February 5th

BRRRR....it is cold here in the Florida Keys this week! Highs in the 50's with winds sustained 20-30mph, making it feel much colder. Heaters are on and every polartec garment is out and in use. The captain started radiation treatments this week and that is going pretty well. We are usually in/out of the center in 10 minutes. It makes him tired in the afternoons, but other than that, no ill effects.

The doctor said that adult beverages are OK in moderation but that other patients have said that beer makes them sick. No beer. Together we decided that the spice flavor in Captain Morgan's might make him sick. No rum.

What else to do but turn to a tried and true favorite!

Matt and Linda Norwood of S/V Worth W8N4, our next door neighbors in Marathon, who drove our truck down to Key West when we moved the boat down here. They had an errand in Key West last week and took us to dinner at Friday's. Living in Marathon, it has been a long time (years, perhaps?) since we have gone to a chain restaurant.

Good times with good friends. Thanks Matt and Linda!



I spent HOURS searching the internet for the perfect trim for my K-mart fake ultrasuede pillows. The salon will be fabulous when I am done, despite not a scrap of petite English ivy...

We have struggled to find non-skid mats or flooring for the heads that are truly non-skid on a boat in motion. Craig can shop the internet better than anybody, and look what he found. These are custom teak grates...easy on the feet!

(aft)

(forward)

All in all, things are going well. We are scheduled to complete treatments 2/25 and are shooting for a March departure.

Happy Birthday to sister Candy today! Looking forward tomorrow to a long weekend visit from Craig's dad.

Key West Living.....Jan 29th, 2009

Well I have not started radiation yet. I did a consultation with the doctor on Monday of this week, down here in Key West, and did a simulation run (where they marked my body for the machine) on Tuesday. Start the "real thing" this next Tuesday and will have treatment each day for about 15-20 days. Each treatment is only about 7 min. and I will have the weekends off from treatment.

We arrived in the Marina in Key West last weekend on Saturday. We settled in and on Sunday we headed to downtown Key West. During our visit we decided to purchase two folding bikes. These bikes fold down to the size of a small suit case and can be stored in a locker so they are great for the boat. They will be very useful down here in Key West, as well as, in many of the island towns we hope to visit soon. We are also taking advantage of the new "Chopperettes" to get in better shape by riding for at least an hour each day.

The new "chopperettes" & riding down town Key West.

Today we decided to take the boat out and check out the waters around Key West and do some fishing. It was sunny today, with light winds and temps in the high 70s so we did not sail much but did have a nice day out on the water and did come up on a few fish!

Here is a pelican resting on one of the channel marks on our way out the channel from our new marina and a turtle we spotted on the way out to the fishing grounds today.

We talked to a charter boat captain this morning from our marina that indicated the tuna and mahi were biting off the Sand Key Light so that is where we headed. Under mainsail and a little engine power we headed out into the gulf stream, into about 200 feet of water and started fishing, 8 miles southwest of Key West. After a couple of hours we found the Mahi! The first hit just off the Lighthouse at Sand Key Light (just as the charter captain had informed us) and while I was reeling him in on the first rod, the second rod got a hit and Angela was also pulling one in. After I landed the first, Angela was just bringing the second to the side of the boat when the line broke. These fish jump in the air and try and spit out the hook or break the line (they are very good at this) it is quite a show.

Angela fighting her Mahi and Craig with the one that did not get away!

We turned the boat around for another pass through the school of mahi and just moments later got another hit. This time I got the Mahi up to the the boat, but with a jump he was gone. Disappointing for sure but these fish are so much fun to fight just for this show of jumping clear of the water.

We gave up early afternoon and headed back in knowing that we would have plenty of fish for dinner.

Mahi fillets ready for dinner this evening.

That is it for this week.....recovery is not a bad thing as you can see...we are dealing with it well!

The Captain

1/23: Come on baby, let's get outta here...go hang out in Key West for a while...

No pictures today but a quick update on our status.
Craig's cancer type is the least aggressive and surgical pathology showed that it was contained to local tissue. This last week the captain had a chest xray and CT of the abdomen/pelvis to evaluate for metastasis. These tests were completely clean!! Since this type is described in medical literature as "exquisitely sensitive" to radiation, current standard of care is to proceed with radiation to eradicate any microscopic cells that might not yet show up in the lymph nodes on CT. It is typically 20 treatments, administered daily Monday through Friday.

In a nutshell (ha!), localized seminoma+negative tumor markers+negative CT+radiation = 98-100% effective cure.

