January 13, 2002|

Waiting My Time

I am still a free man. That wasn’t expected was it? Without laborious details that could get me into a host of legal trouble, all I can write is that we are waiting for a few of the players in this madcap adventure to resolve their differences and allow Art to enter the hospital. Right now we are week behind schedule. The days grow longer, the nights grow shorter, and Art certainly isn’t getting any better. Let’s get this bad boy on!

In the meanwhile, I have appointed Ministers of Art Information to let the masses know what is going on via word of mouth. For example, cousin Shawnee is the Family Minister of Art Information (FMAI). Any new news gets posted to her first for distribution to the rest of my family members. Frederick A. Canning Jr. will serve as Prime Minister of Art Information (PMAI, for those keeping score at home). My dear readers, it’s all about delegation. 🙂

Tuesday’s Sushi?

One of the difficulties in having cancer is in the symptom awareness arena. I have become constantly aware of my condition, knowing every creak, every ache, every sickness. So when a new one appears, I mentally run down a list to see what I did, what I didn’t, what I ate, what pill I forgot to take, etc. in order to remedy it. Friday my stomach was screaming at me. Screaming. I could only think back to Tuesday’s sushi (That would be a cool band name- Tuesday’s sushi). Vengeful justice I thought. Brag about having sushi and it bites you in the butt. It wasn’t till Saturday, though, when I yacked my brains out, that I remembered the 24-hour flu bug that had been making it’s way around New York City. And I also remembered hanging out with about a million people who had either had it or were exposed to it. They too had had a day of crazy stomach sickness/ralphing only to have it subside a day later. Symptom awareness, once again to the rescue. I am still pro-sushi, for the record.

Profound Lord of the Rings-Tolkien Quote of the Week:

“And we shouldn’t be here at all, if we’d known more about it before we started. But I suppose it’s often that way. The brave things in the old tales and songs, Mr. Frodo: adventures, as I used to call them. I used to think that they were things the wonderful folk of the stories went out and looked for, because they wanted them, because they were exciting and life was a bit dull, a kind of a sport, as you might say. But that’s not the way of it with the tales that really mattered, or the ones that stayed in the mind. Folk seem to have been just landed in them, usually- their paths were laid that way, as you put it. But I expect they had lots of chances, like us of turning back, only they didn’t. And if they had, we shouldn’t know, because they’d have been forgotten. We hear about those as just went on- and not all to a good end, mind you; at least not what folk inside a story and not outside it call a good end. You know, coming home, and finding things all right, though not quite the same- like old Mr. Bilbo. But those aren’t always the best tales to hear, though they may be the best tales to get landed in! I wonder what sort of tale we’ve fallen into?”

“I wonder”, said Frodo. “But I don’t know. And that’s the way of a real tale. Take any one that you are fond of. You may know, or guess, what kind of tale it is, happy-ending or sad-ending but the people in it don’t know. And you don’t want them to know.”

– Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers; JRR Tolkien, page 378

I couldn’t help but throw this nugget in. Anytime you want to look smart, quote JRR Tolkien. It always works. This passage jumped out at me as I read it on the subway yesterday. The best tales are those- the ones that we get thrown into without an ounce of prep time and that we have the choice to turn back once the road gets more difficult. Considering I am closing in on my two-year cancer anniversary, I deemed it appropriate. Chew on it.

Thanks to all those concerned souls who were ready to storm a certain insurance and case management company with baseball bats, clubs and other devices of the common day thug. I am a man of action, and I appreciate hearing of such action. It warms the heart knowing that someone is ready to knock someone else’s head off for your sake. Alas, such action wouldn’t be of any good though. Most of these people don’t even have heads, as they have been beaten off by previously annoyed family of other patients. Regardless, know that I am doing fine and that only the prayers of such passionate people will do anything to get this situation rectified that and maybe staying away from the sushi.

For all the lastest information, check out www.artcanning.com!