Last Saturday I attended my first state championship game in just under 40 years. It was 1970 and I was a junior at an all boys Catholic high school. There were only two divisions for all sports at the time and they didn’t even have a football playoff. We were a big school at the time with about 1,200 students which would be the equivalent of a 2,400 co-ed school. Sports were special at Chaminade. We would pack the stands in football at whatever stadium we played since we didn’t have a home field and the gym was wall to wall people where ever we played basketball.
Going to a game was a religious experience. Unlike today in that the weekly football game is no more than a social gathering, we actually paid attention to what was happening on the field or court. When we cheered it had a definite lower, more bass like tone due to the heavy male component of the crowd. Certainly girls attended from our sister schools, but they were in the minority. Maybe that was why it wasn’t a social event.
Chaminade had won the state in basketball in 1966 and was to duplicate the feat that year. We played several games during the season at UD Arena as crowds of 7,000 or 8,000 would make their way to a game. We played Roth high school also from Dayton twice that year and both were epic battles. They proved to be the only competition that we experienced as the final two games of the tournament were 20+ point wins. When we beat Roth to win the district, we knew the rest would be easy.
The reason that I bring all of this up is that when I went to see Jason’s football team win the state 35-0 last Saturday, there wasn’t nearly the euphoria demonstrated by the students that we had felt. Winning state championships at Hamilton is a normal occurrence. It brings to mind the day that we visited the high school when we were deciding which school the boys would attend. One of the administrators, while showing us around the school, mentioned that they had finished the season as runner-up in football which was a complete disappointment. Wow, I thought.
It seems that Hamilton has won five of the last seven state football championships and will finish either second or third nationally in the ESPN high school ranking. They have won three baseball championships in the same seven years. They have had the best golfer in the state the last three years, all different young men. It is truly a sports factory. Their academics aren’t being left behind, as they have been ranked the top high school in the state.
Since Jason moved out here, he has witnessed three championships, one in baseball and two in football, one while being part of the team. Yet, I don’t sense the same level of excitement that I felt. Julia and I ran into other students after the game Saturday and it was more business as usual than bravado. This begs the question, “Can too much success dull the enjoyment?”
This all brings me to my success with regard to my treatment. I am approaching every blood test as if it were a game in the 27-0 1970 season. The test that I took about a month ago was certainly no blowout victory. Although there was some positive information, there was also the scary. Because this disease does a job on your organs which is eventually how it wins, I am super sensitive to anything that leads me to believe one of these irreplaceable organs may be losing the battle.
When I was told that my creatinine had risen from 2.2 to 2.8, I became extremely apprehensive. Dr. Mikhail was very reassuring with his normal statement that I shouldn’t get too worried about one point in time but to be more focused on trends. Easy for him to say, I’m the one headed for dialysis. Don’t talk to me about a kidney transplant. The chance of a cancer patient getting an organ transplant is about as good as Roseanne Barr being asked to sing the National Anthem again.
Waiting the 3+ weeks for my next test seemed to take forever. I had contacted my nephrologist who put me on a blood pressure medicine as my blood pressure has gone through the roof since returning to work full time. I think I need hazardous duty pay. The thought was that the high blood pressure was causing the kidney to be less effective.
I took the test first thing on Monday morning and the waiting was driving me nuts. Luckily I have a connection or two and I was able to get the creatinine reading that afternoon. The fact that it came in at 2.2 was a huge relief. My major concern had shifted from the cancer to my kidney function. That little number was a major victory for me. It was like the state championship all over again.
The numbers on the cancer itself are a little less exciting. My light chains moved up again to 9.24. This is now higher than the two month post transplant amount. However, the amount of protein in my urine is almost down to normal at .109 grams with normal being as high as .102. Because my light chains are moving in the wrong direction, I will have to undergo another blood test and 24 hour urine sample next month. If the trend continues, it looks like I will have to start up some type of maintenance drug. Hopefully the last couple of tests are not indicative of the future. I might have to ask for a refund on my transplant.
