Saturday, June 30th 52/336

Today is the last day in June, already, can you believe it. August 2nd, I will be exactly 59 1/2 and that means I can start spending my IRA account.

Today, Peg and Riba pretty much had there way with me. I was tired all day and took 3 naps. Fridays and Saturdays are fatique days. I hope they take Sunday off so I can ride the bike.

Magda's cousin Amelia is spending the night. I have never met her. She is very nice.

I'm still so jazzed about clearing this nasty ass virus, iIm very greatful that Peg and Riba are doing their jobs.

I spoke to my youngest daughter and her husband finally got a job...Happy day!

Bye for now.

Magda and her cousin Amelia

Friday, June 29th 51/336

I had my shot last night and the fatique hit me about 10:00am Today. I don't get any physical sides from the shot itself. Some people have chills, aches, fevers, headaches etc. I am fortunate that I sleep through the night without any of the preceeding. My only side to date has been the fatique. It's usually pretty intense on Friday, and then it gets better from there on. I hope to do a bike ride tommorrow.

I'm still very jazzed about my HVC viral load coming down to 410 in 6 weeks. Hopefully, the virus will be undetectable next blood test in a week. This is very encouraging in that, although I'm not a super responder, I am a rapid responder. The time it takes to clear the virus is a pretty good indicator of the likely hood of relapse. I believe that my VL response time raises my chances of "Sustained Viral Response" (Translate cure), substantially. Oh well, if I relapse, I'll just hit the tx again as it is doable for me. I'm glad that, after so much indecision, I decided to treat. I believe it was the right thing to do and for any of you "on the fence", I would do it again in a heartbeat. Bye for now

Growing Older, 1996

Thursday, June 28th, 50/336 Shot#8

Happy Day! I got my 6 week lab test back and I'm very pleased


Start 5,200,000

2 weeks 1,700,000

4 weeks 105,000

6 weeks 401 !!!!!!!!

4 log drop so far, I'm almost there

Tonight we do the 8th shot and it will get me out of the 40"s and down into the 30's. Definetely making progress

Painting in Golden Gate Park, 2000

Wednesday, June 27th, 49/336

It was a little slow coming out of the gate today. I didn't feel like doing much of anything but duty called and off I rode. "Just do it" is my mantra. My new doo rag did the trick as far as keeping my head from being aggrevated by the helmet. The ride was challenging but I made it the whole 15 miles and that makes me feel good. I was doing 60 miles week 1-4 and then I got knocked down to 15 for weeks 5 & 6 and now I'm back up to 30. I'm going to reset my weekly goal to 45. This based on the fact that I have 2 school days and one post shot day. 45 will be plenty. Who ever thought that tx would get me in better shape than when I started, but that's my goal.

When I got home I was cleaned out and I took a 2 hour nap and I'm just coming around now.

On my ride I stopped and spoke with a homeless man and he asked if I had any money. I told him no as I was in my biking gear and he said "Well that makes 2 of us". It really made me realize that I don't have any problems and that tx is nothing more than a mid-life nuisance. By for now

Jenna, 1980

Tuesday, June 26 48/336

Today is 48 days. Not that it means anything, but, for some reason, it seems significant. Maybe because I am now considering myself as succeeding and moving forward killing the virus and well on my way. Sides are just about non existant right now and I hope the trend continues.

I got my History test back and I got and A- which is great considering the fact that I have CRS. (Can't remember shit). I think my teacher gave me a little leeway given that I'm on treatment. I play the chemo card whenever I need to. It's nice to finally have something like this that I can use to my advantage. Bye for now

Interior shot of the remodel

Monday, June 25th 47/336

The new front door

Sunday, June 24th 46/336

Not much to report today. Woke up feeling good albeit a little slow. The rash on my forehead caused by the medication is getting worse and is causing me a great deal of discomfort. The medicine they gave me for it only seems to make things worse. It got really aggrevated on the bike ride yesterday where the helmet meets the forehead. All of the persperation and salt did a number. Today I went to the bike shop and bought doo rag to put under my helmet. Hopefully, that will help.

They finished installing the new front door today and it looks great. I'll post a pic in a day or two.

Magda and her ex husband went on a long bike ride with the usual outcome. Same huge fight they have been having for the last 5 years. Same, same, same. It always happens. Bye for now.

