Might As Well J̶u̶m̶p̶ Hop!

It's a day late for Nancy's Summer Blog Hop, but here goes anyway. 

1. Who are you? Tell us your genre, how long you’ve been at it, who or what inspires you or whatever you want us to know.

I am known online as Luna, LunaTechChick and also by my name Kimberly.  I started blogging in 2009.  I first started on a CarePage so there would be a central place for me to keep my family and friends up to date on what was going on with me during treatment for breast cancer.  I moved all of that content over to my blog and continued there.  When I learned I was going to lose my hair to chemo and not finding very many pictorials on how the hell long it would take to grow it back to normal, I documented my follicle chronicle with photos every 2 weeks and updated this post.  I tend to be a bit ranty.  Especially about the "pretty pink party" depiction of breast cancer.  

 2. What’s been your biggest blogging roadblock this year and did you come up with a way to get around it?  (If you didn’t, that’s okay too. We’re here to support you.)

Blogging.  Just sitting down and writing.  I've been blogging less and less and less.  After November of 2016 it REALLY became less as I was so despondent about what was happening politically.  And since there's not much going on (thankfully) in my cancerland, I don't blog much.  And now with the pandemic, you'd think I'd be here ranting constantly, but I can't seem to just do it.  But I will try.  So, starting with this (day late) post, time will tell if I find a way around it. 

3. What’s something you accomplished with your blog this year that you’re proud of?

Well, since I've only posted once this year until today, not much.  I guess, though late, I'm pleased with myself for doing this challenge.  Although late.  

4. What are a couple of your best blogging tips?

Use it or lose it.  My dry spells between blogs are getting longer and longer and it definitely shows in my writing.  I've never fancied myself a proper writer, but I think I used to be much better.  I always tried to have a sense of humor in posts.  I always tried to share some personal, non-cancer things too.  

5. How do you handle negative feedback or comments?

September 2021

Of course, negative or argumentative comments hurt.  

I have a very thin skin.  Always have.  If it's over the top offensive, or when commenters argue among themselves, they get the big delete.  Now, I also have received negative feedback in person.  Right. In. My. Face.  That's the worst.  

6. Share a link to a favorite post you’ve written THIS YEAR (or anytime if you’ve been a bit quiet) that you want more people to read.

The post on my hair regrowth is apparently very sought out. 

If You're Happy And You Know It... is a good insight into how I feel about people constantly telling people to be positive all the time, when we know that's just not possible. 

Scar Tissue That I wish You Saw...

Just Beat It...  - A rant.

Pretty much any on this list.

Yikes!  Got a little carried away there. 

Well, there it is.  Better late than never.  

So Cold Cold Cold!

Reynaud's Disease.  Apparently, I haz it.  I can't even believe it's taken me several years to finally consult with Dr. Google & figure out why it seems like my feet are like ice blocks much of the time and why my hands get so cold that my fingers go white.  Sometimes, creepy white.  It's not only when I am in a chilly environment either.  If I am experiencing high stress or anxiety, I notice that my fingers get super cold, even toes will get numb feeling.  And when this happened during a stressful and anxiety causing conversation recently, I finally looked it up and learned about Reynaud's Disease, or Syndrome, or Phenomenon.  Eh, cold hands, warm heart, right?  I don't know if it's a long term side effect from the chemo.  I have found some articles online that indicate it might be, but I didn't see any of the drugs I was given listed as known to cause it.  And really, I may have been experiencing this, especially in my toes, even before having cancer.  So there's that...

So anyway....  Haven't had a whole lot to report, which, on a cancer blog is a good thing.  I can say that my mammogram in November was still clear and my labs from my physical in December still look normal.  So in June, when it will definitly NOT be cold here, I will be 12 years NED.  

It's been really hard to even want to write (again) anything for ages it seems.  Thanks to the pandemic, and avoiding people, and cooking most of our meals, and then the political climate as of late...just seemed better to just be quiet.  On the plus side, the vaccines for COVID-19 are rolling out more and more.  We just gotta hang in there a bit longer.  We've been at this a long time now...  I remember a blog I did where I mentioned how my life was now divided into two parts, bc and ad....  

And now it's divided again.  BC - Before COVID.  

The last two weeks here have been so rainy.  Fog, mist, rain, thunderstorms.  And now our friends and family in Texas are dealing with a major winter storm situation, complete with lots of snow and rolling blackouts during record breaking low temps.  Y'all stay safe and warm.  

Mask up y'all!

So, yeah, just felt like I wanted to do a post to just say that I now feel like I know why I'm cold a lot of the time.  And to say I'm still NED, as far as anyone can tell.  

And I miss normal life.  I know you do too.  I never, ever imagined this is what real life would look like.  

Hang in there all.  I know there's warm light at the end of the tunnel.