My father-in-law was operated on this morning. He was wheeled into the operating room at 10 a.m. and wheeled out a half hour later. I had no idea it would be so…fast! He called me at 10:45 a.m. to report that everything had gone very well. The first thing he said to me when I answered the phone was: “Hey, shuffle the cards.” I almost fell off my chair…

I am happy to report that my father-in-law was in very good spirits and felt fine. He called again around lunchtime to tell me that he may actually be sent home tomorrow. Wow! So now we just have to wait for the new biopsy results…fingers crossed that the surgeon was able to remove the entire blasted thing from his cheek…

But get this (talk about bad timing…!): Pinga is in HEAT. Have you ever been in the same house with a cat, kitten in this case!, in heat? Well, I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy (if I had an enemy, that is…). Last night Pinga hollered and shrieked and howled and hollered again…almost non-stop, so Stefano and I got very little sleep (= zzzzz today!). And our other cats are beyond baffled by now…

Plus, now we have to be super careful when we enter or exit the house…Pinga is right at the door, ready to slip outside. And boyohboy, if she manages to escape, we will end up with 4-5 newborn Pingas to take care of…eeeek!!! Oh, and the bad news is that she cannot be spayed while she is in heat…and this, the vet said, could go on for a week or so. Sigh!

A week of no sleep, especially NOW? Holy cats in heat!, I might have to check myself into a mental hospital…(just kidddddding, of course…!!!).

A blog reader (thanks!) sent me this story…it may well be a joke, but who cares? I like the message…

Always ask, never assume!!!

His request approved, the CNN News photographer quickly used a cell phone to call the local airport to charter a flight. He was told a twin-engine plane would be waiting for him at the airport. Arriving at the airfield, he spotted a plane warming up outside a hanger. He jumped in with his bag, slammed the door shut, and shouted, ‘Let’s go’. The pilot taxied out, swung the plane into the wind and took off.

Once in the air, the photographer instructed the pilot, ‘Fly over the valley and make low passes so I can take pictures of the fires on the hillsides.’

‘Why?’ asked the pilot.

‘Because I’m a photographer for CNN’ , he responded, ‘and I need to get some close up shots.’

The pilot was strangely silent for a moment…finally he stammered, ‘So what you’re telling me is: you’re NOT my flight instructor?’

I would like to thank my friend Sherlock publicly for all the help and support she has given to me in this period. Over the weekend I asked her for about a million studies on the effect of different non-toxic substances on melanoma, and she found them all for me. Now I just have to read them…(!).

I would also like to thank the readers and friends who have left comments here on the blog and the many others who have written to me privately with heaps of suggestions and links to various studies. A couple of readers even sent me some full studies. All this has been very very helpful, but most of all, your concern and kindness has really warmed my heart…Myeloma (and other cancer) patients doing research on melanoma…

What can I say but…thank you thank you thank you!!!

Now for the cat naming issue. Even though we really liked most of your suggestions (which we will save for our future cats), Stefano and I have decided to stick with the name that I had originally found for our new kitten…so she has been officially named “Pinga,” which means “turmeric” in Sanskrit. I mean, doesn’t it look as though some turmeric has fallen on her and stained her fur here and there?

Pinga is such a funny little creature…day before yesterday, e.g., I found her sitting in front of the washing machine watching our sheets go round and round…and round! Now and again she would get up on her hind legs and try to attack the sheets…I ran upstairs for my camera and got a few lucky shots…sooo cute!

There is no easy way to say this, so here goes: about two weeks ago, Stefano’s father was diagnosed with Stage III invasive melanoma, based on the biopsy of an itsy bitsy spot on his cheek, which, he said, didn’t bother him in the least but was “wet.” As soon as the biopsy results came in, my father-in-law was scheduled for more invasive surgery (=next week). Last week, therefore, he had a bunch of pre-surgery tests.

Then on Thursday my father-in-law went to see the oncologist/surgeon, Dr. G. (one of the best in Florence), who gave him the results of the CAT Scan: unfortunately, the cancer has spread to his lungs…

Stefano has been home all week with a bad case of bronchitis, which is being treated with heavy duty antibiotic injections and cortisone. And now…this bad news about his father…

Eh, I won’t hide that this has been a very difficult period for us…

Anyway, I have a few reasons for writing about this today.

1. I may find it difficult to answer all of my blog messages and contacts. I answered a whole bunch this morning, but it isn’t easy for me to concentrate these days, as you can imagine.

