Life is a bitch sometimes...

[Oldman2]

Ive been a member here for a while now and found it on the whole a nice friendly forum for getting and giving good sound advice and it feels pretty much like boating home. I do use facebook but the groups are not to my liking, nothing stays still long enough to be referred to in the future, search here and you have dependable references to return to time & time again.


I used to own hard boats for Sea fishing, as I got older & fatter the boats seemed to get heavier, my desperate attempts to stay afloat got me a 10ft Bonwitco on the beach, but even that upturned on a shingle beach got too hard to use solo.

Then in 2019 I found I had Advanced Prostate cancer so that had to come out leaving me recovering (but clear of cancer) for some time but still needing to go boating.


So I arrived here looking for a sib, after lots of advice I bought an Elling KB350 last summer & started fitting out to enable fishing to resume once Covid & its lockdowns had been dealt with. Summer drifted into winter with lots of fettling but no opportunity to get the boat wet.

Spring saw me still fettling & yes I really do enjoy the workshop, as a long retired electro/mechanical engineer, I feel very comfortable there, but billy no mates still has to launch his boat, so once the "make it as easy as possible" fettling was complete I considered it time to pick a weather & tide window to christen the boat. After all I do only live 5 mins from the sea.
So this is where life steps in to trip you up!
No details, but I now have bladder cancer & i'm in for removal tomorrow, I fully expect to be logging in here in a week or so or less but just in case the unexpected happens I dont want to be disappearing without trace. I'm not looking for sympathy, another thread comment prompted my reveling, normally I would just

[jeffstevens763@g]

Best of luck oldman2

[Poly]

Oh bugger. We expect to see you back here as soon as you are fit for duty. SIB trips seem like something worth fighting for! Perhaps take some charts/maps/pilot book to plan your next adventure whilst laid up?

[Brian]

You have my deepest sympathy.
I too have had several visits from the grim reaper, but I will spare you the details!
Bladder cancer-tush. A minor hindrance. You will be up and running/ribbing in no time.
The thing I have found is to keep a positive and cheerful outlook and demeanour.
Then everything turns out fine.

[Ferryman]

Good luck with it all, in a similar situation I couldn't concentrate on reading or TV but took an iPad and concentrated on boats. It helped a lot!
Have a speedy recovery 🤞

[Steve509926]

Good luck Olman2.

I look forward to reading your Elling KB350 maiden voyage review towards the end of the year.

[Ribtecer]

It's good that you discuss this openly - well done.

I expect you have a tough couple of months ahead of you but once you're thru it you'll be good for plenty of trips out in the SIB, just may be next summer now. And that's probably the same for the rest of us with the rubbish weather this year.

Cancer is a real bummer, but its amazing what can be done.

Remember Churchill's line to the troops before D-Day; "When you're going through hell, keep going"

I look forward to hearing about your progress later in the week.

[Fenlander]

A bummer indeed.

In alluding to those I’m responsible for one is 90 year old dad who was diagnosed last year with bladder cancer. His health was not good enough for bladder removal which otherwise was preferred option so they did very limited chemo and he is now doing surprising well given his age… now fully piped with his lovely catheter nurse on speed dial.

I wish you the best for the op and recovery period.

[Pikey Dave]

All the best, sounds like you’re a battler. Don’t give in.

[willk]

Originally Posted by Oldman2

I fully expect to be logging in here in a week or so or less but just in case the unexpected happens I dont want to be disappearing without trace. I'm not looking for sympathy...

The Sympathy Shop is second on the left!

Eyes to the Future, get the messy stuff done and come back in a week and tell us the craic with you. You'll get afloat yet!

[Brinormeg]

Wishing you a speedy recovery as well, and you better get back to your fettling soon if not onto the boat quite yet, because i need more ideas to steal and customise

[Oldman2]

Thanks everyone for the kind words

[TmMorris]

Good luck. Look forward to hearing from you when you're recouperating. My father has gone through similar and at 86 is still fully mobile and winding us all up.

[Old seahorse]

Wishing you all the best in the coming weeks an d months. Remember you are in good company here. Talking about these things has always been a challenge for men, so good on you.
I found it helped me. (Brain tumour).
Focussing on what you want to do afterwards helps, and we need you back with more ideas to share!
Best wishes, Howard

[Fenlander]

>>> My father has gone through similar and at 86 is still fully mobile and winding us all up.

Yep tell me about it. Today's thing on visiting was to collect the twisted front basket from dad's mobility scooter and put it back to shape for him. This after he rode off the path into the side of a moving car in town. Did hundreds of pounds of damage to the scooter which was covered by insurance but he forgot to give them the basket and ask it was replaced. Yet despite all that damage not a scratch or bruise on him.

And now he asks I get an old fashioned cycle horn with chrome trumpet and rubber bulb to put on the scooter then he can blow it at people "walking too slowly on the footpath" so they can get out of the way in time. Talk about Mr Toad.

Every visit it's something that makes you pull your hair out.

[spartacus]

Get well soon Oldman - cancer in any form is a sobering thought.

There will be days ahead and I'm sure you'll get out on the water. Best wishes.

[Gary S]

Can’t really add to the comments above other than to wish you a full and speedy recovery. Plenty of Sibbing left yet and I too want to ‘pinch’ your ideas!

[jonp]

All the best, hope you get through it all ok and back to some boating adventures in the near future. If you have Netflix take a look at the documentary called 'Fantastic Fungi" seems to be some positive results in regards to cancer treatments.

[Oldman2]

"Number 5 alive" from a film I quite liked Well I'm still here, I was more concerned about the anesthesia than the procedure. Well, I had my lawn mowed and grass collected, then 1hr's worth of weedkiller to try and make sure its dead. In tumour talk I had my tumour scrapped off and sucked out for biopsy, then had an hour of a Chemo drug doing its work.
Got to admire out NHS with the staff all almost running around due to shortages of man/women power they still make you feel like its all there for you. I managed to get to come home today and now need to wait 3 weeks for the review of my biopsy.
Again thanks for the kind words, a few days rest and i'm back to fettling anything as long as the wife is not looking.

[Steve509926]

Take it easy Oldman2.

3 weeks rest and recuperation will probably do you the world of good.