February 4 - A shock that everybody hates cancer

 Yeah... F*ck Cancer man.

Today is World Cancer Day

Declared in 2008 and observed by the UN it's to raise awareness and reduce stigma for those affected by cancer..

The theme this year is "Close the Care Gap".

Definitely something we all can agree on, and that's important too as today is the International Day of Human Fraternity, which was only just first observed by the UN last year.

The day is set to promote the idea that we're all one people and we should have worldwide tolerance and just... get along.  Shocking idea.

The 'god of shock rock' was once known as Alice Cooper.

That brings me back to some 80s rock nostalgia.  The Rocker is 74 today.

My son, +Dean Moore is pretty awesome. ...

My son, +Dean Moore is pretty awesome. Like always, on Fridays we put $2 in his lunch bag to buy pizza on pizza day. Tonight he's sleeping over at my parents so I stopped in to visit and have dinner.  My mom was mentioning how they were thinking of having pizza, but remembered it's pizza day... then Dean pipes up about how he didn't have pizza today for lunch. He says "I was going to, but today they were asking for donations for cancer, and the money is going to help people who don't feel good ... Cops for Cancer in Thunder Bay 2015 - Canadian Cancer Society Police officers and emergency service personnel across Ontario raising funds for life-saving cancer research and services by shaving their heads an... View or comment on Ryan Moore's post »

RIP Uncle Gord

So, my uncle Gord was laid to rest today.  I'm not one for emotional outpourings or anything, and I'm usually very quiet and solemn at these events.

But I wanted to share my memory of Uncle Gord with everybody in my own way.  I didn't get to know Uncle Gord as well as others had, and that's a shame; but what I do remember is that as early as I can remember I had some pretty big impressions of the guy.

I recall being young enough and learning that Gord had served in the army.  I didn't know anybody who had, so that was pretty significant to a young boy.  That, and he had not only served front line, but had parachuted ... and not only that he had been shot.  Nobody I know had done those things. He must have been invincible. Then the story of how he had even fallen off Mount MacKay without any broken bones.

I remember thinking that this was a strong, unbreakable man that I shouldn't mess with.

It's a shame to have lost him.

RIP

---

Sponchia, Robert "Bob or Gord"

Published:  

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

We announce the death of Robert (Bob or Gord) Sponchia on Sunday November 23, 2014 of Thunder Bay, Ontario leaving behind wife Violet Sponchia (Bemko), son Randy Sponchia, daughter Shelly R. Ladouceur and son-in-law Jason Ladouceur, as well as family Eddie, Frank, Richard, Danny, Billy, Donny, Norman, his sister Barbara and their significant others, as well as numerous nieces and nephews. Special thanks to Janice Lessy, those who contributed to his comfort during his time of need and Charmane Stout (Moore) with her family from Utah. He will be greeted in heaven by David (brother), Mary (mother), Carl (father), numerous other friends and family and fellow Comrades in Arms. He lived his life for those he loved by doing what he loved which included truck driving, serving his country in the Canadian Armed Forces, attending the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, spending time with his Robin’s Donuts buddies and of course blueberry picking. Robert will be interred at Mountain View Cemetery on Thursday, December 4, 2:00pm. Fruit baskets in lieu of flowers or a donation to the Thunder Bay Canadian Red Cross HELP program would be appreciated. 

You missed Dean's birthday... might as well get you caught up.

How can I have not written about Dean's birthday?  Man... signs that I'm truly busy.

Work's been stressful and just jampacked, so that when I get home I have very little time these days.  That and I'm trying to make the AC blog work.  Just ... anyways.

Dean's birthday?  Awesome time.  We had a marathon session of cleaning for like 3 days to get it ready as Dean HAD to have it at home.  So... 13-14 kids or so all jampacked in our house... we needed to have it sparkling.

Facebook woes [22/32]

Ugh, I've just about had it with Facebook.

Ironic as today was a day that I helped out on a workshop on how to do it for business.

Saw a plethora of businesses today (not at the workshop though) who masquerade as a profile, add it just irked me.

Then the app is just annoying me... A lot! It's not my phone...
Speaking of my phone, I finally couldn't take it anymore and wanted on the phone about how terrible the reception had been lately.  Of course they kept saying they're working on it, but that's about it ... Well I did get a 25% off until they are supposed to be done, which is October.