The captain has an evaluation appointment at the radiation center Monday afternoon. The closest radiation center is in Key West. Oh, darn. What else to do but move S/V Hakuna Matata to Key West so that we do not have a daily commute. So, we are on our way back to Key West, at anchor tonight in Bahia Honda State Park which has been one of our favorite hidey holes in the area. Although we would like to be at anchor or in a mooring field for the month, we decided that a marina might be better suited for treatment or if I have to fly. We located a spot in Stock Island (see prior post), not quite Key West proper, but only 7 minutes from the center, ample parking and not as crazy expensive as downtown KW this time of year (north of 2K/month for this size boat...yikes!)

As soon as treatment and recovery are complete, hopefully the first week or two of March, we are headed way south. At this point, the only decision is whether to turn back east to the Bahamas and cruise down the path as originally planned, or do we reverse course, blast over to Cozumel and do the western Caribbean??

January 15-19, 2009

Not much has been going on down here in the Keys over the last week but recovery continues to go well. We did have a doctor visit on the 15th and they removed the rest of my stitches and gave us the final pathology report. The tumor was cancer but from what the doctor can tell us at this point it does not look like it has spread and it is not a extremely aggressive tumor type which is all good. I have a cat scan this Wednesday to verify this, but even if it is clear it looks as if I will be doing radiation for about a month.

There is not a radiation clinic here in Marathon but there is one in Key West. Since I will have to go everyday we have decided to move the boat to Key West for the month of February during the treatments.

This last weekend we drove down to look at a couple of slips that were available and for rent. The marina is located on Stock Island just min. from Key West and the radiation clinic. It looks like we will try and move the boat to the new marina this weekend. Here are a couple of pictures from our "recon" mission this weekend of the new marina.

Angela has also been working on a few interior decorator projects. So we now have a couple of new rugs, one in the main salon and one in the galley area. She also purchased some new pillows for the main salon to add color. Here is a pic of the new rug and pillows in the salon.....very exciting stuff!!

Not much else to report here in Marathon....guess our next report will be from Key West......at least we will be moving on!!

The Captain.

January 11-13 Key West

We weighed anchor around 1030am for the next leg of the journey to Key West. Another beautiful day but winds were too light to sail, so we motored and entered the harbor around 3pm. The channel is very busy with all manner and sizes of vessels...

Big B, Little b,

What begins with B?

We felt sorry for the touristas in the swanky hotel behind the cruise ship dock..so much for your water front balcony with sunset view!

Image to the left is SV Hakuna Matata at anchor in Key West harbor.

Image to the right is our view from the anchorage of Key West looking at Mallory Square.

Nothing better than a sunset (or moon rise, for that matter) for relaxation and mental therapy. We were in need of both....

We tooled around Key West on Monday...the usual sights, sounds and activities, plus a trip to the barber for the captain after my last attempt at tapering and the ear guard incident. In true Key West fashion, this "typical" old style barber shop (shoppe?) served multiple purposes. In addition to man hair cuts, they sold semi-automatic weapons (no purchases) as well as a colorful (read: colors not found in nature) array of hair extensions for the local sistas.

Rock on...one of the best examples of grafitti we have seen.

A sunny day with unusually favorable winds for our direction of travel, 12 knots from the west. We hauled up the main in the harbor and began our journey home. A pelican fish feeding frenzy on the way out of the harbor would portend things to come...






Nothing disturbs the quietude of a refreshing sail like the ZZIINNNGG of a trolling line. At first we thought that perhaps we had snagged a crab pot. Craig took the pole and I took the helm. The fight was definitely on, and after the perilous battle, Captain Craig was victorious!!

Size does matter, one of the biggest we have landed.






Upon return to our slip, the Captain takes a knife to the beast and makes a new friend in the process.

January 10, 2009.....escape from doctors

We had a disappointing followup visit at the doctor yesterday as we were all set for the pathology reports but upon our arrival found out they were not finished up yet. Wanted to have the "plan" in hand in regards to what was next and how serious the tumor was but now we have to wait til next Thursday.

They did take out half of my stitches and the doc said I was clear for showers (big one for me) and any activities I felt up to. I immediately asked about sailing and he said, "fine".

So we were feeling down not getting the report as we thought we would, but thought hey we do not have anything to do until next Thursday, we have a boat and a "free pass" to sail from the doctor.....so we decided we would leave today and sail down the Keys to Key West over the next couple of days.

Loaded up with groceries this morning and headed out. Great day of sailing with winds 10-15 knots, sunny skies and temps in the high 70s.

Sailing away from the doctors in Marathon and feeling pretty good about being back on the water.

Our view today on the way to New Found Harbor (1/2 down to Key West From Marathon) and Angela takes the "saddle" to watch for lobster traps.

