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Sen. John Fetterman, D-MN with Sen. John Fetterman, D-MN

Useless and a waste of time

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The tweet is being reposted on Facebook with the comment: “How can anyone look at these two and think they are the same person?” Facebook foolishness I mean, really … it’s almost as if two images taken … … couldn’t POSSIBLY look any different. (In case it’s not clear, yes, that’s sarcasm.) The photo of … Read more

Texas Flag on wooden background

Of all the places I’ve ever lived …

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With apologies to all of my friends in all the OTHER fine places I’ve lived … I grew up in Arkansas and always wondered, “What’s so special about Texas?” Let’s face it, Texas and their Southwest Conference referees were constantly kicking our butts in football, so I had every reason to NOT like the Lone … Read more

birds eating birdseed on snow-covered ground

Just Buy It

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As someone with a physical disability, who’s also a cancer/cancer treatment survivor, I’m keenly aware that the ice and snow we’re experiencing right now can make life even more difficult for people with disabilities, those with chronic health conditions, or going through treatment for life-threatening conditions. If you’re one of those people and you’re having … Read more

The Social Dilemma video cover

Only time will tell

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“How do you wake up from the matrix when you don’t know you’re in the matrix.” I pulled the trigger last night and subscribed to Netflix so that I could watch The Social Dilemma.  If you’re not familiar with it, the synopsis is this: The Artificial Intelligence (AI) that powers social media is getting so … Read more

You Call the Shots, N.E. Texas HPV Forum

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Today, I spoke to the Northeast Texas HPV Forum produced by the American Cancer Society, Mission HPV: Cancer Free Texas, and The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler. A member of the audience recorded this video of most of my presentation and posted it on Facebook. Enjoy! (You may have to disable the … Read more

The top 10 things I wish everyone knew about having cancer

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The poet Maya Angelou wrote, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”

It’s difficult to know how to react to someone who has cancer. What should you say? How should you act around them? I’m sure each cancer survivor could make their own rendering of this list. My goal with my version is not to criticize anyone’s past actions, but to help us all know better, so we can do better.

My patient identification number is blah-blah-blah. And that’s what I felt like at the start of my cancer treatment; just a number. Going through treatment, these were the Top 10 things I wish everyone knew about having cancer™ …

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And so it begins

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Day 1 in the books … I’ve been poked, prodded, x-rayed, CT-scanned, stuck with a REALLY big needle, and met about a half-dozen doctors. I’m pretty sure FRED is shaking in his boots right about now. 😃 For those of you who prayed about my appointments being moved, THANK YOU! This could change depending on test … Read more

This is about to get real-er

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Alright folks, this is about to get real-er. The UT MD Anderson Cancer Center called today and I get the impression that they’re serious about my case. I have to be there THIS Thursday morning to meet with Dr. Stephen Lai, MD, PhD, FACS. (That’s a LOT of education, my friends!), a professor in their Head and Neck Clinic. This guy has been specializing in cancer of the head and neck longer than some of you have been alive. I think I’ve got “the big gun” on my side. (And, of course, we know I have THE big gun on my side, always!)

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The beginning of ‘Let’s Kill FRED’

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“The good news is, it’s curable.”

But that’s about the only good news I’ve received in the past two and a half weeks.

A little more than a month ago, I started having pain in my throat and trouble swallowing. After a bunch of tests, I got a “gut punch” late last week. There’s no easy way to share this …

I have a rare, advanced, and aggressive form of cancer at the base of my tongue and in the two lymph nodes on either side of my neck. It is one of the only cancers of the head and neck that is curable at this advanced stage. The only other good news is that it does NOT appear to have spread outside my neck region.

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Did God choose Donald Trump to be president?

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Sadly, I’m probably about to lose some “friends” over what I’m about to post. Although, if you “unfriend” me on social media over this, I’m not sure we had much of a friendship to begin with. So, here goes … No one can definitely say that God chose Donald Trump to be president. Last night … Read more