Alien Baby, 1998

Saturday, June 23rd 45/336

Woke up this morning feeling groovy. I took 2 Prozac and within 2 hours the world was a very nice place and treatment is just a nuisance. Peg & Riba have left the building which is strange as I just had my shot 2 days ago. Magda and I did the 15 mile bike ride and today I'm back in the land of no sides. I wondering if there is a direct correlation between lower serotonin and the side effcts. It sure seems to be true in my case, time will tell. Magda and her friend went dancing at the gay bar in Sacramento last night and she came very close to getting arrested. A man gropped Erin and she shoved him hard. He said fuck you and she said you wish bitch. I'm calling her the Paris Hilton of Sacramento. What a hoot she is! Bye for now.

Erin and Magda Friday night

Friday, June 22nd 44/336

And the beat goes on. Took the shot last night and today I felt pretty good. Slight fatigue and a little brain fog. My new front door is being installed and it looks great. They've been here since 9:00 this morning and they probably won't leave till 10:00 tonight and then they'll have to come back for a few more hours another day. I scored moderate depression on my psych test at the hospital yesterday so today they sent me to the shrink and he thought that it would be a good idea to go from 20mg to 40mg prozac. I heartly concur with the diagnosis Bye for now


The Big Bang, 2005

Thursday, June 21st 43/336 shot#7

My 4 Week Labs

Beginning/ 2 weeks/ 4 weeks

VL/ 5,200,000 / 1,710,000/ 105,000

Hgb/ 15.8 / 15.5 / 15.4

Hct/ 47 /48 /46

WBC/ 3.99 / 2.88 / 2.90

ALT /201 /102 /66

AST/ 140 / 72 /46

Gluc/ 115 / 86 /101

ANC /2360 / 1220 /1460

Plts /199 / 174 /185

Billy the Dog, 2006

Wednesday, June 20 42/336

Weird stuff these meds. I woke up today after 10 hours asleep and still felt really tired. Went back to bed at 10:00 and slept some more until 12:30. Drove to Starbuck's and had a cappachino and started to feel great again. Magda and I did the 15 mile bike ride and it was so refreshing to get out of the house and to be able to ride the 15 miles without too much trouble. As long as I can manage that once in awhile, I'll be OK.

Tomorrow I see the doctor and, hopefully, they will have my 2 week and 4 week bloods. I'd really like to know if I'm getting anywhere killing the virus.

I have fianlly memorized all of the paintings and the artists for my test tomorrow to the point I actually remember about 95% of the info. It took me exactly twice as long as it did prior to treatment.

Tx is interesting in so many ways, you learn new limits and the meds have a mind of their own. Tomorrow night will be shot #7 and we start the cycle again. Hopefully, before too long, my body will start to get used to the meds and I will get back to my free ride status.

One thing I'm finding is that old friends are avoiding my emails. I guess no one likes to be around sick people so they just pretend we don't exist. People in the HVC forum mentioned that support would dry up after the novelty wears off and I suppose that's the case here. Donna bad baby!

After some initial bumps, Magda has stepped up like a trooper. She is being incredibly supportive and loving, I'm a very lucky fella. She's been riding her bike over 100 miles a week and I've taken to calling her "Studley" She really likes that. Bye for now.

Costa Rica, 2003

Tuesday, June 19th 41/336

Woke up this morning feeling groovy. The further away I get from the shot, the better I feel. I went to Starbuck's and was having homicidal thoughts about the person in front of me who was taking their time deciding what they wanted to go with their coffee drink. I had to tell myself that I was heavily medicated and everything was really fine in the grand scheme of things.

I told my step-daughter that I would probably miss her wedding as it's in Disneyland on a Saturday. I've been pretty messed up lately on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. so I think it's best for all of us to skip. Plus, there will be a lot of hostility in the air given the hatchet job my ex has done on me. I don't trust myself "Riba rage" wise to behave. If I take a comment the wrong way, I'm libel to say some things that I shouldn't.

I'm thinking about shaving my head as my hair was 1/2 gone when I started and now the chemo is having the rest fall out. I'm also getting a skin rash on my head from the Riba which might be easier to medicate if I shave. Not sure yet, but I'm headed that way. I'm on my break at school. I went and announced to my history teacher that I have a major case of CRS aka "can't remember shit" and that I would be able to pass the tests but I wouldn't be getting the usual A. Oh well, I don't have to get a job so who cares.