Finally sunset this evening as well as the full moon arising in New Found Harbour......it has been a great day of recovery.

How to recover on a boat.

Well recovery is going pretty well. Have good days and bad and still sore but getting around. Weather is great, sunny and in the 80s so it is not a bad place to be for recovery.

So what have we been doing?? Well last night right as I was brushing my teeth for bed and the water pump died.....yes, deep 6 and nothing was bringing it back to life. On a boat without the water pump working you have no water from the faucets. We would have to fix it for sure but not last night.

In the morning we came up with the plan for the fix. Since I cannot bend or get down on my knees and stomach right now Angela was going to have to be my hands. So I directed and she installed.

To the left, Angela crawls into the hole and pulls out the bad pump. To the right is the dead water pump.

Then it was to West Marine to buy the new pump and they even had it in stock! Score 1 for team Hakuna Matata today.

Angela with new pump installed on top of the accumulator tank and bolting it back in place.

Then it was onto the check and yes it worked! Score two for the day....we can now shower and brush teeth again!

The second project of the day was the new Bose System for the salon that came in. This is something that we have been wanting (I am still a AV nerd at heart) but decided it just was not worth the expense. Since we got delayed with my current problem we decided over Christmas that this would be the consolation prize. When I emailed my good friend Casey today he said, "wow guess you had to give your left nut for that one"! He was almost correct as it was not the left but the right!!

Pics of Angela checking out the new system......it sounds sweet!!

So that is our day of recovery today.......all in all a good one......got to go now and watch movies!

The Captain

Admiral's Note:

Many of my friend girls ask how I got so handy with wrenches and such. Here is what you do:

1. Buy a 50 year old house. Accelerated plan if it has been a rental property and/or only one bathroom at time of purchase.

2. Dont' have a boyfriend and have your daddy living 1500 miles away.

You will be amazed how quickly you too can develop home/boat repair skills...

A.

January 4:Postop Day2

The surgery went well. The pathology report is still pending as frozen section biopsy was deferred. We will get the path report Friday at our postop visit. During the procedure, the urologist incidentally found an inguinal hernia and repaired that with a teflon graft. The general surgeon, who we initially saw in December and happened to be finishing a case himself, saw Craig in preop and was on the scene for that repair. Sweet.


As you know, the salon setee converts into a queen berth, so that is Craig's nest for the time being. He is generally feeling good, up and about and eating well, with even a short visit to the cockpit yesterday afternoon. His pain is well-controlled with the generous supply of Percocet, although getting up tweaks the incision pretty hard. He has been keyed up with the Percocet and is finally sleeping solidly today. Craig remains wildly hopeful for a complete bed bath with me in a saucy nurse get up. Dream on, precious captain! :)

For those clinically oriented:
This presents a strange case so we are anxious for the final pathology report. The ultrasound that started all this showed heterogenous echo pattern and vascularity for which malignancy could not be ruled out. No well-defined tumor, per se. The tumor markers are interesting. LDH mildly elevated, consistent with energy requirements for any tumor. However, the bHCG and AFP, specific to germ cell tumors, are stone cold normal. These are all done not only for staging but also as a baseline, with the expectation that they drop dramatically after the tumor is removed. So, there is nothing to drop. ??

With all this and other small details/decisions to date, we are hopeful that this is either very early in a malignant process, or some kinky nonmalignant tumor. However this works out, we are grateful that the hernia was found. I can't imagine being deep in the islands or on a passage and and having a little gut ache turn into incarcerated bowel loop.

All in all, we will keep you posted. We are so thankful for our family and friends and for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.

December 2008: Prepared...well for almost everything.

Well here we are now in December 2008.

The beginning of the month started out well with MY trip away from the boat for a boys weekend at my friends Skips new boat "Prodigal", a Morgan 46 located for now in Kemah, Texas. Since Angela got to go to the Bahamas for a "girl trip" in October I got to go to Kemah with Skip for a "boys trip" in December. Well I think she fared better than me spending her trip at Atlantis in the Bahamas while I helped Skip repair leaks and toilets in cold Kemah!! It was fun and my dad joined to help in the fun. I would post some pictures but I was busy working! For more fun on this trip you can check out Skip's blog at: http://skipsphotos.blogspot.com/

After the trip we were busy with final preparations as the plan was to go back to Dallas for Christmas, December 19-27 with family and then leave on December 30th to spend New Years in the Bahamas and start our freshman year as true cruisers.