One thing I have learned with multiple myeloma, you appreciate every victory. State Championships can come every day and you still reach a state of euphoria with each and every bit of good news. This is the one place where just staying the same is like reaching the peak of Mt. Everest. I just wonder when they are going to let me hold the Championship trophy.
Going to a game was a religious experience. Unlike today in that the weekly football game is no more than a social gathering, we actually paid attention to what was happening on the field or court. When we cheered it had a definite lower, more bass like tone due to the heavy male component of the crowd. Certainly girls attended from our sister schools, but they were in the minority. Maybe that was why it wasn’t a social event.
Chaminade had won the state in basketball in 1966 and was to duplicate the feat that year. We played several games during the season at UD Arena as crowds of 7,000 or 8,000 would make their way to a game. We played Roth high school also from Dayton twice that year and both were epic battles. They proved to be the only competition that we experienced as the final two games of the tournament were 20+ point wins. When we beat Roth to win the district, we knew the rest would be easy.
The reason that I bring all of this up is that when I went to see Jason’s football team win the state 35-0 last Saturday, there wasn’t nearly the euphoria demonstrated by the students that we had felt. Winning state championships at Hamilton is a normal occurrence. It brings to mind the day that we visited the high school when we were deciding which school the boys would attend. One of the administrators, while showing us around the school, mentioned that they had finished the season as runner-up in football which was a complete disappointment. Wow, I thought.
It seems that Hamilton has won five of the last seven state football championships and will finish either second or third nationally in the ESPN high school ranking. They have won three baseball championships in the same seven years. They have had the best golfer in the state the last three years, all different young men. It is truly a sports factory. Their academics aren’t being left behind, as they have been ranked the top high school in the state.
Since Jason moved out here, he has witnessed three championships, one in baseball and two in football, one while being part of the team. Yet, I don’t sense the same level of excitement that I felt. Julia and I ran into other students after the game Saturday and it was more business as usual than bravado. This begs the question, “Can too much success dull the enjoyment?”
This all brings me to my success with regard to my treatment. I am approaching every blood test as if it were a game in the 27-0 1970 season. The test that I took about a month ago was certainly no blowout victory. Although there was some positive information, there was also the scary. Because this disease does a job on your organs which is eventually how it wins, I am super sensitive to anything that leads me to believe one of these irreplaceable organs may be losing the battle.
When I was told that my creatinine had risen from 2.2 to 2.8, I became extremely apprehensive. Dr. Mikhail was very reassuring with his normal statement that I shouldn’t get too worried about one point in time but to be more focused on trends. Easy for him to say, I’m the one headed for dialysis. Don’t talk to me about a kidney transplant. The chance of a cancer patient getting an organ transplant is about as good as Roseanne Barr being asked to sing the National Anthem again.
Waiting the 3+ weeks for my next test seemed to take forever. I had contacted my nephrologist who put me on a blood pressure medicine as my blood pressure has gone through the roof since returning to work full time. I think I need hazardous duty pay. The thought was that the high blood pressure was causing the kidney to be less effective.
I took the test first thing on Monday morning and the waiting was driving me nuts. Luckily I have a connection or two and I was able to get the creatinine reading that afternoon. The fact that it came in at 2.2 was a huge relief. My major concern had shifted from the cancer to my kidney function. That little number was a major victory for me. It was like the state championship all over again.
The numbers on the cancer itself are a little less exciting. My light chains moved up again to 9.24. This is now higher than the two month post transplant amount. However, the amount of protein in my urine is almost down to normal at .109 grams with normal being as high as .102. Because my light chains are moving in the wrong direction, I will have to undergo another blood test and 24 hour urine sample next month. If the trend continues, it looks like I will have to start up some type of maintenance drug. Hopefully the last couple of tests are not indicative of the future. I might have to ask for a refund on my transplant.
One thing I have learned with multiple myeloma, you appreciate every victory. State Championships can come every day and you still reach a state of euphoria with each and every bit of good news. This is the one place where just staying the same is like reaching the peak of Mt. Everest. I just wonder when they are going to let me hold the Championship trophy.
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