At approximately 5:45 a.m. yesterday, just as I was stepping out of the shower, there was a loud BANG in our kitchen. Since I'd been hearing an odd hissing off and on, I dreaded finding out what made the noise. As I neared the kitchen (like it's all that far away), I smelled something a bit "off." Yeast. I instantly knew what caused the noise. Ned has a carboy of beer, wrapped in a large towel, brewing under the kitchen table. Sure enough, an ugly foam was bubbling from the airlock, which had blown its lid. Ned thought it was kind of funny and reassured me that it was a good thing, as far as the beer is concerned.
Now that Evan is out of the hospital, he is looking for acceptable projects to help fill his non-Clinic hours. Paul tells me that he wants to learn to bake bread and has received clearance to do so. More yeast. Probably a bit less volatile than the beer. Or at least we hope so. Of course, he could also set up a tidy little side business of selling his baked goods at the BMT Clinic. He could charge on an approximate scale to match the medical fees. Say, $1,000 per loaf. That would help defray some of his costs, give him a good hobby and provide healthy home baked goods for those busy medical professionals. But, since it's probably not very realistic, we will go ahead with the planned fundraiser to help Evan with the bills. Find out more about it at www.evanruesch.org (there's a link at the top right of the blog).
Each visit to the Clinic costs Evan the $30 out-of-pocket office visit fee not covered by his insurance. Add to that the parking fees and gas, and you can round up the daily clinic visits to about $40 over and above all the prescriptions and just plain living expenses. A day without an appointment is not only good news toward good health, it is also a big money saver. Today is to be one of those good days: Evan is doing so well, that he is able to skip a day today and stay away from the BMT Clinic. That's good news all around. Evan gets to save some money and Alyssa and Paul will probably find some fresh baked goods coming their way.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Amazing!
Evan was released from the hospital at noon today. His release comes three weeks earlier than we expected, which is absolutely amazing. Appropriately, it was Karl who was there to take him home -- to his Minneapolis home, that is. We are all delighted. Evan, I'm sure, is happier than the rest of us can even imagine.
Now begins the parent/sibling/friend camp out at Alyssa's. Karl, as mentioned, is there this weekend, which worked very well since Alyssa was teaching all day. Kit usually goes every weekend, but noticed a bit of a sore throat mid-week, so decided it was better to stay away this weekend. Paul will go up for the week, come home on Saturday, and I'll go up on Sunday for the following week. I still haven't been able to convince Evan or Paul that knitting will make these weeks fly by. In fact, any mention of taking up one of the needle arts gets me quite the perturbed look from Evan. Of course, that doesn't deter me.
It's a little surprising that Paul hasn't caught on to grabbing the needles yet. Whenever we go for a road trip of any distance (farther than Stevens Point or Marshfield), I bring some knitting. "Someone has to drive; someone has to knit" is a motto that serves me well. Of course, alternating weeks in Minneapolis is not conducive to riding together, and knitting while driving might be even worse than texting, but I'll get my knitting time in while I'm there. I'm already lining up the projects in my mind. And, if I run out, I still know how to get to my favorite yarn shop. My Minneapolis world is small: Alyssa's, Hospital/Clinic, great co-op (O.K., a little pricey, but a straight shot to and fro) and yarn shop. I really am looking forward to going there in a week. And not just for the yarn fix. I haven't seen Evan for two weeks. Another week isn't long, but then it will be three weeks. That's a long time when his wellbeing is at the forefront of my mind day and night. Yup, I'll admit it: I need an Evan fix more than any yarn.
Now begins the parent/sibling/friend camp out at Alyssa's. Karl, as mentioned, is there this weekend, which worked very well since Alyssa was teaching all day. Kit usually goes every weekend, but noticed a bit of a sore throat mid-week, so decided it was better to stay away this weekend. Paul will go up for the week, come home on Saturday, and I'll go up on Sunday for the following week. I still haven't been able to convince Evan or Paul that knitting will make these weeks fly by. In fact, any mention of taking up one of the needle arts gets me quite the perturbed look from Evan. Of course, that doesn't deter me.
