The drains are gone! If you've ever had surgery that required post-op drains, you know how awesome it is to be drain free. If you don't know what I'm talking about, google Jackson-Pratt drain. I chose not to take a picture of mine. It's kind of hard to make them look pretty. Writing about difficult …
Category: life
Must. Be. Meaningful.
I've started several blog posts that I haven't finished. Percocet took over and I couldn't think. And everything I write seems ridiculous. Trite. Meaningless. I don't have anything to add to the cancer narrative. I can't add any original observations. I've started reading two breast cancer memoirs. I finished the first chapter of one of …
Percocet Dreams
Maybe the pain meds aren't responsible for the dreams. Maybe the surgery experience brings out the odder corners of the mind. Possibly the meds and surgery experience collude. In one dream, everything was red. Fire engine red. The walls, the sky, the ground, every single thing red. The same red of the light switches in …
Imagination Fail
Eight days until surgery. I've got my post-op shirts and even two small post-op pillows. One pillow is recommended for the drive home from the hospital. It will go between the seatbelt strap and me. I've seen post-op pictures of others to give me an idea what to expect. I'm getting my house in order, …
Learning
When I first wanted to be a writer (back when I was eight, I think), I knew nothing about the publishing industry. I didn't understand how agents worked or what it took to get a book to readers. A few years ago a young man told me he wanted to write a book so that …
Bunny’s in a Hospital Gown
I draw when I'm in waiting rooms. These days I'm drawing adventures in the medical wonderland. I'm sure some of you know the vocabulary that I'm just now learning. Post surgery life does not sound like fun. I don't like sentences that contain words like drains, valves, and special shirts. Not sparkly unicorn special. Good-for-incisions-and-drains …
Saying Something Impossible
Now I know that I will be having a double mastectomy. At least it's decided. One of the strange things about this new aspect of my life is actually saying, "I have cancer." Just weird to say. All these years and I thought it was weird to say, "I'm a writer." Ha. What impossible things …
Between a Shrug and a Radio Interview
A while I wrote about my health. Talking about my health makes me feel that much older. Does that make sense? Anyway. The updates--for those of you aging along with me--are as follows: The incision from surgery is still healing. 92% closed according to the computer. Fancy stuff computers tell us these days. Imagine what …
Bloody Days
I've almost forgotten I blog. Heading toward the Christmas season things took an unexpected turn. A routine mammogram ended in a biopsy and two surgeries, and I can't say it's all done yet. The main distraction is the incision that has continued to bleed for over a week. There are plenty more serious health issues …
Where does writing begin?
We all have a story why we write or make art or create whatever it is we create. How far back does the story go? Does my story go back to the first book I fell in love with? (Watership Down) Does it go back to my mother's love of books? My grandmother's love of …
Marta Bacon 