Positively Phoebe

I swear.  If I ever get back to just cruising along, nice and normal, without having to go to the doctor for something every week, I will be one happy woman.  Don't get me wrong - I am thrilled to be cancer free... but damned if I am not completely and totally frustrated by all of the lingering nonsense that stupid tumor and its treatments left behind. I AM happy to report, at least, that with very little need to dip into the butt ointment, my rear end is doing MUCH better.  All it took was no more baby wipes and no more soap.  And I am left with a much happier... everything back there.  So a big thanks to Dr. Williams.  Hooray! Yesterday, however, I noticed that the symptoms I was having last week that I thought felt like a urinary tract infection seemed to be back - and with a vengeance.  Pain.  Nausea.  Urgency - generally with no results.  I felt horrid most of the day and this morning I decided it was time to deal with it and called up my PCP, Dr. Raj - whom I love.  They

Some of my favorites from the trip coming up here... I just LOVED Tuscany.  Most of these were out the window of a moving bus, so don't judge too harshly! Tuscany I would live here.  Seriously. Although here would be better... Seriously?! Views like this exist?!  This looks like a good place to live, too. I dream of a yellow house... It could not have been a more gorgeous day for our trip. More from the bus window. Vineyards. Olive trees. More vineyards - probably Chianti. Why doesn't the countryside around Cleveland look like this? San Gimigniano in the distance. The vineyards at Fattoria Poggio Alloro. View from Fattoria Poggio Alloro. Olive leaves. View from Fattoria Poggio Alloro. Inside the barn at Fattoria Poggio Alloro. Look at that BROOM!! These cows had blue tongues.  One of them licked me with theirs. Pretty... Another view from Fattoria Poggio Alloro. Ano

And now we begin my favorite section of photos... our day trip through Tuscany!!! Yeah - I forget where this was.  I think it was a monastery? I want this to be my view... Sheeps! World's first bank in Siena. Creepy heads!!! Siena. Leftovers from a celebration in the square. Amazing little alleyways in the small towns! Excellent old sign! Another perfect Italian door. Siena. So good. Siena Duomo. Siena Duomo. Siena Duomo. The floor in the Siena Duomo. Love! I LOVED this little creeperton.  He was small and so weird!

Someone recently told me that while they were dealing with their cancer diagnosis, their spouse actually wanted to leave them.  Couldn't deal or whatever... It made me sad because it also made me really GET that since my cancer diagnosis, my relationships with pretty much EVERYONE I really care about have gotten stronger, better, more awesome... especially with my husband. I always felt that despite how different Ryan and I can be emotionally, that since the very beginning we have had a pretty spectacular relationship.  There was never any fear of him being sketchy out on tour, whereas people I dated in the past - I worried about them being sketchy while out at lunch!  We managed to figure out the importance of communication early on and almost never had a disagreement that we'd let stew for more than a few hours, tops.  And I never had any doubt, despite how Asperger-y he sometimes seemed, that he really and truly cared about me in a way that no other man ever had.  Even m

So.  I think I mentioned in a previous post (or maybe I didn't - I'm a little "off" in the brain category these days) that last night I was planning to attend an event down in Akron put on by stupidcancer.org  - the "I'm Too Young For This" cancer organization for folks in their 20s and 30s.  A group that totally seems like it would be the group for me, right?  I was nervous about going alone, though, and so a long-time internet friend whom I seldom see in person and who lives in Akron offered to be my date for the evening.  Yay for Jessica! Now, I don't want to outwardly slam anything, so I will try to be diplomatic about this... First of all, the event was at "Ripper Owens Tap House".  Do you know who Ripper Owens is?  Because I didn't.  Apparently he used to be in the metal band Judas Priest.  So, basically, this place was a sad aging metal guy bar with kind of a sports bar thing going on as well.  Neither of these things is &quo

Are you getting sick of these yet?  Because we're like... maaaaaaybe halfway through them. Lens flare! View of... somewhere awesome from the Boboli Gardens. Couldn't tell if this statue's plants were real, or made of gold. WHY?  Why do they do this to their trees?! More tree destruction.  So bizarre. Really big head - Boboli Gardens. More good doors! Even blurry, the hills outside of Florence look lovely! I miss these shoes.  I killed them in Italy. This statue's hand, the way he's holding the other one's hand... it reminded me of Ryan.  <3 Pretty lady. I want to make pretty pebble stars on my yard. And speaking of pretty... My first "grope a statue for Lacey" attempt was vetoed by my mother because the junk was hidden behind that big-ass fish. Even dirty pigeons in Italy seem prettier. A more thorough statue-groping for Lacey. So adorable.  Every facade is just more