin enough to live there, and b) LA would be a shitty place to live for someone who now has to stay out of the sun. Aside from that, it was beautiful and I would love to visit again. This is Me and Lil' Elvis:
I've done some wonderful knitting. I knit the Damask Shawl as a gift for Maxine before she left. I knit my first Orenberg Shawl after my hand surgery. I knit a beautiful Ceres Shawl for myself for the trip to Paris. (Homeless people in Paris have more style than I, so I am trying to kick it up a couple of notches.) And I knit a couple of baby blankets.
I'm tired. This is all I can say. I can't promise I will post a LOT, but I will NOT wait 18 months. Peace, all. Peace.
