My Dear Friend and Brother-in-Law James passed away Monday night after his 2+ year battle with phase IV Melanoma cancer. He was 37 years old and leaves behind two children, Isabella (10) and Ren (19). My mother has been living there with him and the kids for the above mentioned duration and taking care of him, the house, the bills, the kids (not to mention her own house and bills - she's a retired school teacher). It's been a long and hard battle for everyone, and he was very much loved. Unfortunately, James lost his job and was unable to work throughout the entire ordeal and had no health insurance, and so they have a ridiculous amount of medical bills and now funeral arrangements to deal with. I hope this doesn't go against all etiquette, but I'm asking any of you who can spare a few dollars. I know that economic times have been hard for everyone, but please understand that any amount is not too small...anything helps and it adds up and helps them keep the water and electricity on for another month and hopefully keep foreclosure on their house from happening somehow. I'm a bit embarrassed to ask, but the circumstances are truly dire.
If you would like to help, you can donate through this link that I set up with PayPal to go into a memorial account for the family. I am truly thankful for any help you can give, but I also understand if you're unable to right now with the way things are with the economy, you're prayers and good wishes are very welcome.
To my friends who already know this and have already pledged help, I am so very grateful, and thanks for stopping by the blog to read and check up on me.
Best,
Bex
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Ponderisms (and my Comments)
"PONDERISMS"I used to eat a lot of natural foods until I learned that most people die of natural causes. (Silly)
There are two kinds of pedestrians: the quick and the dead. (So True)
Healthy is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die. (Yes, that's the point)
The only difference between a rut and a grave is the depth. (Hmmm)
Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday,... lying in hospitals dying of.... nothing. (We can only hope)
Have you noticed since everyone has a camcorder these days no one talks about seeing UFOs,.. like they used to? (I have this uncle...)
Whenever I feel blue,..... I start breathing again. (Clever...and it works!)
All of us could take a lesson from the weather. It pays no attention to criticism. (Ha)
In the 60's, people took 'acid' to make the world weird. Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it normal! (OMG...You know...they're right?)
How is it, that 'one' careless match can start a forest fire, but it takes a whole box to start a campfire? (Ugh, tell me about it, and forget about rubbing two sticks together)
Who was the first person to look at a cow and say, 'I think I'll squeeze these 'dangly' things and drink whatever comes out?' (I'm assuming a man?)
If Jimmy 'cracks corn' and no one cares, why is there a song about him? (Yeah, I totally singing it right now, and it's going to be stuck in my head all day)
Why does your OB-GYN leave the room when you get undressed if they are going to look 'up there' anyway? (I actually appreciate that act...I'm very modest)
If quizzes are quizzical, what are tests? (Yeah...think about that one)
If corn oil is made from corn, and vegetable oil is made from vegetables, then what is 'baby oil' made from? (Ew)
Do illiterate people get the 'full effect' of Alphabet Soup? (Oooh...good question)
Does pushing the elevator button more than once make it arrive faster? (I personally think it does)
Why doesn't glue stick to the 'inside' of the bottle? (Actually, I have a couple of old bottles at home that would disprove this question)
Hope you enjoyed my funny little share.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Sad News
I’ve been so stressed, overworked, over worried, and under inspired lately. Things back home in Texas have not been going so well, and it’s really affected me. I’ll catch you up.
My dear brother-in-law James has been fighting stage 4 melanoma cancer for the past two years. We thought for a while that he’d be ok, but in August, it took a turn for the worst and the cancer has now metastasized and is in his lungs (40+ tumors to be exact). They say that at this point the cancer is inoperable and that all there is to be done is pain management now. What? Really? I have a problem with that prognosis especially for a man who is only 37 years old. He and I are very close, and he’s like a real brother to me. He’s been in my family now for almost 2 decades and we’ve become very good friends. This kills me and I’m so broken hearted watching him suffer and go through this. Not to mention there are two children involved, my niece (10) and nephew (19). I’m trying to be there for them as much as possible. I don’t want them to see how upset I am or how grave the situation is, but we also can’t hide the reality of the situation from them either. My niece seems ok with everything, but her thinking is “Daddy’s been sick and in the hospital before but he always comes home and things go back to normal.” However, my nephew gets it…he knows things are bad and that there is an inevitable end to this very sad story.
