Sunday 13 July 2014

Race For Life

It was a very early start for a Sunday morning. The alarm set for seven much to both Tracey and Jessica’s delight; both of whom had been out the night before on the razzle.

 Luckily we had prepared the night before. Our kit was ready with the race numbers pinned to both the front and back of the girls T shirts and all ready to go. No faffing, well less faffing as a faf-free departure for two teenage girls is nigh on a impossibility!

Tracey and Jess were both pretty quiet as we headed out the door. No doubt questioning what they were doing going out so early after not getting in until the wee hours! We jumped into the car and headed out. Surprisingly the sun was shining and it was a lovely morning. The forecast had been for showers.

We parked the car in Clifton village and walked to the Downs where the event was being held. We gradually saw more and more ladies dressed in pink obviously taking part in the 5k race themselves. The previous day had seen the 10k race being run and a fun event-the Pretty Muddy race with various obstacles thrown in for an extra challenge.

Gradually more and more people arrived. Heart radio manned the stage and the team wound the crowd up before the race culminating in a final warm up. To see a sea of ladies all clad in pink doing the warm up all in synchronisation was quite funny. People of all ages and ability joined in, the young, the old,mums with kids, some even ran with the kids strapped to their backs in carry chairs or pushed them in pushchairs! Others came in fancy dress, one of Jess’s friends being one of them sporting her Kermit the frog onezey!


There was a minutes silence held to remember all those people that had lost their battle with Cancer or who were currently fighting this terrible disease. It was very poignant with many people shedding a silent tear.


Then the fun began! The ladies were split into three groups; the runners, the joggers and the walkers. Not wanting to overdo it so early on a Sunday morning the girls decided on the latter group. It wasn’t long before they were soon on their way.


Tracey and I waited patiently in the sun for them to finish the race. It wasn't long before the first runners came over the finish line and soon they were coming in thick and fast. Each collecting a bottle of warter, a snack and their all important medal as they funnelled out over the finish line. After a while we soon spotted the girls heading towards us through the crowds. Huge smiles on their faces, both had thoroughly enjoyed the event  and vowed to do it again next year.

Thursday 3 July 2014

Catching Up..

Somebody asked me the other day did I still think about Pseudomyxoma very much?
And the answer is simple....yes.....EVERY SINGLE DAY.

I have been lucky enough to have got the all clear at the last annual scan and to have enjoyed a cancer free year and in recent months made a conscious effort to take a bit of a step back for a while and concentrate on the family and managing my very busy day job. However my experience with Pseudomyxoma has had such an impact that I simply cant forget about it and crack on. The images are still burned into my memory and to be honest I think they always will be.

 We booked a holiday recently and were all very excited when we put the deposit down and secured our place but within minutes I realised that the holiday will be not long after my annual CT scan. Damn, so it’s either going to be a very good holiday or could be very subdued. Hopefully the former!
I’m expecting my invite to Basingstoke Hospital for my annual scan to land on the doorstep at any moment.  Like all of us I am nervous of what the outcome might be. To get another all clear would be new territory for me and break my previous record!

 Recent months have been very busy indeed. As usual my job has kept me very busy and of course being parents to two teenage girls is keeping Tracey and I on our toes! The months have been full of the usual family days out and manning Dad’s taxi.

Chloe has decided to join Jess in the Bristol Race for life event being run on Sunday 6th June. I’ll be a proud Dad. I’m proud that they are both supporting such a great event. I just hope the weather is kind for what should be a great day out and a wonderful experience for both of them.  If you would like to sponsor Jess and Chloe in their Race for Life event and help them achieve their fundraising target then you can do so by visiting their just giving page at-https://www.justgiving.com/jessmason/

I look forward to posting about the day with photo’s in the next week or so!

Over the past few months I have continued to make contact with fellow PMP patients via the blog site and lucky enough to make acquaintance with some very brave people and offer support to them where I can. It’s such a rewarding side to the blog site and I am glad that I can help in some way.

Regarding my own health I continue to do well. I continue to run two or three times a week and get a lot out of it. As well as the obvious health benefits I find it a great way to manage the stress levels. But I find it also has other physical benefits as well. After so much surgery on the bowl things aren’t quite the same as they used to be but running definitely seems to help. The difference is noticeable and if there are periods when I don’t exercise then the niggles and gripes sneak back in.

 I have also managed to sneak out and get some fishing done. It’s a hobby I have enjoyed since I was a young lad and these days escaping to a quiet spot on a lake somewhere in the sun is a perfect day out for me. Don’t really care if I don’t catch anything just being there in the outdoors is enough for me, especially as I am trapped in an air conditioned office all week long.

So lots of things happening in the next few weeks to report on....Race for Life & the Annual scan...watch this space.


That’s me for now, over and out fellow PMPers!