That's right, they said to essentially grin and beer it until October.  Horrific.  It's been two years and they still haven't done one ounce if improvement... If anything they've gone backward.

So, yeah, Facebook sucks... My cell provider sucks...
And I haven't been able to bike this week yet (will probably not be able to bike tomorrow, and can't on Friday, so the whole week is a write off).

May Long Weekend "Stay-cation" [22/30]

Had a great after business and then a hectic scrambling for our newsletter... Which made me forget that I had a lunch meeting when I biked, so I had a good lunch biking excursion.

Ended the week subbing at Hammarskjold... not sure if I should count that against my score or not... ah, well, left it in.

So all that much in a week meant I really was looking forward to the stay-cation this weekend, we were staying at the Victoria Inn (fitting no?) with Karen and Justin (and their kids).

A good time was had... Dean even got to share his new love of Peter Pan with Alexis (after having to get the front desk guy take forever to install the replacement as the one we had wouldn't work).

photo is us hanging out by the poolside eating some Eat Local pizza (with brownies) ... Hope times

Anticipation of a storm [20/27]

My standard rule has been... if it rains when I go to bike, I'll drive.  Otherwise, bike.
unless I've got a meeting I HAVE to be at and can't bike to it


That's stuck because I hate getting to work wet... but don't mind coming home wet.

Well, today it was supposed to rain... not just rain, but thunderstorm.  So I looked at outside and it was fine this morning, and the storm was to hit around noon or 2...  so I biked.

I did the right thing, I followed my rule... the only thing was in the back of my head I knew it was going to rain and be terrible ... so I dreaded the homeward journey.

But it never came.

I think that's what made it worse... the anticipation of said storm, but just not coming... I knew it was coming, and almost regretted my choice, feared how bad it was going to be ... but in the end nothing came.

Hrmm...

Ah, well... 20/27 = 74.1%... not bad

Tomorrow is the After Business, and then maybe a band meeting after... so I have to drive.  But it gives me a chance to get some stuff done then... if it rains tomorrow, then that ruins the After Business (they want to do some outside stuff)

Bikin' up a storm [9/14]

So, starting to bike up a storm lately... 3 for 3 this week thus far.
It's still a little chilly with slightly below freezing when I leave, but warms up on the bike home.


...except for today.  It's supposed to rain on the way home; but I'm committed.  And besides, biking HOME in the rain isn't an issue as it would be biking TO WORK.


9/14 = 64%  It's climbing!


And nothing's really holding me back for Thursday/Friday.


It was a lot of fun to take Dean out for a bike the other day to the corner and back.  He REALLY wants to go for a bike ride with me... not sure how I'll do that without having to just walk the bike.


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On the poorer side of things, last night was pretty rough.  I'm not putting this stuff in the title, because I don't want people reading it as my topic, and most likely folk aren't reading this, so it'll be my chance to vent.


I hadn't really talked about this, I don't think, as I'm not one to really talk about my family.  Dean, sure.  But anybody else... no.


My dad has had some health issues ever since he retired.  There was his quintuple bypass, his hernia, his complications (?) with his prostate, etc...  He and my mom are on quite the regimen of pills and supplements.  Druggies we joke with them.


Well, with all these issues, I've seen him deteriorate... not a lot.  But this was the man who ran nearly every day, did the 10 mile road race every year, could paddle 30km a day, biked to work every day, etc... etc... etc...


Anyways, the most recent is he had appendicitis come on pretty quickly and had it removed.  While having it out, the doctor found a 'growth' on his lower intestine, and removed that... that complication really slowed his recovery and he was very weak after that operation.


Last night the biopsy results came back in.  It was cancer.  I don't remember much else of what my mom told me, and rightfully it's still early right now to get any real answers.  Lots more questions than answers at this time.


But something about 3 out of 12 nodes, and something about liver.


This is rough. For those of you that really know me, I don't deal well with death or stuff like that.  I'm not sure I'm even over Alister's death at the moment.


And to add on top of it that this is a man that I've admired all my life.  He's been a strong support for me, and a pillar of what I should be in my life... despite all my attempts to ignore that fact.


And as he's been the 'healthy' one in my life, and yet has had more to deal with in the last few years than many of his less healthy counterparts.  There's a portion of me that is upset with the 'unfairness' of it all.


I think my li'l bro said it best.  He's more willing to speak publicly than I...