weston

Is this what living feels like? It has been so long

MRI Results

I know I promised a bunch of you that I was going to let you know the results of my MRI when we were told. Unfortunately, things didn't quite work out that way, so here is a long over update on my health situation.

I am very happy to say that my tumor has not grown or spread during this four-month period. Leading up to us getting the results I was terrified to be honest. My tumor has grown this year, and I was very afraid that we may be getting bad news.

These results of no change are extremely confusing for me. On the one hand, I am very thankful and happy that my tumor has not changed for the worse. On the other hand, can I really feel happy when there is no improvement in my condition? The result of a maintained state is a dual-edged sword.

Christmas



I really hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas (Or other such Winter Solstice Festival). Mine was amazing if I do say so myself.

I spent the days leading up to the big holiday helping my mom with the cooking. Her leg and back were giving her hell, so I spent my free time making cookies (Which is what she normally does around this time of year). I didn't enjoy the work, but I must say that I make some damn fine bakery goods

We have a tradition around here where we bake a bunch of things up and then make platters for neighbors. We ended up making three or four and walking around our neighborhood in the biter cold (At least by San Diego standards) and delivering them. It was funnyAs we were headed up to one neighbor's house (Who live behind us), their son was headed down to our with a platter lol. We also made one for our neighbors across the street (Who are relatively new to our area). And lastly we headed a bit up the street and delivered one to some family friends.

The dad there just recently had a heart attack, so he was very emotional (To the point where he was actually crying). It was a strange sight to behold being that the dad has been and usually is an asshole. But I suppose something like a heart attack can change even the biggest of fools. I can't remember whether or not we gave a platter to our next door neighborsThey gave us avocados (Only in SoCal lol).

After we had made all of those stops we jumped in the car and took a short drive to another family friend. We made a delivery there and chatted for a while.

Christmas eve night and morning were spent making breakfast. A blueberry French toast of sorts. It was better than I expected, but the recipe could definitely use a bit of tweaking. My brother and his fianc went down to the beach in the morning, so it was just the folks and I left here to open presents. My loot list is as follows:

Nintendo fucking Wii!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (As well as Call of Duty 3)
Sony DSC-H2 + Kit (Wide Angle lens, Telescope lens, 3 piece filter set, table tripod, carrying case, extra batteries and charger, cleaning kit, and 1GB SD Card)
White Tomlinson jersey
Frank Miller's Absolute Dark Knight
Frank Miller's 300
Books from the For Tomorrow and Hush series
Black Holes and Revelations - Muse
The Black Parade - MCR
Wolfmother - Wolfmother
Sam's Town - The Killers
Clothes (A couple pairs of shorts, some sweaters, underwear, big thick socks to sleep in, a Hurley long sleeve shirt, and an Anchor Blue thermal long sleeve shirt)
An Oakley Beanie (From my departed buddyMiss ya Angelo!)
$395 ($355 from my grandparents in Las Vegas, $20 from my grandma here, and another $20 from Angelo)
Bruce Lee DVD set
The ultimate Superman DVD set
POTC: Dead Man's Chest
Jones Soda (Strawberry Manilow, Eggnog, and Candy Cane)
A couple magazines (FilmMaker and GameInformer)

I think that is everything. If I forgot to mention something, I'll realize it tomorrow and feel like an ass lol

And yea, I know that is a lot of stuff (And expensive stuff at that). It is a well-known fact around these parts that I may just be a tad bit spoiled. Don't get me wrongI'm buy no means a brat or anything like that (Or at least, I sincerely hope that I'm not). I recognize how fortunate I am and I am extremely thankful for everything that I have and am given.

I wasn't the only one who got some fancy presents however. My mom gave my dad a gold chain (His first necklaceOr at the first he has had since I've been born), and my dad gave my mom a gold necklace as well (Which unfortunately didn't fit, and which she is exchanging for diamond earrings). We gave my brother a digital camera and printer dock and some portable DVD players for the kids for their commute between their separate households (Both my brother and his fianc are divorced and have children).

So, my brother and his fianc finally make it over to our house, as well as my grandmother and we chat and get ready for dinner. We wanted to try something a bit different this year, so rather than having turkey (My personal favorite) or even ham we had prime rib. Surprisingly this was only the second time I've ever had prime rib (The first time having left me thoroughly disappointed). We also had vegetables (Carrots and potatoes that were cooked with the meat), rolls, and Caesar salad. Overall, it was a very tasty meal. My grandmother had to make an early departure from the eveningSeveral years of smoking are finally catching up to her (Among other things).

I've had little time to enjoy my gifts, but here's my experiences with the few things I have gotten a chance to use.

My camera is simply amazingI am completely I love with it. I think it is perfect for someone just getting into photography. It offers fantastic quality and dabbles with "professional" features (The ability to use lenses, the freedom to tweak shutter speed, the aperture, focus, etc.). I am very, very, very happy with my decision to get this camera.

The Black Parade by MCR is surprisingly good in my opinion. I got a chance to listen to it throughout our post-Christmas vacation, and I enjoyed it. I was a bit hesitant to purchase it when it first came out as sophomore albums are often disappointing. But I must say, this is not the case with MCR. Keep up the good work fellas!

