SUEZ;
My surgery was 1/4 tongue in 2006, 3/4 tongue Dec. 2010.
I don't so much have taste buds, I have a sense of salt, or sense of sugar, nothing overpowering except strong spice, and that simply hurts.
I don't drink hot foods/coffee, etc. because I can't tell if it's hot until it hits my throat.
Surgery cut a mass of nerves in chin/lip/cheek, so can't tell if food is on my face, so finally figured how to get out of dinner invitations, although the wife still attends, with my blessings.
I work Engineering, about 15 years ago had chemical spill, lost a lot of my sense of smell, so the only thing I still have taste related, is my mind.
At least I no longer drool over Big Macks or Pizza commercials, just the thought of putting one in a blender & adding some liquid so I could swallow it pretty much takes the pleasure out of it.
Now, I just watch the commercial like I'm looking at a beloved boat that has sunk in miles of water, it was nice while it lasted, but oh well.

I actually look at my cancer as a kind of gift, I now have empathy for those I am amoung all day, and now have time to inquire of their well-being.
Doing so, also makes my life richer, more satisfying, more meaningful.

It's not what your life is like, it's what you think about it.