holla back, ya'll

Yeah, I don't know why that's my subject. I just know that it is. I have a few updates! First and foremost, I am out of the hospital. They discharged me Friday evening, after which I promptly went and had Mexican food. Mmm, enchiladas. The doctors kept me a bit longer because there was some question as to whether or not I had a urinary tract infection. I guess they found some enterococcus (round bacteria) in my urinalysis and weren't sure what it meant. The infectious disease doctors, however, said it isn't something I should worry about. There are innumerable types of bacteria residing in our general intestine and colon and bladder and such. The doctors figured it was probably just a normal bacteria swimming around in my bladder that wouldn't give me any grief. So that's good. I also got my period, which is giving me some grief. I haven't gotten it in about three months, and I'm not sure if I'm supposed to have it now. I'm taking birth control so that I don't get my period, but it can't be too healthy to not have your period for seven months... I need to ask my doctor about this. In the meantime, all of the usual and fun symptoms associated with periods have come and taken residence in my body. Cramps, headaches. It's kind of funny because I can go strong for a few hours until my head starts to hurt. And then all I need is a nap, and I'm set to go again. I suppose it's comparable to recharging my batteries. If batteries could feel pain. And ran my head. Also, I found out that during these next five weeks of chemo, I won't become neutropenic. Yay! So although I have to stay in the hospital for four days every two weeks, I can still eat what I want and go out in public. Fantastically good news.

In other cancer-related news, my "cancer story," such as it is, has been published online by a cancer website. There are a ton of websites for college-age students who have cancer. Some of them provide scholarships, some provide support groups. One, www.collegiatecancer.org, has a link where cancer survivors and their friends can share their stories. I decided it would be fun to type something up and submit it, just to see what happened. Well, the guy who runs the site (and also has cancer) liked it and posted it. So, if you're bored and want the edited version of my blog - basically - check it out!

And finally, my ex-roommate but current friend Megan is visiting me now. It's a good time. The weather finally got awesome here. Today, we went to the South Side of Chicago's St. Patrick's Day Parade. It was fantastic. I haven't seen that many drunk 20-somethings stumbling off the curbs since I was in Boston. Ah, good times. Seriously though, everyone was wearing green, and most everyone, unless they were very small, was holding a frothy, amber beverage. It felt good to be around people again. I had my massive camera, took lots of pictures, and at one point these two drunk guys were like, "hey, wanna take our picture?" Me being me, I was like, "Yeah, sure." (I didn't drink today. I just like taking pictures.) So I took their pictures, got their e-mail address, and will be sending them their happy reminder of their spring break in Chicago. Another job well done by the Cancer Kid. And that's about it. Tomorrow is another downtown day. I'm excited. I hope everyone is enjoying their spring break, if they're on it, or enjoying the great weather, if they have it, or can find something to enjoy because it's not really worth it to be unhappy. Peace.