It's a little surprising that Paul hasn't caught on to grabbing the needles yet. Whenever we go for a road trip of any distance (farther than Stevens Point or Marshfield), I bring some knitting. "Someone has to drive; someone has to knit" is a motto that serves me well. Of course, alternating weeks in Minneapolis is not conducive to riding together, and knitting while driving might be even worse than texting, but I'll get my knitting time in while I'm there. I'm already lining up the projects in my mind. And, if I run out, I still know how to get to my favorite yarn shop. My Minneapolis world is small: Alyssa's, Hospital/Clinic, great co-op (O.K., a little pricey, but a straight shot to and fro) and yarn shop. I really am looking forward to going there in a week. And not just for the yarn fix. I haven't seen Evan for two weeks. Another week isn't long, but then it will be three weeks. That's a long time when his wellbeing is at the forefront of my mind day and night. Yup, I'll admit it: I need an Evan fix more than any yarn.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
The Transplant!
There was one last thing Karl and Evan had to do before heading home for Grandma's funeral - the transplant! Karl needed to collect 5 million stem-cells to pass over to Evan, but he was able to come through with an extra million, just for good measure.
Karl was hooked up to his machine (I don't know what it's called other than "loud") for about 5 or 6 hours. Then, his cells were whisked away to St. Paul for a few tests and who knows what else, and then 2 hours later, shipped back to Evan's room in Minneapolis. The transplant took about 30 - 45 minutes.
All in a day's work.
Back to work
I have to go back to work today. That's right, I'm not looking forward to it. I'd much prefer a day to just absorb and process the past week and could actually take one more day of funeral leave, but I'll go to work so that I can go to Minneapolis on Friday without guilt.
I talked to Evan last night. He's never too chatty on the phone, but said his day went better than Sunday when he was feeling very poorly. Kit and Karl were both concerned about him when they left him on Sunday, but it sounds as if he's made some improvements since then. In fact, when I spoke with him, he was looking forward to Alyssa and Kit's arrival with leftovers from Grandma's funeral dinner. And kolaches from Bernard, a longtime friend of Grandma and Grandpa's, who baked an ample supply of the delicious treats for us. If Evan is hungry it's a good bet that he is indeed getting better.
Evan is optimistic about an early release from the hospital. His doctor told him yesterday that if his progress continues, he may very well be released much sooner than expected. He's all for that! His release means, however, that I need to prepare for working remotely again. It's all possible, but it takes a bit of preparation on my part, so I'd best go face the music.
I talked to Evan last night. He's never too chatty on the phone, but said his day went better than Sunday when he was feeling very poorly. Kit and Karl were both concerned about him when they left him on Sunday, but it sounds as if he's made some improvements since then. In fact, when I spoke with him, he was looking forward to Alyssa and Kit's arrival with leftovers from Grandma's funeral dinner. And kolaches from Bernard, a longtime friend of Grandma and Grandpa's, who baked an ample supply of the delicious treats for us. If Evan is hungry it's a good bet that he is indeed getting better.
Evan is optimistic about an early release from the hospital. His doctor told him yesterday that if his progress continues, he may very well be released much sooner than expected. He's all for that! His release means, however, that I need to prepare for working remotely again. It's all possible, but it takes a bit of preparation on my part, so I'd best go face the music.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
More Day 0
Paul called at about 7:30 last night to say that Evan was receiving the transplant. Alyssa (or Alissa) took a picture of Karl holding the bag of cells as they were delivered to Evan. That picture will certainly be worth a thousand words (and about 1/2 million dollars). Karl was able to give Evan 6.2 million stem cells yesterday, a nice cushion above the 5 million estimated as necessary. Now begins the process of those cells calling Evan's body home as he starts the long recovery period. After chemo, radiation and immune-suppressing drugs, he is ready to feel better. It's been a very long week for him any way you look at it.
On Monday evening, Paul's mother, Agnes, died. Even though she was 89 and in her words, "ready to go anytime now," none of us expected her death. It was a real shock to our family. And, of course, our immediate thoughts went to that hospital room in Minneapolis. Evan (and all of our kids) were very close to Grandma and Grandpa Ruesch, which made it difficult to even think about her funeral knowing that he won't be able to be there to say goodbye to Grandma.
I feel very fortunate to know that Alyssa, Karl and Evan all had each other to lean on this week. Evan, in fact, proved to be his normal strong self for me. You see, I couldn't reach Kit to tell him about Grandma. I called late Monday night. I called Tuesday morning and several times during the day. No answer. Late Tuesday afternoon, I asked Evan to try calling him to see if maybe Kit would answer his call. No luck. Finally Evan emailed Kit and told him to call home. Makes sense, I know. The funny part was (and yes, it was kind of funny) that when Evan and I had a devil of a time reaching Kit the previous weekend, Evan left a snotty (Kit's term) message about him never answering his phone. So, when Evan sent an email saying that we were all trying to reach him and that he should call home, Kit thought Evan was still ribbing him about the previous weekend. Kit, then, like the rest of us, was shocked to hear of Grandma's death. But he, like the rest of us, knew that Grandma was indeed ready to go.
