Weekly Log 13-Sep to 19-Sep-2021: Healed!

Monday:  0

Full rest day.

Tuesday:  Run 5, Swim 0.5

AM:  Ran Champlin Glacier Park for the first time in months.  Ran from home with Brady.  Trails in great shape.  I was nervous the whole run about my upcoming Wound Care visit, as I know my wound is really, really close to being fully healed, but don't want to get my hopes up.

Final Wound Care visit at the hospital!!!

• Two surgeries on my head to remove cancer (melanoma) back in April.
• Five months of weekly treatments at the Wound Care Center.
• 23 visits, to be exact!
• $4,000 out of pocket (I can't imagine being without health insurance, as they in turn picked up over $20K of my costs)

The doctor said the new growth skin is really fragile and I should protect my head for one more week (band aids, daily compression, swim cap, shower cap, etc).  I need to be cautious with the sun for some time.   He also cautioned no hammers to my head for at least the next week, which is good to know.  But otherwise, all restrictions are off and I can also swim.

The head nurse told me (unsolicited) in June that she estimated I'd be healed by
the 4th of July.  Based on the precipitous drop in wound size between May and June,
you might understand her prognostication.  I started to make plans for swimming,
family vacations, and triathlons, only to be very disappointed and even depressed.
---
The wound care doctor (Dr Narula) said I shouldn't have been given that estimate,
because the healing typically does not take a linear progression.  This chart of actual
data illustrates that quite well in hindsight!  The wound healing stalled completely
and even regressed twice, and it was only Dr Narula's research and thinking "outside
the box" to try different therapies each time that got my healing back on track.  Very
grateful to him and the time he spent with me.

Noon:  After letting my Mom and two sons know the good news, I took the rest of the day off, declined my work meetings, and went for a swim!  Why would I go for a swim midday in September?  Because I can!  Don't take little things for granted, like not being able to swim all summer.  Headed to Watchaug Pond, where I swam the 1/4 mile out to the buoy, took a short breather at the buoy (but not long, as I had to tread water there), and swam back.  Not surprisingly, my weak arms were tired, but otherwise felt really good, both physically and mentally.   Now can I find a triathlon before the season closes imminently?

Swim at Watchaug Pond,
from the beach at Burlingame picnic area.  You could see
the buoy with the naked eye, but not in this picture.

Celebratory seafood dinner that evening dockside at Dog Watch Cafe!
---
Reminded me of the "good ol' days" having a drink on the
dock and and catching up with running friends after the
now-defunct Stonington Fun Runs.

Wednesday:  3

Easy run with Brady at Avondale Preserve.  Got going too late before a scheduled work interview, and that's all I got in.

Thursday:  8 run, 10 bike

Morning loop on the Vin Gormley Trail around Watchaug Pond, from the picnic area CCW.  Started out in the rain and running through lots of puddles, but the rain stopped after a couple of miles and the trails drained nicely.  A few superlative moments for me from today's run:

• Most entertaining:  At the covered bridge, Brady jumped into the Perry Healey Brook (as he always does).  He went under the bridge, put his head under the water, and fished out his prize, which he then proudly balanced and carried for almost a mile:  a branch that was longer than him!  (You had to see it.)
• Most scary:  Several miles in, with Brady just behind me, I heard him let out a loud yelp.  I stopped, turned around, and saw him propping one paw up.  Momentary panic went through me (he can't walk, I didn't bring a cell phone, we're a long way from a road, etc).  I checked his paw, and a found a thorn/stick wedged into the fleshy part between his pads.  I pulled that out, and fortunately he was good to go.  Whew.
• Most exciting:  Resuming last year's ritual of running and jumping off the dock at the boat launch.  As soon as we lined up on the dock, he looked so excited and took off in a sprint and then leapt into the water.  I followed suit, but couldn't keep up with him.  I hadn't been able to do this in a year due to the head wound.  I landed in water shoulder deep, and it was so much fun, we did it again.  Again, don't ever take the small things in life for granted!

Late afternoon went for an easy 10-mile coastal ride.  Lots of clanking noises on the bike.  Every year lately I contemplate buying a new bike.  This year I almost pulled the trigger until I naively learned in 2021 you can't just walk into a bike shop and buy a bike on the spot as the supply chain is severely disrupted from COVID and at least at my local bike shop, orders are backed up by one year.