The weather is beautiful here and I'm handling the treatment well enough. Now that it's getting harder to excercise, I'm trying to laugh and smile as much as I can. Bye for now

Leonid Breznev(sp) Statue, Art Park, Moscow, 2003

Monday, June 18th 40/336

I woke up this morning feeling almost groovy. The best I felt in 3 days. Well, it didn't take me long to screw that up. Grocerey store, haircut, post office, dumps, drugstore and now my ass is dragging again. Three attempted naps have not helped the situation so now I'm going to bite the bullet and do some studying before I have dinner so I can ingest some more poison. Magda goes to school tonight for 4 hours so I'm going to try to learn all of my test material so that I can forget it again tomorrow. This crap may be causing brain damage,lol. Bye for now.

Young Man, 1996

Sunday, June 17th 39/336

OMG, I forgot all about posting my blog yesterday. At the start, I committed to post every day. Oh well, shit happens. I was wiped out yesterday and half of today. I had a cup of coffee awile ago and that seems to help. I have been trying to memorize the works of art and the artists for my up coming midterm. I can memorize the paintings and the artists but I am having a hard time matching the correct painting to the artist. I'm finding that it takes about twice as long to get as it did prior to tx. This is turning out to be a barrell of laughs. I can't wait to see how anemic I've become as I'm sure that's why I'm so tired all the time. Bye for now.

Candied Apples, 2001

Friday, May 15th 37/336

Hi, I took my shot last night and experienced the now usual tiredness today, it seems to hit about 18 hours after I inject. The shot knocks me down but not out. I just have to take it a little easier and take 2 or 3 naps during the day. I worked on my study guide for my up coming history test for a couple of hours and now I'm ready to test my memory. Luckily, the test has been pushed back to Thursday. It's been really warm here lately, today it hit 103. I stayed inside all day so not to care. The nurse finally called back with my 2 week viral load and I was unable to hear if it dropped a million or if it dropped to a million. I guess I'll have to wait until Monday. Bye for now.


Brooklyn Bridge, 1979

Thursday, June 14th 36/336 Shot#6

Another nice day. Got up and had breakfast and read the paper and did the crossword puzzle and the Jumble. I do this to see if I have brain fog or not. So far so good. I went to school and I have a midterm on next Tuesday. I've timed my shots to fit around school an hopefully my short term memory will still work by Monday. Tonight Magda and I are taking her ex husband to dinner for his B-day. He too is 59, she likes us old guys. Tonight I take shot #6 so the cycle starts again. Maybe next week, Peg and Riba will be lazy. Bye for now.

48 Lawn Chairs, 2006

Wednesday, June 13 35/336

Woke up today feeling groovy. There seems to be a pattern emerging and I went on a bike ride to see if Peg, Riba and I could come to an agreement. This is what we decided. They should join the tx union workers and work 4 days a week. We've agreed that they can do their job on me Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday and then I would give them the next 3 days off. Everyone agreed and I mentioned that, of course, they can take any additional days off as part of thier sick leave and vacation package. So that's pretty much how it is lately. Really tired after the shot and then 3 good days. Fatique is my only symptom to date so Im very greatful for that.

Today, the temperature hit 100 which is fine because I'm comfortable to 102. After that, it's too hot. The bike ride was hard but good and I made it the whole 15 miles so there is still hope for an excercise program. I'm told that things tend to lighten up after 12 weeks, that would be nice.

I'm getting a little spacey and last night I emptied the dishwasher and put all of the dishes away-except, they were all dirty. Magda went totally ape shit! You would think she's the one on the meds. She yelled, "you are getting really bad" she made me feel horrible as she has no concept of what it's like to have this shit in your head. Very unsupportive to say the least. She was very nice this morning, so I'm not mad at her anymore. Bye for now

3 Brothers & 2 brothers, 5 cousins, Golden Gate Park, 1978

Tuesday, June 12th 34/336

Today is much better than the last 4 days have been. I woke up feeeling pretty good indeed. Mentally, I have a little trouble distinguishing between what is real and what is not as in when people joke with me. I don't know if they are kidding or if they are serious. I also have to be very careful about what I say as this stuff is a little like truth serum. I really have to filter what comes out out of my mouth so as not to hurt peoples' feelings.

