Day 38

Tor says that being an Old Stoic makes you a bit more, er, stoic than most. Once you have experienced non-maintained 1970's education of this genre, nothing much can really dent you later in life, is the theory I suppose.

Malabo Prison

Remember Simon Mann's little 2004 Equatorial Guinea excursion? - well, it appears that a stint at Eton similarly prepared him for the slammer in Malabo. So yes, there is an element of stiff upper lip/keep calm and carry on regarding chemotherapy treatment that perhaps makes this blog a tad more palatable than most, but I guess it's down to positive mental attitude coupled with a sense of humour.

I mean, what's the alternative? Look at the touchy-feely CBT-based approach below:

Some time was spent cross-referencing the dramatis personae with the listed moods, I can tell you. The bloke top right is what - grumpy? (not on list) - so how about angry? The chap beneath him looks depressed. The lady next to him is probably anxious, whilst the fourth of our quartet is possibly afraid. So where are lonely, frustrated and helpless? Maybe I've got it all wrong, but why does the whole range of feelings have to be so negative? For sure chemotherapy is the pits, but as the alternative appears to be death, then on the least worst outcome strategic analysis, what's not to like about giving it a go?(once at least, anyway). 

'Him', again

You see, a lot of people never get the opportunity to dodge the bullet - take the 239 currently missing in the South China Sea, for instance. That could happen to any one of us, yet the Grim Reaper has spent an inordinate amount of time huffing and puffing and generally giving me a 'heads-up' that he's stamping around the neighbourhood - thus giving me time to do something about it. 

So that's my deal with Axel - either he will cure me, or he will write me the letter saying I won't survive, which will force my life insurers to cough up, in time for me to do a few things with my family on the 'to do' list. Hell, I might even get the letter and survive. One thing's for sure: I don't know how much time I've got left - but there again, none of us does. No good moaning about it; do what it says on the poster is my advice: