Pre-treatment fun

In a few short days treatment will begin and no doubt my day to day life will change significantly. Knowing that I will soon embark on a period of at least 6 months where my ability to enjoy certain things I love (food, travel, the energy to do loads) will decrease, has made me more fully appreciate some of the fun of the last few weeks. With my prognosis imminent, our long-planned weekend in Heidelberg for Tanai's birthday, for example, took on a new importance. We flew to Frankfurt airport for the last weekend in March, and my aunt and cousin picked us up. My mum's brother, Paul, his wife Milena, and their two children Liam and Antonia have lived in Heidelberg for many years, and I have visited them often, but this was Tanai's first trip there. It's such a beautiful town, and we were lucky enough to have gorgeously sunny Spring weather for the whole weekend. We were spoilt rotten by my family, who cooked us delicious food, entertained us and ensured we had a thoroughly wonderful time. Paul played tour guide and we visited Heidelberg's famous castle, sampled some of the local beer, and of course pork, potatoes and sauerkraut. For Tanai's birthday we had a delicious meal in a Bulgarian restaurant, where the boys had whole spears of meat and Milena and I enjoyed Bulgarian ratatouille. And we cycled to Schwetzingen palace, where there are some stunning gardens and the cherry blossoms were in bloom. Milena and Antonia treated us to a fascinating night at the theatre, where we saw a contemporary dance piece and ended up having bubbles served on the stage by upside-down dancers! The sunny weather definitely helped me feel rejuvenated, and it is always great to get away from London for a long weekend. We walked and cycled past allotments, fields and the bustle of Spring was around us. It was also great to think about things other than cancer for a while! I'm sure I'll love similar distractions over the coming months.

Our hosts, beneath the cherry blossoms

With Tanai in the wonderful cherry blossom garden

Paul and Tanai overlooking the castle and the river

Liam and Tanai and the spears of meat!

Being served by upside-down dancers

Riding in the laneways of Heidelberg

The spring weather has also been lovely during the days at work, as we have a deck on our fourth floor and can now sit out there during lunchtime, and even for some after-work drinks. This week was bitter-sweet for me as one of my team members was leaving. Only two days before we'd had team karaoke and we'd belted out classics together, and now I was saying goodbye. Phil is my favourite office DJ, he makes me laugh every day and I will really miss him.

On the roof of the office

Belting out Rocket Man with Phil

Team Awesome karaoke

Following my recent hair-loss worries, yesterday two of my girlfriends took me shopping to the fabric stores on Berwick Street in Soho, and we bought some fabric for me to fashion into hair wraps. We also watched some videos on YouTube and I practiced tying some fabulous African-inspired hair pieces over my head. It was a lovely day hanging out with them, and now I'm a lot less worried about losing my hair, as I feel a whole new style coming on! I'm even considering not bothering with a wig, and just going with scarves the whole time. I'm keen to buy even more brightly-coloured fabric and making some fashion statements. But at least now I am prepared for the inevitable.

So much fabric!

With my fabulous shopping companions

Bus fun!

First attempt at a hair scarf (youtube vid in background)

Another thing I'm concerned about is losing my tastebuds during chemo, and not being able to taste the delicious food my friends cook! So today we went to my friend Taey's house for lunch, and she made amazing slow-cooked short ribs which she'd marinated the night before. They were so tasty, Tanai could not stop talking about the food all the way home. I love Taey's cooking and the thought of waiting another 6 months before I can taste it again makes me sad, but it will taste all the sweeter after I'm done with the chemo. It was also lovely to see how little Marou is growing, he is so happy and chilled out, a lovely little boy. Not sure how much I'll be able to hang out with my friends' kids over the coming months either, as I'll have a low immune system and they are basically human germ-factories, so I'm getting my fix now.

Storytime

Tomorrow I will probably find out when my first chemo is and then it's action stations. Until then, I'm having a relaxing evening with a dark chocolate Lindt bunny and a book on post-colonialism.