We'll miss Agnes forever, but we all know that ever since the day Leonard died, she hoped she'd join him soon. We can't be sad for long when we know that she finally got her wish.
On Monday evening, Paul's mother, Agnes, died. Even though she was 89 and in her words, "ready to go anytime now," none of us expected her death. It was a real shock to our family. And, of course, our immediate thoughts went to that hospital room in Minneapolis. Evan (and all of our kids) were very close to Grandma and Grandpa Ruesch, which made it difficult to even think about her funeral knowing that he won't be able to be there to say goodbye to Grandma.
I feel very fortunate to know that Alyssa, Karl and Evan all had each other to lean on this week. Evan, in fact, proved to be his normal strong self for me. You see, I couldn't reach Kit to tell him about Grandma. I called late Monday night. I called Tuesday morning and several times during the day. No answer. Late Tuesday afternoon, I asked Evan to try calling him to see if maybe Kit would answer his call. No luck. Finally Evan emailed Kit and told him to call home. Makes sense, I know. The funny part was (and yes, it was kind of funny) that when Evan and I had a devil of a time reaching Kit the previous weekend, Evan left a snotty (Kit's term) message about him never answering his phone. So, when Evan sent an email saying that we were all trying to reach him and that he should call home, Kit thought Evan was still ribbing him about the previous weekend. Kit, then, like the rest of us, was shocked to hear of Grandma's death. But he, like the rest of us, knew that Grandma was indeed ready to go.
We'll miss Agnes forever, but we all know that ever since the day Leonard died, she hoped she'd join him soon. We can't be sad for long when we know that she finally got her wish.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Day 0
Today's the day. Alissa Diane called a little while ago to say everything was going along just fine. She was with Evan when the doctor came in this morning and learned that he will receive Karl's stem cells about 6:00 p.m.
Unfortunately, I am not able to be there today because I had a bout with a flu bug this week and still had a fever yesterday; it simply wasn't worth the risk to be with Evan when he receives Karl's cells later today. Paul did go, with camera in hand. And, of course, we know Grandma's watching over him today, too.
More later.
Unfortunately, I am not able to be there today because I had a bout with a flu bug this week and still had a fever yesterday; it simply wasn't worth the risk to be with Evan when he receives Karl's cells later today. Paul did go, with camera in hand. And, of course, we know Grandma's watching over him today, too.
More later.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
On schedule
Evan and I left home Friday morning at 8:30 for 12:30 appointment to have a Hickman line put in. We walked in to the hospital waiting room expecting Evan to be called back for the procedure. Instead, we were immediately taken to his room on the BMT unit. It wasn't long before someone came and and said that IR (Interventional Radiology, as we later learned) was backed up and he'd go in for the line procedure at about 2:00 p.m. Since Evan could eat nothing prior to that 12:30 appointment and drink nothing for 2 hours prior to the procedure, it didn't make him very happy to have to wait. But, by the time they actually informed us of the delay, it was less than an hour to the 2:00 time, so we accepted the news with a scowl and watched Jimmy Stewart in Shenandoah.
It was probably about 2:15 when the nurse returned saying that Evan would be going sometime before 4:00. The reaction was more than a scowl. Shortly after this news, Kit arrived. Each hospital staff member who entered the room told us they would do all they could to push the time ahead, but it was really a problem with IR. And push they did. Evan went in for the procedure to place the Hickman at about 4:15 p.m. Once that was finished, at about 5:40 p.m., we all converged upon Alyssa's apartment to consolidate vehicles before the four of us headed headed out for dinner.
Kit and Evan selected the Red Stag restaurant as the site for Evan's last public appearance for a while. Excellent choice! The men both had the northern pike fish fry while we women both ordered the blue gill fish fry. We shared an appetizer of smelt fries. The food was delicious, the libations were top notch, the waiter excellent, and the company appreciative of these last few hours of Evan's freedom as he had to return to the hospital by 9:00 p.m. to officially start his Day -7.
Friday night was flushing the system. Saturday morning brought the chemo. Again. It will supposedly be no more difficult for him to tolerate that anything else he's had and he's had a boatload. I stayed until just after 1:00 on Saturday afternoon, and he seemed to be doing fine. Kit was there and they were settling in for Day -6. It was very difficult to leave knowing that Evan has to remain there for so long, but his spirits were good, Kit was with him and all was going as it should.
