A randomly unhappy post with a joke at the end

Had my quarterly hemo appointment last week, and things were ... well, the same. Is this good news? In the scheme of things, yes. But my fantabulous doctor -- and I do need to stress how great he is, because he has a great bedside manner without pulling any punches -- laid it to me straight: Sometimes people live with my condition for years, and sometimes it turns "ominous" (his term) quickly.

For what it's worth, I feel pretty good, and that's what matters, right?

Saturday night, Paul and I had dinner with Matt and Johanna. She'd just returned from spending more than a month in Europe and we'd just returned from New York. She brought us pistachio-flavored Cheetos and an electrocution machine and we brought them shot glasses and crayons.

We were reporting on our respective trips and Matt's upcoming business trip to Los Angeles. I said I wish I had more time and money to travel.

"You only live once," Johanna reminded me. A friend of hers died last year. He had saved a lot of money and had planned great things ... and then he was gone. I think her long trip to Europe may have had something to do with that "If not now, then when?" mentality. (Also, she's a successful author, so, you know, she can get away with spending months abroad.)

And after a couple of glasses of plum wine, it was decided: We're all going to Amsterdam. This fall. She has a travel agent friend who can hook her up with mad cheap tickets to Europe, and she's been to Amsterdam before, so she knows a place to stay. When Paul protested -- he has a dissertation to write, after all -- they promised to take good care of me if the three of us went alone. So now I have a pact to go to Amsterdam.

Yesterday, I found out -- and I really can't say any details yet -- I might have a good opportunity to travel elsewhere, and soon (like "oh my gosh, need to get a passport now" soon). And though Amsterdam is appealing, my loyalty is to hubby. So, frankly, I'm not sure what happens now or where I'm going to go.

I'm sure of one thing: I need to travel while I can. I don't know whether I'm going to get sick -- and if I do, whether it'll be in a matter of months or years or decades. I'm going to live forever! And so is Paul! And so are you guys!! But if I don't, I don't want a lot of regrets. I'm going to make a dent in my "To Do Before I Die" list while I'm still young and healthy enough to enjoy everything.

Wow. That was much more depressing than I intended, guys. To make up for it, I'll tell you a funny riddle because you've read this far:
Q. Who's a ninja's favorite composer?
A. Chopin.

Oh, don't lie to me, buddy. I know you're laughing on the inside.