Friday:  5 run, 3 walk

Easy morning run at Ninigret with Brady.  Mix of asphalt and grass fields.  Humid.

Today was volunteer day, at least for Jana and me.  Spent the rest of the morning at Napatree cleaning up the beach as part of a work volunteer effort.  My employer is very community focused on giving back, and that meshes with my ideals.  Besides, do I want to sit in front of a computer working or walk barefoot on a beautiful barrier beach?  Yeah, easy choice!

In the evening, Jana and I continued our local volunteerism by donating our services to the YMCA for the annual Roger Schonning 5K.  Fortunately we got to watch the start and at least early finishers of the race before being called into action to help put things away and then serve food at the buffet (with COVID, no one allowed to serve themselves).  That wouldn't have been the activity I chose, but I'm happy to help in any capacity, and my station was pretty easy with serving salad.  It was a pretty awesome loaded salad from the Andrea, and I made sure to save some for myself and Jana.

I was happy to see a WTAC singlet on the first person across the finish line.  Eric Ciocca won in 19:38.  After he finished, he came up to me and said, "You would have won this.".  To which I replied, "Maybe, but you never know, and you race who shows up."  What was disappointing to see was that there were only 50 finishers, but I don't know whether to attribute this to over-saturation of races this fall, especially with so many deferred from spring, or just not the best promoted race.  Probably a combination of both.

Saturday:  15

Jamestown Half Marathon.  Separate write-up shortly.

Post-race, we headed up to a "Paws in the Park" event, which my employer sponsored:

Small, but nice, state park "Rosa Larisa Park",
right around Mile 10 on the Providence Marathon course
as I remember.

I'm not usually into cutesy photos,
but this one came out neat.

Brady (left) was much more interested in all the new
balls he got than in other dogs, even if they looked like him.

Sunday:  7

Local dirt road and trail mix at Burlingame.  I had originally contemplated running more, but the legs were more sore than I had expected.  Highlight once again was jumping off the dock into the pond.  Brady seemed very excited about this.

Actually, I had seriously contemplated participating in one of two triathlons in the region today, just as the triathlon season is closing out for the year.  In the end, and with some input from those closest to me, I decided against it, with I think pretty good reasons:

• I just ran a half-marathon yesterday and certainly haven't recovered from that.
• I haven't actually done any triathlon training!
• While probably low risk, I do still need to protect my head for a while, and during tri swims, I've certainly been kicked in the head and punched in the head more than just a few times.
• As mentioned earlier, my bike has seen better days.  At 15 years old now and an entry level road bike bought new for $600, it certainly doesn't owe me anything, but it's time for a new one.  It's past time, actually.

Weekly mileage:  42 run, 10 bike, 3 walk, 0.5 swim

Weekly synopsis:  While it was a good smorgasbord of healthy outdoor activity this week, the running mileage certainly fell off.  I attribute that to two factors:  1) it was race week, so I backed on mileage before and after the half marathon, and 2) no longer having a fixed marathon date on my calendar has killed any training plans.

Weekly highlight:  That's an easy one!  Getting the all clear from the doctor that my wound is now sealed.  I should say sealed, and not necessarily fully healed, as the fragile new skin growth will need time to strengthen, but that's fine, as other than protecting my head, all restrictions are off.  

With full recognition and appreciation that many had and have it much worse than my situation, it was still scary and worrisome for me with my cancer diagnosis (malignant melanoma), two surgeries, and five months of wound care therapy with an open wound on my head.  It may sound trite, but this experience has truly given me a fresh perspective on life.  I am increasingly cognizant of what's important in my life (e.g., time with family, catching up with friends, physical and mental health, vacation, travel, volunteering, exploring, etc), what's not important (work meetings, material collections, minor disagreements, etc), and will endeavor to focus my priorities and goals accordingly.

Weekly lowlight:  Again, minor in the scheme of things, but still disappointed in Vermont City Marathon being downgraded to a half.  I've been researching other fall marathon options, and just need to make a decision and get on with it.