Hospice first impressions/The girl with the temporary dragon tattoo

Met with some of the hospice folks this week - an intake person and a social worker. They are super cool people. Here the focus changes to keeping one relatively happy and comfy, rather than merely alive. Also, they come to me, which is AWESOME, and they're available on the phone 24/7. I'll meet the nurse on Monday or Tuesday.

Kaiser hospice provides various visitors and some kinds of equipment, but no...I don't know what to call them. Caregivers, aids, workers. In other words, the hospice nurse and some other people are going to visit and talk to me at specified intervals, once a week or whatever is decided, to help with medications/pain/any issues that arise, etc., but they're not going to stay for 5 hours and read me stories or administer morphine. (They can arrange this, which I would pay for.)

They delivered a hospital bed a few nights ago. It's small, looks and smells very hospitaly and plasticky. I didn't sleep that well on it 'cuz of this...layer that's on top of the mattress. It has these sort of pockets that fill with air...it's like lying on a carpet of hacky sacks. I deflated it a bit, we'll see. Being able to easily sit up in bed is great, which is why I wanted it.

Just got my feet rubbed by my niece Paris, and the catering around here has been excellent. Kathy has made spring rolls, spinach and ricotta ravioli, hummus plates, quesadillas...

I'm feeling that I have a little bit more stamina, meaning that I can stay vertical a little longer. My mouth seems not so dry. Perhaps much of what's gone on in the last few months really was radiation fatigue, rather than a sign that I have 8 toes in the grave.

Morning pills, hope the dye they use isn't carcinogenic...

Something to do. There's a moustache of normal hair
you can see the five o'clock shadow of on my neck.
Wonder when hair will grow back?

Kathy and Paris making way for new bed