A Run To The Border!

Remember in the early 90's when Taco Bell's slogan was to "run to the border". I was working for Best Buy at the time and there were many days when that phrase would echo down the hall. It was lunchtime and the only question that needed to be answered was, "we are running to the boarder, you in?"

Well today I got to run to the border once again. This time however it will not be to Taco Bell.

Welcome to Canada. Our journey takes us to Nipigon Ontario on the northern shores of Lake Superior.  I have never fished in Canada and nor have I fished Lake Superior so this will be a first for me.  Large northern, large walleye, and large small mouth bass are our targets for the next couple of days.

The spot we will be fishing has been producing large northern pike over the past week or so. The numbers of northern pike over forty inches has been mind blowing.  Over a couple of day span this particular bay has produced forty plus fish over the 40 inch mark. To say I am excited to get out there would be an understatement.
The weather will be a challenge for us as rain and storms are being forecasted for the area later tomorrow. The bay we will be fishing in will provide some cover, but Lake Superior is big and I do not be on her in a boat when the storms roll in. So the plan is to hit it hard tonight and then again tomorrow for as long as the weather holds.  With everything I have been through over the past 9 months, I really do not want to star in my own version of the deadliest catch....

Update:
We are off the lake for the evening. In total we landed seven northerns the smallest was thirty six inches and the large ones were well over forty inches long. These were some of the largest fresh water fish I have seen.

And we are just starting our time here.

Gutless In Kansas City

How do you stay “fed” while on a business trip when the trip is short of time and lined wall to wall with meetings? The short answer is that you don’t. It is just not possible. These times are what makes getting back to a normal life after a total gastrectomy (T.G.) tough.

To stay healthy after my T.G. I need to eat 5-6 times a day.  I keep food and snacks in my office that I can reach for anytime. Eat some chips here, or some crackers there. Just keep eating is my motto. I understand that I am never going to be able to sit down like a normal person and eat enough food at any given time to keep me sustained for a long period of time. So I need to eat constantly. It is just a rhythm that I have learned to roll with. 

Well you can’t do that when on the road. You are just too busy and the challenge is that if you miss one or two smaller meals, you can’t just eat more later to make up for it. If you don't eat, it is just a meal missed. You can only eat so much so that missed meal is just food you don't get. Trust me, I have tried and failed on more than one occasion to eat more to make up for a missed meal and it is not pretty.

We arrived in Kansas City yesterday around lunch time. I had breakfast in the morning and a light snack at the airport. All good. Then if you count the peanuts on the plane then I was able to eat three times before lunch. Lunch was at an amazing Kansas City BBQ joint. However, after lunch the wheels started to come off my plan. Due to plant tours and process meetings the next chance I had to eat anything was dinner. So now I had missed two smaller “meals” that I normally eat.  Dinner was a local Japanese grill. This would be my first time eating sushi since my TG, and regrettably it did not go so well. The food was great, but my body didn't like it. Even my main course did not agree with me and I threw up everything I ate. Not good. Later in the evening I tried to eat some french fries just to get something in me, but after my dinner experience I was too sore and I threw them up also. 

Today (Wednesday) started early. We needed to be on location earlier than normal so I missed breakfast at the hotel. I was able to grab a bag of chips during a break, but other than that my first food came at noon when we went to lunch. I can’t tell you if it is related or not but I physically started to hurt this morning as the day progressed. The pain didn’t start to go away until after I ate at lunch. So far today I have really eaten only once and I should have eaten at least 4 times by now. 

We are getting ready to head home and are at the airport. I have sometime available to me to catch on my eating. However there is a bar right near me and I could go get a beer. If you know anything about me you know that I chose poorly. I can always eat later. Goose Island IPA.  J

Overall the trip was a success. We were able to find many ways to support our overall trip objective. 

I just need to get this eating thing down.

In the hustle of the day, were all inclined to miss

Little things that mean so much

A word, a smile, and a kiss

(Try A Little Tenderness   Frank Sinatra)

Another Year...

It’s funny how this day just sneaks up on you. One minute it's months away and then all the sudden you are like, wholly crap it’s tomorrow. What day is it? Well tomorrow is my birthday. In total it is number 54, but it is my first since having my stomach removed so it seems appropriate to look back at this past year some. 

Since my last birthday, a lot has changed. I mean I started the year with a stomach and then let them cut it out. 

I have spent more than my fair share of time in hospitals. I have way to many IV’s and found out the hard way what a PIK line was. 

I spent a day at Valleyfair with my family enjoying the lights and the rides, yet got no lights and sirens with my ambulance ride. Go figure. 

I have been poked and prodded and prodded and poked. It seems like everyone and their sister has stabbed me with needles this past year. I now stab myself with one on a monthly basis just so I don’t forget what the feeling is like. I have seen doctor after doctor and they never seem to agree. So you just roll with it.

In the end  I was put to sleep fourteen times this past year and woke up each and every time. So I got that going for me. However by the time we got everything under control I had lost 82 pounds. 

I am slowly starting to put some of it back on (183 pounds and counting as of this morning).

As tough as the year was, it is still highlighted by the positive news that there is no cancer to deal with. So many people are not that lucky so I will count my blessings. 

The next few weeks of May will be busy to say the least. The good busy will include Jenny coming home! There will be a number of my family and friends all of whom will have birthdays during this time which give us reasons to celebrate. Yet there will be that one birthday that will be kind of tough. My little girl turns 18 soon. She is an amazing young lady, but she is our youngest and I still see her as that little ball of energy bounding through the house with no fear. They grow up too fast.

Then there will also be the anniversary of my Dad’s passing. 22 years. UUGGHH.

To top it all off I will be traveling to Kansas City next week on business. Yep, heading to land of amazing BBQ joints and great craft beer.... 

All without a stomach (insert sad faced emoji here).

I don't know where I'm going

But, I sure know where I've been

Hanging on the promises In songs of yesterday

An' I've made up my mind, I ain't wasting no more time

But, here I go again

(Here I go again..  Whitesnake)