Much to say -

aI want to start by acknowledging family members today. My nephew Steven graduates from West Point tomorrow, a terrific accomplishment for which the Army will reward him with officer training in Fort Benning, GA and a post to Fort Hood in Texas. Congratulations! Now put the snowboard up on Craig's List. And another nephew, Robert, graduates from UC Irvine this semester as well. He has studied up on criminal investigation and now speaks fluent Spanish. He can also tell you about the best surfing spots in Chile. My niece Jennifer has just bought her first home (time to order more checks from the bank - welcome to home ownership!), and she works as a fundraiser for a Christian non-profit micro-lending group. Another nephew Taylor is working in the wine industry, brokering wine sales to restaurants and restaurant chains. As of July first this year you can finally send wine to an uncle in Maryland through the mail. And he might have a gathering of friends to taste those wines and give you some feedback. Just sayin' ... His brother Trevor is working and going to school and keeping my mother company at the beach in SoCal; he's great with kids, loves to run and crew (rowing a boat), still isn't sure what he wants to do. Dude: enjoy life, that's everybody's real purpose ;) Matt is a Christian minister in Greeley, CO and with his snappy wife Trista have produced my sister's first grandchild, the beautiful Samantha. How about another? And Daniel (the last shall be first...), also referred to as The Daniel Moody Experience is an E-ticket experience if ever there was one. He's a straight-up guy working and going to school and also helping out Mom. You could not ask for better relatives; I love you all.

As for moi, today was the fourth day of chemo. The side effects are starting to make themselves known mostly through fatigue and a couple little mouth sores. Overall it's been pretty tolerable, but the harder parts will come over the next couple weeks. My friend Fred is here now, helping me out with things. Since he is familiar with oncology, he's been keeping track of what I need to do, interpreting lab results, helping clean the house (sanitation will be the watchword for a while, primarily in the bathroom) and cooking (thank God!). While my labs look good - today - the cells floating around were produced by my marrow a while back, and chemo will prevent them from being replaced and hopefully remove all the cancer at the same time, hence the need for some fresh bone marrow. Transplant day is Tuesday the 24th, and shaping up to be quite a day. I have two days off from chemo before that, though I will have to check in for labs each day. My brother comes back down from West Point on Sunday and preps for the operation - he'll be under anesthesia - on Monday. Lots to prepare for.

In other news, Fred and I saw Morgan Spurlock's new film "The Greatest Story Ever Sold." Quite funny in parts, eye-opening, not quite as compelling as I'd hoped, but definitely worth seeing. Something else to mention: my employer is letting me go from my position. I am not angry, upset or surprised. The hospital is in great need of social workers right now and I cannot predict when I will return. My oncologist has told me the average time away from work is 6-12 months if all goes well. (Remember, even though the transplant procedure is not new, it still carries many risks, especially in conjunction with my HIV.) I feel confident that I can return to the hospital when they have a position open again, and if not then I can get good references from people there.

So, my spirits are good, my attitude is hopeful and I have terrific support from friends and family. I can feel the prayers, good wishes and warm thoughts coming my way and believe me that is no small thing. Thank you all - more will be revealed.

PS - Just in case any of you are taken up in the predicted Rapture tomorrow, can I have your stuff?