2. I won’t be doing any myeloma-related research in the next few days, unless something really spectacular falls into my lap. My focus, at least in the next couple of weeks, must be on melanoma. My father-in-law has asked me to go with him to see a second oncologist, Dr. P., on February 16^th. Incidentally, Dr. G. personally made this appointment (= three big cheers for the Italian public health service!!! First-rate work!).

Dr. P. apparently treats melanoma without using chemotherapy or radiotherapy or even surgery…we are not sure what he is going to suggest for my father-in-law, but I am going to ask for his opinion of curcumin and other things that I hope to uncover in the next week or so. I will be taking heaps of studies with me, of course. Never go to a doctor’s appointment empty-handed…

3. Finally, I would like to make an appeal…in particular to my blog readers with melanoma: please get in touch with me, especially if you are taking anything non toxic that has been beneficial. I really need your help, here…thank you so very much!!!

P.S. On a lighter note, our new kitten has been THE best possible treatment against depression and sadness. And to think that we adopted her just a few days before receiving the bad news about my father-in-law…talk about odd coincidences! Anyway, she is a laugh-out-loud little creature. Let me give you an example: yesterday, while Stefano and I were lying down after lunch, she came to sit on my chest and began licking my nose…then she opened her little mouth as wide as possible so as to fit most of my nose into it (obviously I do not have a big nose!)…and then, CHOMPPP!, she bit down hard before I could stop her…OUCH! Stefano and I both burst into laughter…

In addition to doing the cute and funny things that most kittens do, she is also a real sweetheart. She happily lay in my lap for hours yesterday as I played cards with my father-in-law. She also loves to lie on Stefano’s chest (or mine), purring, making funny faces and getting him to smile…and believe me, we don’t have much to smile about these days…

When I opened our bedroom door to let the new kitty out (for good!) on Tuesday morning, the hissing competition began…at times it was so loud that it seemed as though our house had been invaded by swarms of snakes. So much drama! Not to mention all the scampering and chasing up and down the stairs, see photo.

Yesterday things settled down somewhat, and today all seems to be calm. I have even seen Peekaboo and the little one eat side by side.  

News flash: we have decided not to name our new kitten “Pinga” after all. A blog reader wrote to tell me that in Spanish that word means, uhm…something that men have and women don’t (!)…so we are going to change her name to…well, we are not sure what, yet.

She is such a lively bouncy little creature that I was thinking about Peppy (from piperine, thanks Hans!).

Any other suggestions?

A blog reader’s husband, 38 years old, was diagnosed with solitary bone plasmacytoma last October. She asked me if I knew of any other reader…with the same diagnosis, of course…that was taking curcumin, resveratrol or any other supplements. I told her I would publish a post asking anyone with SBP to contact my reader by leaving a comment here…or send me a private message, via my e-mail address or my blog Contact form, and I will forward it to her. Thank you so very much!

I know she looks HUGE in these photos, but she is really a little bitty thing. This morning I picked her up and took her to the vet who confirmed her age: 4 months. Pinga was fine until the vet and her assistant tried to draw blood from one of her paws. At that point my sweet little bumble bee turned into a crazed writhing screeching hyena…the vets couldn’t hold her down, not even with a towel wrapped around her…no kidding. They almost gave up, but I knew we had to find out if she had FIV. With my help, they finally got a blood sample (and a few scratches to boot)…and I am happy to report that she got a clean bill of health. No fleas, either!

As soon as I got home, I shut our cats in a room and let her explore the rest of the house. Then I shut her in our bedroom with Stefano, who is home from work…yes, he has the flu (eeek! I am taking Sambucol and Manuka honey…prevention, prevention…). In the late afternoon, we began the slow and cautious introduction process. So far we have introduced her to three of our four cats, one at a time, of course…and yes, there has been a lot of growling and hissing, especially (and surprisingly!) on Peekaboo’s part. We thought that our amiable little Peekaboo would be the friendliest…boy were we wrong!!!

Today the cats have had only brief encounters…or rather, brief hissing and growling sessions…as for tonight, well, Stefano and I have decided to sleep in separate bedrooms. He will sleep with Pinga and Mr. Flu, and I will sleep with the other kitties. I know that may sound extreme…but cat lovers, especially those with multiple cats, know how these things go…it will be fine in the end, but it will take a few days…