Two successful blasts of radiation down, eighteen to go! The failed maiden voyage on Monday, complete with shooting pain and an intense feelings of being trapped so powerful I felt like I could use an Elisabeth Shue Leaving Las Vegas shower, has given way to mild discomfort and slight claustrophobia. It is mostly due to the extremely understanding Radiation Nurses and Techs working at Cancer Care that I would like to think have dealt with patients more difficult than me but probably not.
The moderately more tolerable treatments are also due to a little inspiration in the way of Timmy Tebow. Crazy, right? That an only mediocre NFL quarterback on a team that I really don't care for would lend a hand in my cancer treatments? It's true. After the Monday fiasco I was not looking forward to continued attempts with the Hannibal Lecter mask and the table that makes economy airline seats feel roomy. While driving to Cancer Care on Tuesday I was listening to sports talk radio and the subject (as is now the new Federal Law with all sports discussions) turned to Timmy Tebow and the fact that apparently he sings children's religious songs while on the sidelines. The host and callers took great glee in pointing out that this is the kind of behaviour you would expect from a junior high or high school kid at a crazy christian school and not a veteran professional athlete.
Two things came to my mind. One, this was kind of a cheap shot by the host and callers. Two, and this is purely speculation, maybe he was doing it to calm himself down? I've got to believe Tebow listens to all the television and radio experts repeatedly burying him over the last nine weeks and I'm sure it burns his ass. In his ongoing effort to prove that he belongs in the NFL (as a quarterback, I'm sure few would argue he could make it at another position) he has, by in large, played well below average. Perhaps, just perhaps, he feels the singing helps him focus. Maybe it calms him down. Maybe the games don't seem as daunting. Granted, I was looking for something, anything, to cling to that might help me get through a radiation session so I was probably projecting more than a little bit.
No, Tebow did not compel me to turn my life over to God while on the drive to radiation. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I already believe I'm just not 100% certain what it is I believe in. No, what Timmy did was give me something for my brain to latch onto while my neck was pinned back and I was losing feeling in my arms. Now I sing. Not out loud, that would be impossible due to the snugness of the mask. In my head I sing Van Morrison songs and it relaxes me enough to get through. Van does have a pretty extensive catalogue of hymns to choose from but I went for his secular music instead. For the past two sessions I've had a veritable Van Morrison concert running through my head in an effort to not rip the hockey mask off and bolt from the table. So far it's worked. Hopefully it will keep working. Thanks to his multiple decades of making amazing music I won't run out of Van songs anytime soon. Below are a few that he played in my head the last two days.
The moderately more tolerable treatments are also due to a little inspiration in the way of Timmy Tebow. Crazy, right? That an only mediocre NFL quarterback on a team that I really don't care for would lend a hand in my cancer treatments? It's true. After the Monday fiasco I was not looking forward to continued attempts with the Hannibal Lecter mask and the table that makes economy airline seats feel roomy. While driving to Cancer Care on Tuesday I was listening to sports talk radio and the subject (as is now the new Federal Law with all sports discussions) turned to Timmy Tebow and the fact that apparently he sings children's religious songs while on the sidelines. The host and callers took great glee in pointing out that this is the kind of behaviour you would expect from a junior high or high school kid at a crazy christian school and not a veteran professional athlete.
Two things came to my mind. One, this was kind of a cheap shot by the host and callers. Two, and this is purely speculation, maybe he was doing it to calm himself down? I've got to believe Tebow listens to all the television and radio experts repeatedly burying him over the last nine weeks and I'm sure it burns his ass. In his ongoing effort to prove that he belongs in the NFL (as a quarterback, I'm sure few would argue he could make it at another position) he has, by in large, played well below average. Perhaps, just perhaps, he feels the singing helps him focus. Maybe it calms him down. Maybe the games don't seem as daunting. Granted, I was looking for something, anything, to cling to that might help me get through a radiation session so I was probably projecting more than a little bit.
No, Tebow did not compel me to turn my life over to God while on the drive to radiation. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I already believe I'm just not 100% certain what it is I believe in. No, what Timmy did was give me something for my brain to latch onto while my neck was pinned back and I was losing feeling in my arms. Now I sing. Not out loud, that would be impossible due to the snugness of the mask. In my head I sing Van Morrison songs and it relaxes me enough to get through. Van does have a pretty extensive catalogue of hymns to choose from but I went for his secular music instead. For the past two sessions I've had a veritable Van Morrison concert running through my head in an effort to not rip the hockey mask off and bolt from the table. So far it's worked. Hopefully it will keep working. Thanks to his multiple decades of making amazing music I won't run out of Van songs anytime soon. Below are a few that he played in my head the last two days.
How about a Tebowesque compromise with a stirring mental rendition of "Head, Shoulders, Pecs, and Quads (Pecs and Quads)"
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