The Nintendo Wii is by far one of the most innovative and enjoyable consoles I have ever played. For as simple as the included Wii Sports game is, I could not get enough of it. I dominated so much in Tennis that my arm actually hurt the following day. The aiming in Call of Duty 3 took some getting used to, but after a few failed attempts (Which would have cause severe motion sickness to those with lesser stomachs), I was able to shoot enemy infantry with the best of them. Not to mention that there are so many ways to use the remoteWhether it is aiming it like a gun, turning and pulling to set charges, violently punching in an effort to fight off the all-too-close enemy soldier, or using them as a steering wheel. I honestly can't wait for more games to come out that really push the limits of what is capable with these remotes. In other Wii related news, I pick up Twilight Princess tonight, but I've yet to play it.

Viva Las Vegas

Sadly most of these gifts sat in my room collecting dust following Christmas. You see, we went to Vegas a day or so later to visit with my grandparents. I promptly feel asleep during the car ride up there, so I can't comment on that. All I know is that it was long, as always, and that I was happy when we arrived at our hotel.

Where did we stay at you ask? The Suncoast as usual? Nope! We splurged a little bit and decided to stay at the relatively new Red Rock! Let's just say that it was a very wise choice. We've seen the casino before and it is a very pretty place, but what really makes this place stand out is the rooms. They are simply gorgeous and stand head and shoulders above other rooms we have stayed in.

Here is a picture of my bed. The room features a very nice bathroom, a very nice television, bench like furniture at the foot of each bed, a small couch like sitting area, reading lights, and a touch-sensitive light in the corner of the room (Which I spent turning on and off while by myselfYea, I am easily amused at times), a fully stocked mini-bar (Soda, alcohol, snacks, first aid kit ((WTF They charge for a first aid kit?!?!?!?!)), disposable camera, and "intimacy" kit ((oh la la!!!))).



Here is our bathroom. Featured in this photo is the bath (Which is surprisingly deep). To the left is the sink area (Pretty standard stuffSoap, shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, and glasses were located theirAlthough they did have Q-Tips, cotton swabs, and a nice magnifying mirror as well). To the right is the toilet (Nothing fancy here) and shower (Featuring a glass door!).



Next up is our television. Very impressive! Although poor reception of broadcasts and a lack of HD programming renders the nice, large screen relatively worthless.



And finally, our view from the room. It overlooked the pool area (Which we couldn't use because it was far too windy and far too cold). The only bad part of this is that they are still in the process of building, so there is a large construction area directly underneath our window, which wasn't appealing in the least.





We headed over to the Bellagio to see their Christmas decorations. There were nice, but I don't think it was worth seeing due to the amount of traffic we had to deal with (Both in actually driving to the hotel as well as walking through it).

If memory serves correctly, these giant bears were made out of carnations!



I believe these reindeer were made out of pecans!



These pictures can't really show off the beauty of this display, but take my word for it, it was incredibly beautiful. Loads of flowers and plants and water shooting through the air.







The next stop in the hotel was the candy/chocolate store. Ok, so who do I have to suck off in order to get one of these in my room?



And here is me being emo and artsy later that night while my parents were downstairs gambling.



We also did quite a bit of geocaching while we were up there. We ended up finding five of the seven caches we went searching for and were taken everywhereFrom the parking lot of Red Rock, to the sidewalk by Costco, to a dog park, to the middle of the desert.

Here was our first venture into the desert.



The surrounding landscape.







The area we where in had actually been where lightning had struck. The evidence was everywhere.



Another geocache took us to undeveloped land (Which will no doubt be turned into housing in the next few years). This was a really odd experience. Walking back from the cache, the sun was directly in my eyes, forcing me to look down at the ground. This left me with a sense that I was really lost in the desert, with nothing more than the clothes on my back. I kept pushing forward, but everywhere around me was just more rock, more sand, and more dying plants. As we neared the parking lot, bits of civilization started to appear. A bit of scrap metal here, a broken bottle there. But none of it did anything to remove the isolation I feltRather it reminded me that this was a forgotten and abandoned landThat humanity and civilization were long departed. And then we reached the parking lot, and my story came to an end.









Our last venture into the desert was our most difficult. There was no clear entry point to the wilderness here. Rather, we had to crawl on our bellies through barbed wire fencingOh yea, I'm punk rock.





The Fun Doesn't End There!

Tomorrow we are celebrating a belated Christmas with all the kids. We have a bunch of presents here for them to open in the morning. We're also going to be going over to my bro's place to bring in the new year. Should be lots of fun, although I highly suspect that I may the only one up when the clock strikes midnight.

The Wrap-Up

If you read through all of that, you deserve a medal. Or at the very least, I salute you and offer an e-hug! Sorry for any 56kers who happen to come across this page (On second thought, I'm not all that sorryServes you right for still using that ancient connection!).

Hope you all had a great Winter Solstice holiday, and I hope that you all have a fun-filled and safe New Year celebration! For those of you who may be wondering, my resolution is to lose fifteen poundsI've put on a bit of holiday weight I'm afraid to say.

Have a great one everybody! Much love to all!

-Weston

Current Mood: Exhausted
Currently Listening to: "Famous Last Words" - MCR
Currently watching: Well, not quite "currently watching," but I can't get enough of: Smallville, Miami Ink, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, Made, True Life
Currently Playing: Counter-Strike: Source ([p]X | Phoenix, [p]X | Suckimus Maximus, or [p]X | Beware the Kha'ak), World of Warcraft (PXAnime on Kel'Thuzad, Sandtiger on Akama), Battlefield 2 (=Superman=KalEl or =PXConqueror=), Warcraft III (PX_Conqueror)
Currently Reading: The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks
Sites: Art MySpace Xanga SuicideGirls
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