This is a painting I copied from Christopher Brown and I refer to this as the painting that showed me how to paint. Mixing colors, brush strokes etc. His original is much better than mine, but this painting served it's purpose in showing me the way.

Sailors on Deck, After Christopher Brown

Monday, June 11th 33/336

Today was just OK. I have taken to rating my days from 1-10 with yesterday being a 4 and today being a 6. All has changed and I feel like I'm really undertaking treatment. I'm tired almost all of the time and have to sleep longer than usual. Nothing hurts, so I guess I'm lucky in that regard. I am feeling cranky lately.

Today, we took the dog to have his teeth cleaned and what a performance, he sounded like Paris Hilton trying to get out of jail. After the appointment, we came home to Sacramento. Nice drive with no traffic.

Tomorrow is school from 12:40 to 4:10. I find the class and the teacher very interesting, so hopefully, I'll be able to stay awake. Bye for now.

Ken Butori, Los Banos, CA, 7:00am, 1976

Sunday, June 10th 32/336

Last night I experienced an episode of what is known amoung us treatment folk
as "Riba Rage". I became very irritated at the traffic on the Bay bridge and
the directions that Magda was giving our fried Lisa. She was sending her the
wrong way and I just lost it. I said' "You're sending her to the North
pole". Even the dog growled at me.

I woke up to day feeling really tired. we went to Belvedere and did the walk
and had breakfast with David and my old friends John and Pat. I got hit with
a hurricane of fatigue when I got home and had to take an emergency 2 hour
nap. I have never been so tired in my life! I seems that the free ride I've
been having so far is coming to an end.

Doo, doo, doo, doo............I'm now entering the twilight zone.

Off to david's to watch the Soppranos
and back to Sacto tomorrow. Bye for now

Magda on Tony Soprano's lap. He asked her where she was from and she said, "Poland", to which he responded, "God bless Poland"

Saturday, June 9th 31/336

Woke up today feeling very sluggish. Seems as though the Friday and Saturday after the shot are slow days. Nothing hurts, just a little tired. Tonight, Magda and I are off to SF for a couple days

This is the building I own in Oklahoma City which is the source of my retirement income. I bought it last year with the money I got from the sale of my real estate business. It's 24 loft apartments and a furniture store converted from an auto showroom built in 1929 and now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. it's a great property

Friday, June 8th 30/336

Woke up today feeling great considering that I took my shot last night. Magda and I took the dog to the park and we went for a little walk. We were planning on taking a bike ride this afternoon. I'm getting a new stainless steel front door with a side light and they delivered it around 11:30. I had to uncrate it on the truck and then me & TVB and Magda had to take it to the garage. It weighs 320 lbs and it knocked the shit out of me. I started gasping for air and almost passed out. I'm still not right. This all tells me that my red blood count and hemoglobin are diving and my blood isn't getting fully oxygenated due to what I think is the onset of anemia. Very common side effect of Ribaviren & Interferon. Time will tell and I get my new bloods next week. The day after my shot always seems to be a little rough. Bye for now:-)

Peg-Intron Interferon Syringe AKA "The Shot"

Thursday, June 7th 29/336 Shot#5

I woke up today feeling groovy. I went to the doctor for my 4 week visit and bloods. I got back my 2 week results except for the Viral Load, very important result. They said they switched labs and they were behind----no shit!

The great news I did get is that I have gone from very close to diabetic to very normal glucose. My numbers are as follows.

Beginning /2 weeks

VL 5,200,000/??????

Hgb 15.8/15.5 (Hemoglobin)
Hct 47/48 (Hemocrit)
WBC 3.99/2.88 (White Blood Count)
ALT 201/102 (Liver funtion-lower is better)
AST 142/72 (Liver funtion-lower is better)
Gluc 115/86 (normal is 66-99)

It also may be a blessing that I missed the protease inhibitor arm of the trial in that it doesn't seem to be working much better than the standard of care I'm on. I addition, they are all going anemic very quickly and needing the supplemental drug procrit.

School is fun, bye for now.

