Coping with life!

[Jack Williams]

I hated Avatar. Cringe material.

[john62]

It was not that bad, but I have seen better SC moives.

John

[DALederle]

Skip:
As far as I know, Stranger In A Srangeland has never been made into a movie so it's not on DVD or VHS.
But you could try and see if your local library has a big print version that you might be able to read.
I don't think a movie could be made of this book that would ever do it justice. There are so many details in the book and so many points of view expressed that would not make for a good movie but make's it an excellent read.
I re-read it at least once a year. Just like I watch certain movies at least once a year.
Rio Bravo, El Dorado, Donavon's Reef, The Quiet Man (yes I'm a huge John Wayne fan(, The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951 b/w version), THEM, Errol Flyn's Robin Hood, 20.000 Leagues Under The Sea (the best Disney live action film ever made) and, as they say, a host of others.
I also re-read most of the Matt Helm books, by Donald Hamilton every so often. Great series, too bad the movies and TV version were so bad. Matt Helm makes James Bond look like an incompetent sunday school teacher. But that's just my opnion.
Three new movies I really enjoyed were The Girl With The Dragon Tatoo, THe Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest. Good books too.

Dennis A. Lederle

Grok?

[Kirbstone]

Dennis,
Your taste in movies mirrors mine, but having read 'the girl with the dragon tatoo' I decided that the subject matter was so disturbing that I shall not be reading the other two.
I bought the DVD of the first one and I thought the film was very true to the book, cramming all the relevant details into the time available. It was very well cast, too, but again the action is in parts so distasteful that I would not watch it in my wife's company. (She has also read the first book of the trilogy)
Tom K.

[Since1982]

I guess I'm different than a lot of people. I don't hate anything or anyone. Just too strong a feeling for me to wrap myself around.

[DALederle]

Skip:
I think you would be perfect to read Stranger In A Strangeland.
It is also about not hating anyone.
Kind of like Spock done in a religious motiff that works.
I'll look to see if there's a large print version that you could possible read or a talking book version somewhere.

Dennis A. Lederle

Grok?
p.s.
I'm about halfway through my radiation treatments, with no serious side effects yet. They don't expect too many for what I'm going through. Just frequent urination off and on.

[DALederle]

I am coming toward the end of my Radiation Therapy, just two weeks and one day to go. The side effects have gone away and I'm feeling pretty good at the moment. The doctors say everything looks good right now!
But I did have one really bad experience that had nothing to do with my health.
I went in Friday for my scheduled 2:45 p.m. appt. It was 3:30 before they took me in to begin treatment. I layed on the table 45 minutes after treament began (it's supposed to take just 15 minutes). But the machine broke down. Being on my back is a very hard position for me to lay in, because of my COPD and I began to have coughing spasm to get rid of phelm that was building up. They finally took me down and asked if I wanted to walk around a bit before resuming treatment.
But I had had it by then. Also my friend who has been driving each day was waiting out in the lobby. And he needed to get away for a trip that afternoon. So the whole thing was cancelled and I will have to have one more day of treament then scheduled.
This is the third time the machine has had problems while I was getting my treatment. The other two times it was only a 15 minute delay. But 45 minutes really put me at my limit.
I'm vexed over this but there is really no one I can blame. The two lady techs. teating me had no control over faults in a machine. I just have to write if off to bad luck.
Hope the rest of it goes okay. It is like having a part time job to go to, each day, but you don't get paid for it. From start to finish it takes 2 hours a day, leaving at 2 p.m. and getting home around 4 p.m. Prime hours I usually spend writing and getting chores done around the house.

Dennis A. Lederle
Live Long and Prosper!

[Grok]

I have an increasing empathy for people such as Dennis Lederie. I am in a somewhat similar position. I will be undergoing chemo-therapy; I had surgery for colon cancer a few weeks ago

[DALederle]

Grok:
I am sorry to hear about your problems.
Did they get all the cancer from the surgery. That is very important. I had a kidney removed a few years back, and it had a cancer growth in it, but it was all there and hadn't spread. If they got all the cancer that is the important part.
Why are they doing chemo for you. That's rougher then what I'm doing.

Dennis A. Lederle
To Infinity and Beyond!

[Grok]

The surgeon thought that he got all of it. But he can't be absolutely sure; so the chemotherapy could be regarded as an insurance policy.

[Kirbstone]

Here's hope for all you post-surgery Cancer sufferers:
My very best and closest rowing friend, whom I have known since I was 18 was sitting in the bow seat of our racing four on the way up to the start of an event in March 1998 when we were in collision with another boat and my friend got a whack of a racing oar across his back.
He thought nothing of it on the day, but passed blood in his urine that night. All that previous year he had been to various accupuncture and other 'experts' about diffuse pains down one side of his back without any real relief. One of our rowers was then a Prof. of Image Diagnostics in a Dublin hospital/institute and ran our mutual friend through various scans revealing a fist-sized cauliflower-like growth on his right kidney. He had a nephrectomy the following Tuesday and it biopsied malignant. The excision was complete and without metasteses (secondary growths) and he wasn't given chaemo.

The op. was a total success and in 2004 my friend won a gold medal at the World Masters' Regatta in Hamburg in his single scull....the only member of our group to do so.

Quite unrelated, he developed a malignancy in a lung in 2006, which was picked up very early, due to the rigorous regular checks they were doing on him, and this was deemed to be another primary & was totally excised, again with no chaemo. afterwards.
Five years on he is as fit as a flea, and even with slightly reduced lung capacity is going well for a crack at this year's World Masters' at Posnan in Poland in September. I wouldn't be surprised if he won another shiny gong!!

Tom K.

[DALederle]

Only six more treaments to go! Wow!
Things are looking up! I'm feeling better then I have in months, maybe years,
All the getting out every day and going in for treatments has seemed to help tougen me up a little and increased my stamina.
I owe it to my knew walker. You've seen them, I'm sure. The old guys (which I am) shuffling along, holding themselves up and walking oh, so slowly. But at least I'm getting out and around more. Went shoping with my wife today and we were out and around about four hours.
Of course, I came home tired and took a nap. But even that felt good.
My last treament will be on Monday-Tursday, the day after Easter. Maybe there's a bit of an Easter blessing there for me too!
At least I hope so!

Dennis A. Lederle
Hippity, Hoping, Down the Bunny Trail!

[Grok]

When the pain medications start to wear off, I move like an old man.

At this point it is not clear when I can go back to work.

I don't know yet how well my body will tolerate chemotherapy. The drugs used are toxic. Cancer tissue is supposed to be more sensitive to the poison than normal tissue, but, of course, there are nasty side effects.

The chemotherapy will be a six month regimen.

[DALederle]

My last day of Radiation treatments!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow!
The daily grind is over with (for now). No big side effects have occured. Just a little extra urination, etc. Hay! The radiation shot throough my bowels and bladder to get there.
So by tomorrow night I should be able to drink a beer again.
Had a good Easter. How did everyone elses go?
I am getting out on my on now, with the help of my four wheel walker. I'm such a speed demon I really need those hand brakes (and I have a acre of bottom land to sell you down in the swamp land too). Felt good to get out all by myself on Saturday. Had to sneak out to get my wife an Easter Card.
Wahoo!

Dennis A. Lederle
Grok?
Live Long and Prosper!

[Big and Bashful]

Spent Easter working on my boat, today it was anti-fouling, lovely toxic blue anti-fouling. At least the day ended with beer!