I spoke with Evan a little while ago. He was looking forward to Alyssa's arrival with some Venison stew. The meat is from the 5-point buck Evan shot on Wednesday. He was able to squeeze in two weeks of bow hunting before heading to Minneapolis and managed to to shoot two deer in that time. There will be no shortage of venison for the Ruesches this year. Already two deer and Paul, Ned, Kit and Karl haven't even begun.
Karl will head to Alyssa's tonight and begin the process of building up his stem cell production on Monday. He'll receive an injection daily until the the 5th day -- Day 0 -- when he spends the day hooked up to a machine that will collect his healthy stem cells. Evan will receive them the same day.
The transplant calendar starts at Day -7 and progresses to Day 0 -- the transplant. It then follows a positive number sequence. At first that numbering system rather baffled me; however, I've now come to embrace that notion that the transplant date starts everything fresh and every day that follows is a positive one. We're all looking forward to that!
It was probably about 2:15 when the nurse returned saying that Evan would be going sometime before 4:00. The reaction was more than a scowl. Shortly after this news, Kit arrived. Each hospital staff member who entered the room told us they would do all they could to push the time ahead, but it was really a problem with IR. And push they did. Evan went in for the procedure to place the Hickman at about 4:15 p.m. Once that was finished, at about 5:40 p.m., we all converged upon Alyssa's apartment to consolidate vehicles before the four of us headed headed out for dinner.
Kit and Evan selected the Red Stag restaurant as the site for Evan's last public appearance for a while. Excellent choice! The men both had the northern pike fish fry while we women both ordered the blue gill fish fry. We shared an appetizer of smelt fries. The food was delicious, the libations were top notch, the waiter excellent, and the company appreciative of these last few hours of Evan's freedom as he had to return to the hospital by 9:00 p.m. to officially start his Day -7.
Friday night was flushing the system. Saturday morning brought the chemo. Again. It will supposedly be no more difficult for him to tolerate that anything else he's had and he's had a boatload. I stayed until just after 1:00 on Saturday afternoon, and he seemed to be doing fine. Kit was there and they were settling in for Day -6. It was very difficult to leave knowing that Evan has to remain there for so long, but his spirits were good, Kit was with him and all was going as it should.
I spoke with Evan a little while ago. He was looking forward to Alyssa's arrival with some Venison stew. The meat is from the 5-point buck Evan shot on Wednesday. He was able to squeeze in two weeks of bow hunting before heading to Minneapolis and managed to to shoot two deer in that time. There will be no shortage of venison for the Ruesches this year. Already two deer and Paul, Ned, Kit and Karl haven't even begun.
Karl will head to Alyssa's tonight and begin the process of building up his stem cell production on Monday. He'll receive an injection daily until the the 5th day -- Day 0 -- when he spends the day hooked up to a machine that will collect his healthy stem cells. Evan will receive them the same day.
The transplant calendar starts at Day -7 and progresses to Day 0 -- the transplant. It then follows a positive number sequence. At first that numbering system rather baffled me; however, I've now come to embrace that notion that the transplant date starts everything fresh and every day that follows is a positive one. We're all looking forward to that!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Friday is the day
Evan and Paul called on their way home from Minneapolis. Evan will be admitted on Friday. That puts Karl there on Sunday. Thankfully, Evan was able to work his admit date around Ned's surgery, which is Thursday. All in all, we're looking toward a very medical weekend!
Monday, October 5, 2009
This is what I know ...
I know that Evan and Paul will leave home tomorrow around 6:00 a.m. for appointments in Minneapolis. They'll return as soon as those appointments are over. It will be much like the recent Racine trip, without the furniture moving and bakery stop.
I know that Karl will be waiting for an "all-clear" notice to know that he will finally begin his role in this transplant.
I know that this time, Evan's nurse coordinator is much more organized and focused. I know that we are better prepared for what is to come. I know that Evan is more positive. I know that we haven't had -- and will not accept -- any fiasco with the rotation of yet another doctor and another possible protocol. I know that this time, there is not going to be any nonsense of what is and isn't covered by insurance. I know that it is time. It's time for this to happen. It's time for this to work.
I know that Karl will be waiting for an "all-clear" notice to know that he will finally begin his role in this transplant.
I know that this time, Evan's nurse coordinator is much more organized and focused. I know that we are better prepared for what is to come. I know that Evan is more positive. I know that we haven't had -- and will not accept -- any fiasco with the rotation of yet another doctor and another possible protocol. I know that this time, there is not going to be any nonsense of what is and isn't covered by insurance. I know that it is time. It's time for this to happen. It's time for this to work.
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