US 80, The Middle of Nowhere, Nevada, 2001

Wednesday, June 6th 28/336

Last night I slept like a teenager for 10 hours and woke up feeling great. I decided that today would be a great day for a bike ride, so after breakfast, off we went. Peg and Riba were very fussy for the first 7 miles, they didn't want to go. To bad! Like the commercial says, "Just do it". I finally got them to settle down and felt good from then on. At the 10 mile mark I was only 100 feet off the pace so they didn't get their way with me. I can tell my pace by what song is on my IPod at 10 miles. My strength is about the same but my stamina is a little off as I wasn't able to hit my 60 mile goal this week. I might have made it tommorrow but I have to go to the doctor at 10 and then school. Tommorrow night is shot night and we start the cycle again. Bye for now

Battery Park Telescopes, Lower Manhattan, 1980

Tuesday, June 5th 27/336

I woke up today and had breakfast and went back to bed and slept until 10:00. Today is the first day of summer school and I am enrolled in Art1B. This is art history from the 15th cenutry until the present. I was going to ride my bike there and back but I whoosed out because it was cold and windy and I was tired. I may be getting close to anemic, I'll know when I do my next bloods. The summer school class is 3.5 hours on Tues/Thurs and is taught by Rosie Gilday. I had her for 1A and she had the collossal gaul to give me an A-. Not to worry, I adore her and I won't ever need to get a job, so it's OK. Speaking of jobs, I am feeling very lucky that I don't have to work while on treatment, I think that it would really raise my stress level. My brother called yesterday and said that he needs a new knee, terrible news! Hopefully, I can ride my bike tomorrow. Bye for now.

What Side effects?

Monday, June 4th 26/336

Woke up today feeling a little slow. I was going to ride but I decided to save it for tomorrow and instead I went to the gym. Peg and riba are always looking for a crack so I upped the wieghts and went for it. The workout went well and I'm still at full strength although I'm starting to feel a little more tired each week. Hopefully I'll stablize after week 12 when my body is saturated with Peg and Riba. So far, I have no complaints. Elizebeth Anne, whose blog is linked to mine has had to throw in the towel after 5 weeks due to killer sides. My heart goes out to her.

This is the neighborhood in San Francisco where my Real Estate company did a lot of it's business. The neighborhood is called Noe Valley and is located in about the center of town. They were built around the turn of the century for working class families for about $500.00 each. Today, they sell between 1.5 and 3 million, mostly due to the proximity to Silicon Valley

Sunday, June 3rd 25/336

I woke up today feeling groovy and ready to rock and roll. Did the usual 15 miles on the bike with ease. It seems that a pattern has evolved. Thursday night shot, Friday and Saturday, I have to take things a little slower and then I'm ready to go Sunday through Thursday and then I start the process again. As long as I can hit 70 miles a week on the bike I feel that I have no problems. Tonight we're taking some old friends out for dinner for sushi, I can't wait to have teriake Salmon. Bye for now.

The Ox Bow Bend, Snake River Wyoming

Saturday, June 2 24/336

Shot #4 seems to have had it's way with me today. I was going to ride but I thought better of it and I'm glad I did. I have felt intermintent fatigue most of the day. Hopefully, tommorrow I'll snap back. This is the first time that the shot has slowed me down for 2 days. Oh well, only a minor inconvenience as nothing hurts. Bye for now

Bondi Beach, Austrialia, 1997

Friday, June 1st 23/336

i took my shot last night and today around 3:00 I slowed down and had to take a nap. Seems like an emerging pattern in my treatment-I need a nap on friday afternoon. Magda went to the hot springs with her girl friends and gave me a list of chores to do, fold the laundry, clean the kitchen, water the plants, empty the dishwasher, take the dog to the park etc. I'm all done and she won't be home until 7:30 so I can make a little dinner and they sit back and relax. Tomorrow, the girls, Peg & Riba, hit the bike trail again! I was just thinking, I only have but 44 weeks to go.lol.

How did I happen to name the cat Ug Lee? When my daughter was 14, she had a habit of bringing home stray animals. One day she walks in the door with a scrawny, screaming, 4 day old, eyes shut, cat. I said, "You get that ugly cat out of the house!" So, 18 years later I still have my Ug Lee baby.

Billy & Ug Lee