Welp. Here we go.

Alright folks, so...

This is not my cup of tea. I try to be a relatively private person, but it's clear to me that what I'm doing/facing isn't all about me. I have tons of friends, family, ex-colleagues, and others who don't live nearby and that I don't speak to often who I still care about a ton. Many of these people made it known that they would like me to do something like this, to keep everyone up to date. I like to write now and then as a hobby but was/still am reluctant.

That reluctance stated, I'm going to do my best to write often and be honest and open about my experiences, feelings, thoughts, fears, etc. I'm a 28 year old bar manager who underwent a median sternotomy to remove what was once thought a benign tumor, only to find out after the operation that it was mid-stage Hodgkins Lymphona. The experiences I have with the disease, family, friends will be the main focus of this blog.

What it won't be, however, it just a depressing chronicle of the often times morbid/depressing experience of treating cancer. (I saw my mother go through it, into remission, and through it again for 9 years before it got her).

I have a dog. His name is Griswold. He is the best dog on earth and I will likely share an obnoxious amount about him. I also share him with an ex (yes, we have unofficial joint custody of our dog, hilarious), and she's been amazing to him and very helpful to me through all this thus far. I love politics, movies, music, Michigan State and Detroit sports, among other things...I also happen to be opinionated. And I have a beard. The journey of my beard will also be documented (C'mon man, don't fall out on me!) So yeah, what I'm saying is I have (will attempt to have) some range.

I have no idea if people will read this or take anything from it, or care about it at all. And I'm not concerned with any of that. In my mind, I started writing today so that I could chronicle the experience from start to finish for myself. People I love convinced me this was a good idea, so here we go.

 If folks like it, get a laugh now and then, get a question or concern addressed, or if it becomes a place for like-minded, like-cancered, interesting folks to interact, I'd love that. This can't possibly be just me shoving my generally mediocre writing down peoples throats.

So anyway, thanks for stopping by, and feel free to tell me I suck. Being told I'm a pathetic writer would likely make having cancer seem like nothin'. Self deprecation is attractive, I know.

Also....DONATE:

SU2C

http://www.standup2cancer.org/ways-to-donate/

AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY

https://donate.cancer.org/index?campaign=search&gclid=CKzCtcyinMECFdRaMgodKAwArw

LEUKEMIA & LYMPHOMA SOCIETY

https://donate.lls.org/lls/donate