Christine,

Thank you so much for the advice. I'm planning on eating whatever I can whenever I can while I can. With a little luck, maybe I can actually at least drink a bit all the way through, even if I'm on the PEG for the last couple of weeks (which is what I'm told will probably happen). One of the things I'm very afraid of is losing the ability (muscular memory) to swallow, so I plan to try and swallow a few times every day. Is that actually possible? Some people seem to indicate that it isn't.

I did my blood work and dental -- 10 years without seeing a dentist and no work needed other than a good cleaning -- my dentist actually believes that with good daily care (flouride treatments, cleaning 4x daily, etc.) that I may avoid any major dental problems, so that's good. Had the flouride trays done last week.

More appointments coming -- chemo consult Thursday and the PEG install today ahead of treatments staring on the 31st. Hoping I can work throughout, but we'll see. Given the drive to the facility, I'm definitely on 1/2 days during treatment -- travel time takes what it takes.

Hoping I can take advantage of the good weather my first two weeks and still ride my motorcycle -- we'll see how the skin feels. I'm probably hopelessly optimistic, but hey, what do I have to lose by hoping?

Thanks for the advice!!

The Hellion