The last week before we left for Christmas we were busy filling fuel tanks, checking off items on the to-do list and were VERY excited about our pending departure. During the week I noticed some swelling in a very tender part of my body and we decided to have it checked out. Got news the day before we left for Christmas that I have testicular cancer (same thing that Lance Armstrong had). To say we were disappointed would be an understatement at this point but we both agreed that this was just a delay in the plan and once we can we will still get underway.

As of today, December 30th we went back to the doctor today and had some good news about the tumor and have surgery scheduled for this Friday to have the "part" removed. Not sure what we will have to do from here but we hope to continue with our plans just as soon as possible.

For all that have e-mailed and called with prayer support and best wishes I sincerely Thank you! To put it in Texas terms all we can do at this point is "get er done" and continue with the important things in life like cruising the islands.

In true holiday spirit Angela has made a poem to sum up or put in a nutshell (ha, ha) our Christmas tale:

Twas the week before Christmas
and all through the boat,
the stores are all full,
and we're still afloat.

The course was all plotted,
with due caution and care
for an open water passage,
We soon would be there!

When what to our wondering eyes should appear,
testicular swelling!
The equipment most dear!

So off to the doctor
we ran in a flash,
with hopes of simplicity
and plenty of cash.

The exam was complete,
then he ordered a scan.
Just to be safe,
but it could change our plan.

Oh, horror of horrors,
it just might be cancer.
So now we will operate
to determine the answer.

After holiday in Texas,
days chilly and cold,
We're now back in Marathon
with travel on hold.

The research is done
and in the surgeon we're pleased.
It will take steady hands
to fix one of these.

Recovery is likely,
so we hope and we pray,
and we'll go on our trip,
just not today.

Thanksgiving 2008 with family

For Thanksgiving this year Angela and I were invited to my cousins David Shrader's house in Co-Co Beach Florida to spend the holiday with the Shrader clan. David is the son of my moms brother, and is actually only one of 5 sons! They all live in Nebraska aside from David and his wife Sherry who live in Co Co Beach with their kids William and Lucretia. All five Shrader sons, most of their families and my Aunt Merlyn and Uncle Duane were in attendance. It was a nice time on the beach for Thanksgiving.

On our drive up to Co Co Beach we stopped off in Miami to sell Angela's car at the Infinity dealer. Parting with her sporty "G" was harder than I thought it would be for her....but she gave it up like a trooper!!

Angela at the Infinity dealer.....it was so hard to let her baby go!!!

Once in Co Co beach we caught up with family and promptly headed to the beach.

To the left is a shot of two of my cousins Mike and Mark Shrader and I at the beach. To the right is only a PART of the group with sand in their toes!

The Thanksgiving turkey appropriately named a "gurkey" in honor of our Florida celebration!

After turkey dinner some of us went swimming at the condos pool.

Craig, Molly and Jenny (my cousin Mike's daughters). For Florida it was actually chilly and in the 60s. Luckily the pool was heated but the walk (run) back up to the condo was downright cold once we were finished!

Dan, Mike, Mark and David 4 of my Shrader cousins. Can you see the resemblance to the Captain???

It was a great time spent with family for Thanksgiving.....Thank you David and Sherri and all of the Shrader clan for inviting us up for a great time!!

November 2008: More equipment before departure

I spent the second half of November installing a few more items before our departure. The first item was a single sideband radio that will allow us to have long range communication with other vessels at sea, get weather reports, and also chat with other cruisers on "nets". These "nets" are a great way to gain knowledge about cruising grounds, ports of entry and other basic information about the cruising life from other people that are out there cruising.

There was a radio to install, antenna that will be mounted to the back stay (the wire that supports the mast from falling forward), a antenna tuner that needed to be near the antenna at the back of the boat as well as a ground plate that would have to be mounted on the bottom of the hull. After lots of research and reading I decided to try and install the unit myself........

This is me trying to figure out what I have gotten myself into as well as the final installation of the antenna tuner underneath the aft cabin bed.

This is the radio installed at the navigation station. After a week of running wires throughout the boat, the radio was finally installed and we talked to people here in Marathon as far away as New York, North Carolina and a couple of people already in the Caribbean!

The second project I worked on was to make our hatches more secure. Since we will not have the luxury of AC all the time in the islands, as we do now in our slip in Marathon, our hatches will be open most of the time. To prevent the unlikely intruder from just slipping down a hatch in our boat I designed some bars to go in the openings. Each bar has locks on it that are keyed the same and the keys are hung in each cabin, just in case someone from inside needed to escape in a emergency.

The image to the left is the new hatch bars in the salon hatches. The right photo is the bars in the v-berth......Skip you will now be safe when you come to visit!