Death by a Thousand Cuts

Every morning it’s a new inventory of aches and ailments. It seems like each and every one has a voice first thing in the morning and somehow they sort themselves out and one gets to be top dog for the day. The last few days it’s been mouth sores and joint pain. This morning my fingernails hurt. What’s up with that? All my eager little fast growing cells are getting killed off and not doing whatever job it is that they have. It makes for some peculiar side effects but the hope is that those equally fast growing cancer cells are dying right along with them. Meanwhile, my teeth feel loose and my gums hurt and things don’t taste like they are supposed to taste.

Last week my head (scalp) hurt. I thought I had head sores but my hair was falling out anyway so we went and got me buzzed. Chuck has been rubbing my head with cream each night and says the redness is already going away. There weren’t any actual sores but I think something must happen at the follicle level when the hair is ready to break off or fall out or do whatever it does and that hurts. Now that my hair is gone, my head isn’t nearly as tender.

Chuck’s hair is gone too. He got buzzed right along with me. It’s our tradition. My sweet hair stylist, Glenda, refused to let me pay her. What do you say to kindness like that? She saved a big lock of hair for me so we can compare the color when I get hair again. My hair was all over the floor and seeing that gave me a worse moment than seeing my naked bald head. We got through it with hugs and my friend Ruth took pictures with her camera since I forgot to bring ours. Lucky for me she was with us and had a camera in her purse. My slower growing brows and lashes won't fall out for a while yet. Somehow that doesn't seem as dramatic and it's actually kind of nice to get rid of leg hair, arm hair and all the rest of the hair on my body. I know it's just hair but I miss it.

PICTURES; The first picture shows me in all my buzzed glory on our deck. The second picture is of me demurely be-hatted with my friend Ruth.
.