Hello everyone
I am going to make this the last post about my health for a while – as things are improving and although the myositis is still making my muscles weak, I’m moving in the right direction and working on my strength and fitness with the physios. I’m running up to the first monitoring appointment post-chemo, hoping that things are still good and the dreaded cancer is ‘under control’ as it was two months back.
But the great news is that I’m going to be 70 on 23rd May! This was a milestone I completely took for granted until last June when things started to go pear-shaped (why do we equate pear-shapes with bad news?). I did toy with the idea of a party, but I’m so used to not being stressed these days that the thought of organising one (who else would do it to my specification?!) was enough to put me off.
Instead, I will be celebrating entering my 8th decade over a number of months, seeing friends and family for coffee, dinner, lunch, spa days, conference dinners, gigs – whatever I can arrange. If you want in on something along those lines, get in touch! And for the event itself, I will be with my mum (93 – I can only dream of that age!), my partner, my lovely children and glorious grandchildren, for a BBQ, weather-permitting, followed by a little holiday in Northumbria.
I am really looking forward to the next few months and we have a number of trips following the one to the NE, including our lovely part of Wales, a solar eclipse in the north of Spain and a return to my academic roots in stylistics at the PALA conference in Uppsala. So much to look forward to!
I really don’t want presents – PLEASE – but if you have any inclination to mark this birthday, I have set up a justgiving page for cancer research. Not many years ago, I would definitely not have survived ovarian cancer, but thanks to the work of cancer research uk, the chemotherapy drug that I was able to tolerate was developed. Thank goodness, as the generic chemo drug nearly killed me – twice! No pressure at all – we all have a lot of calls on our money – and no donation is too small if you want to give a little. I haven’t set a target – let’s just see what comes in as every bit will help for those facing cancer in the future. Here’s the link:
Here’s to a wonderful future and please look after yourselves – life is beautiful and quite short!
Lesley
P.S. Linguistics will be the topic of the next post – I promise.
Lesley Jeffries 