And the tree came a tumbling down

I've been told all my life we live in a desert.  But, I'm beginning to wonder.  I've lived through a flood (1983), a tornado (a few years ago), and now a hurricane.  Yep, you read right.  On December 1st we were awakened to hurricane force winds.  Looking out our front window, we saw a huge pine tree which had fallen a block away and was covering 200 east.  Russell went to school that day and wondered why everyone was driving so slow until he saw street signs down on the streets.  Shauna saw semi-trucks blown over on her way to work.  My neighbor knocked on our door shortly before 10 a.m. to ask if I was okay.  She had seen our front pine tree swaying and wanted to make sure I was in a safe place in the house.  Before she got to our house, the tree had fallen. 

A few hours later some angels showed up in the form of young men, young women, mothers, neighbors and friends and started cutting the limbs off the tree.

Within a few hours the limbs were all stacked on the curb in front of the house!

We were told that the city would pick up the limbs that had been placed curbside.  However, the following Sunday we received word that the Mayor had asked for help in cleaning up the limbs since high winds were again expected that night.  We received notice from the Bishop that we would only have Sacrament meeting that day and that it would be "come as you are."  We began the cleanup at 9:30 a.m. Sunday morning.  It was amazing to work with so many from our ward loading trucks and flatbeds with limbs and other debris.  We went started at the top of 650 North and worked down the street and headed north to 750.  It was amazing to see how many truckloads of debris were loaded and hauled to the dump.  We learned that the line-up of trucks to dump debris stretched for miles.  Church parking lots, school parking lots and parks also became temporary dumping grounds to handle the debris.  We attended church at 1 p.m. in our grubby clothes and experienced an outpouring of the Spirit as testimonies were born.  The youth were especially touched to see how the ward pitched in and worked together.  I felt so grateful for the help we received without even having to ask.  By about 5 p.m. the cleanup was winding down and we returned to our homes weary and sore, but grateful for the experience.  What the members of the church and community did in one day along the Davis County corridor where the high winds occurred would have taken city workers months and months to accomplish.  It was amazing!  From the storm the landfills received more green waste than they normally collect in a year.

This is the tree trunk we were left with.

I figured that we would wait until spring to figure out how to get rid of the trunk.  We had several professional people come and offer to help us remove the trunk.  One quote for the cost was $200.  Today, another knock came at the door.  Some city workers said they were out helping homeowners remove the storm debris and asked if I wanted them to pull out the trunk.  I asked if there was a cost and they said no.  I just had to sign a waiver indicating I would be responsible for any damage that might occur.  Within 20 minutes they had put a chain on the trunk, pulled it out, loaded it in a truck and hauled it away!  Amazing!!  My neighbor grabbed her camera and took pictures.  Here they are:

Here's what it looks like now!

Good news and bad news

The good news is I am still alive.  The bad news is, I had prostate cancer.  They performed a radical prostatectomy on Monday, 06 Dec.  Now we must hope the had part of "had prostate cancer" is correct.  They take the prostate gland, seminal vesicle, and a couple of lymph nodes and check them all.  They check for cancer on the outer layer of the gland, and for cancer cells that may have migrated from the gland to the other two.  We are still awaiting the pathology report on all of those.  I don't expect any word before Dec15th, when I hope they will ex-foliate me ( remove the Foley catheter ).

I am at home now attempting to recover from the surgery.  What a great vacation.  No worries about work.  Sit and watch movies all day long.  Julie does not pester me to take out the garbage.  It hurts whenever I move.  I drag a urine bag with me wherever I go.  Yes, it is truly a great vacation.

No development yet.

In September I went in for a 5 year physical exam that I should be doing every 2 years.  At least that is what I was told by the people who make money by doing physical exams.  The short story is, my PSA number was just shy of double what it was previously, and I have a firm spot on the left side of my prostate.  I could involve the "C" word, or it could be a calcium deposit, remnant of a UTI.  Last Wednesday I went in to have them do a biopsy.  The biopsy sample is obtained via an ultra-sound guided rectal probe.  They gave me valium and some other drug that causes short term amnesia.  The last thing I remember before the procedure began was laying on the table under a paper cover, naked from the waist down, and wondering if the nurse was going to leave before the doctor began.  I don't remember getting dressed afterward, and the valium seems to eliminate inhibitions.  Julie claims that I asked the nurse if she had seen my bum.  According to Julie, the nurse affirmed that she did.  Totally humiliating.  It is a good thing I don't remember any of it.

The result of the biopsy should be available by about Wednesday the 27th.  If I can face the finding, I will post an update.  If not, you will know by the old adage "no news is bad news".

Until later then . . . . . 

We're not Old, . . . . really.

We just got 20 years younger.  It was easy.  All we did was create a blog for ourselves.  I have not looked in the mirror yet, but Julie looks awesome now.  Next we'll lose another 10 years by getting a Facebook account.  Blogging is officially only for young people.  Old fossils like us don't even know how to turn the dang computer on.  But, we gave in to the peer pressure, if you can call our children, nieces, nephews, and their friends, our peers.  Now we are bloggers.  We blog.  Look, we're blogging !