I’ve been home to Texas twice for a week in August and with a weekend in NYC in between and I have to tell you, with the stress of keeping up with my day job, my singing career, and now producing career here in NYC and the family issues back home in TX, I’ve found an extra 10 lbs. on my person. This has really taken a toll on my health. I’m doing everything I can just not to get sick. So now that I’m back in NYC for awhile (until they need me again and/or the funeral), I’ve really been trying to get some control in my life. I may not be able to control what’s going on with my brother-in-law or the medical bills that are stacking up against my family, and I may not be able to control the mishaps that happen when you’re trying to run an Opera Company, AND I may not be able to control the day to day crap that inevitably falls into your lap, but I know I CAN control what I put in my mouth and decide is nutritional. I CAN choose to work-out. I CAN take my vitamins and patrol my health in this manner. I have found this fact to be very comforting in a world that seems to be spinning out of control. This has allowed me to take a deep breath and dig in, in order to prepare myself for whatever may be ahead of me. Perseverance is sometimes the only answer in a world that seems to be going mad.
The past two weeks have really been good for me. Given me strength and fortified me. I know I can get through anything and accomplish what needs to get done. There is always a way. In fact, I’ve been keeping my food log, eating clean, working-out and getting as much rest as possible, and I’ve seen 6.5 of those 10 lbs. that I gained, leave. It feels so shallow talking about weight issues, when so many other things of importance are happening. But I feel that I need to talk this through and have some sort of order and outlet. So thank you for letting me ramble and pour.
Best,
Bex
My dear brother-in-law James has been fighting stage 4 melanoma cancer for the past two years. We thought for a while that he’d be ok, but in August, it took a turn for the worst and the cancer has now metastasized and is in his lungs (40+ tumors to be exact). They say that at this point the cancer is inoperable and that all there is to be done is pain management now. What? Really? I have a problem with that prognosis especially for a man who is only 37 years old. He and I are very close, and he’s like a real brother to me. He’s been in my family now for almost 2 decades and we’ve become very good friends. This kills me and I’m so broken hearted watching him suffer and go through this. Not to mention there are two children involved, my niece (10) and nephew (19). I’m trying to be there for them as much as possible. I don’t want them to see how upset I am or how grave the situation is, but we also can’t hide the reality of the situation from them either. My niece seems ok with everything, but her thinking is “Daddy’s been sick and in the hospital before but he always comes home and things go back to normal.” However, my nephew gets it…he knows things are bad and that there is an inevitable end to this very sad story.
I’ve been home to Texas twice for a week in August and with a weekend in NYC in between and I have to tell you, with the stress of keeping up with my day job, my singing career, and now producing career here in NYC and the family issues back home in TX, I’ve found an extra 10 lbs. on my person. This has really taken a toll on my health. I’m doing everything I can just not to get sick. So now that I’m back in NYC for awhile (until they need me again and/or the funeral), I’ve really been trying to get some control in my life. I may not be able to control what’s going on with my brother-in-law or the medical bills that are stacking up against my family, and I may not be able to control the mishaps that happen when you’re trying to run an Opera Company, AND I may not be able to control the day to day crap that inevitably falls into your lap, but I know I CAN control what I put in my mouth and decide is nutritional. I CAN choose to work-out. I CAN take my vitamins and patrol my health in this manner. I have found this fact to be very comforting in a world that seems to be spinning out of control. This has allowed me to take a deep breath and dig in, in order to prepare myself for whatever may be ahead of me. Perseverance is sometimes the only answer in a world that seems to be going mad.
The past two weeks have really been good for me. Given me strength and fortified me. I know I can get through anything and accomplish what needs to get done. There is always a way. In fact, I’ve been keeping my food log, eating clean, working-out and getting as much rest as possible, and I’ve seen 6.5 of those 10 lbs. that I gained, leave. It feels so shallow talking about weight issues, when so many other things of importance are happening. But I feel that I need to talk this through and have some sort of order and outlet. So thank you for letting me ramble and pour.
Best,
Bex
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