Anita Is Bald

There is more felicity on the far side of baldness than young men can possibly imagine.
-- Logan Pearsall Smith

Sunday, August 28, 2005
Five years ago: Under Pressure
Six years ago: Outdoor Cinema
Seven years ago: Vonda at Fifty
Eight years ago: Pioneers and All

I'm feeling pretty good these days, but my hair started falling out last week as a result of the chemo a few weeks ago. When I combed or brushed it, hair came out by the handful! So I decided it was time to, not shave it precisely, but cut it very short. So yesterday evening we got out the clippers and Jack cut his own hair (with some help from me), then mine. Then we even did grandson R-----! Mine is the the shortest, done with the number 1 guard, while Jack and R---- have theirs a bit longer (number 2). R----- took it very well, commenting multiple times that we all had short hair now. "Short! Short!" and we rubbed each others' heads. It was Jack's notion that we all should be shorn. I've been using those clippers (and scissors) to cut Jack and R----'s hair for some months, so I think the Conair kit from Costco was a worthwhile purchase.

So now there's less inconvenience with long hairs falling out everywhere when I would run my fingers through it. It's an odd feeling to have such short hair! My scalp is sensitive to every breeze.

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I picked yesterday to cut my hair because I knew today would be busy. R---- spent the day with my sister M----- while friends came to help Jack and me move a bunch of stuff from the Capitol Hill apartment to a storage unit we've rented close to where we are living now.

Logistics were complicated! We'd worked yesterday afternoon on getting the trailer out of our garage, first unloading it of all the stuff that was in it down to the dried-out Christmas tree (!), then pushing it up our driveway with a flat tire. Then Jack plugged in the inflator-gadget to the 12-volt socket in the Volvo and pumped up the tire, and we put all the stuff we'd unloaded back in the garage.

Too bad the tire was flat again this morning. I believe that tire will have to be replaced. That meant we were down to the pick-up truck we'd reserved a few days ago. Multiple trips would be necessary! Jack figured that some people should go with him to the storage unit, then shuttle the truck back and forth while he moved stuff into the unit (efficient packing would help us get more stuff inside). So that's what we did, with Marcia, Tamara, Ivy and Rusty (and me helping) stage boxes out on the sidewalk while the truck was away being unloaded on the east side. It worked well! Blunt, Jim, Marcie and Jerry went with Jack (Marcie's van carried a lot of stuff that wouldn't have worked well in the pickup truck). Every box that was packed last weekend got moved, with a lot more besides.

There's still a lot to do, but we are in much better shape for when Jack's father and his father's friend come in September to work in the apartment. They are going to help finish a bathroom renovation and some work in the bedroom.

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My next chemo apointment is this Thursday, and my sister B---- will arrive the next day. It took about a week for me to feel functional after the first time, and I'm to expect it to take longer the second time.