November 1, 2021

Post Surgery Early Lessons

Things Just Got Real

I really haven’t had to address anything regarding the cancer diagnosis until now. I just had to wait until the surgery date.

In the interim, I took care of myself. I did my morning stretches and intentions. I went for walks. I rowed. I felt really good mentally, physically, and spiritually.

But coming out of it, I feel like I lost something. My feelings are still raw and unprocessed, not unlike the wounds from the surgery. And those wounds are not pretty.

October 17, 2021

Anxiety Is Like an Armed Torpedo

Anxiety: A Target Seeking Armed Torpedo

One of the most important things I’ve learned is that anxiety is like the torpedo scene in the movie The Hunt for Red October. Like an armed torpedo, our brains like to search for a target.

In the movie, Soviet submarine Capitan Ramius is attempting to defect and turn over the submarine to the U.S. government. But before they sail, he sends a letter explaining his intent to a relative in the Soviet government, and now the whole Soviet navy is hunting him.

October 11, 2021

Van Insulation Install

Adding Insulation

Insulation was always in the plan - eventually. But if you’re not going to do it when everything is out of the van, when will you? So I bought some Thinsulate sm600l, and a couple of cans of spray on glue, and got started.

It was a fairly simple job. First, I used a citrus cleaner to wipe down the van wall. Then, I held the insulation up to the wall with the backing facing me, and marked where I wanted the cut using a piece of kid’s sidewalk chalk. Oddly, I had a piece of chalk in the van.

October 8, 2021

Cancer Treatment Path Good News

First Fork on the Path

Yesterday, I got the answer to which fork I’ll be taking on my cancer treatment path, and it’s good news. I don’t have the BRCA gene mutation, so I’ll be having the easier surgery.

The next data point will come after the surgery when we’ll find out if the cancer made it to my lymph nodes.

While We Wait

I find myself not really waiting for anything. Nothing requires my attention or any action right now. Nothing I do will change whether I have a gene or where the cancer cells are today.

October 2, 2021

Give Up Perfection for Balance

Perfectionism is a Lie That Ruins Your Health

“Perfectionism is not the same thing as striving to be your best. Perfectionism is the belief that if we live perfect, look perfect, and act perfect, we can minimize or avoid the pain of blame, judgement, and shame. It’s a shield. It’s a twenty-ton shield that we lug around thinking it will protect us when, in fact, it’s the thing that’s really preventing us from flight.”

September 28, 2021

Treatment Plan

We Have a Plan - One Step at a Time

I got to spend some quality time with both my oncologist and especially my surgeon today.

I learned a lot about breast cancer surgery options. The treatment plan all winds down to a couple of key decision points.

The first decision point is which type of surgery I’ll have. That depends on whether I have the BRCA gene mutation. If I don’t, then it’s a lumpectomy and radiation. Otherwise, I’ll have to have a double mastectomy, and there’s no need for radiation treatments in that case.

September 22, 2021

New Teacher

I’ve Been Assigned a New Teacher

And look… she comes with a workbook

Breast Cancer Treatment Handbook

I’m Sorry to Drop That On You

What do you say when you are told you have cancer? Well, my sister and I laughed about it after the inital downer that the sentence, “I have cancer” brings to a conversation. We both said that we’ve been expecting this our whole lives. Both parents, both grandmothers, all that time swimming in a river full of agriculture chemicals, not to mention my time around radioactive sources. I’m a very lucky person, but that’s a lot of risk factors.

September 12, 2021

Zero Trust Access to Cameras

How to Control Access to Your Cameras

Now that you’ve assembled and configured your cameras, you’ll want to be able to view them from the internet. But how to do that?

Some options you have:

Option	Difficulty	Security Considerations
Leave Port(s) open	Easy	Greatest exposure / highest risk
VPN	Medium	Limits exposure to 1 port
Cloudflare Teams	Medium	No open ports

Cloudflare Teams and Tunnel

Cloudflare tunnels is a zero trust service. That’s buzzwordy for you’ll have to authenticate every time you want to connect to view your cameras. Your device isn’t trusted, and there’s no client to trust.

September 12, 2021

Van Electric Build Part 1

First Componets Delivered

Electricy Gives Us Freedom

The electric system is a huge part of what makes van camping so convenient and van life so enticing. We want to be able to hop into our vans and travel to wherever we like, and live and work from the road. That requires electricity, and that’s why it’s worth the time, money, and effort to do it right.

August 5, 2021

Lake Shetek State Park

Trip Notes

Lake Shetek State Park is a beautiful park with a large lake and lots and lots of trails. We spent part of three days here and walked every day without having to repeat a trail. There was a small oak forest bordering the lake, and praire further from the lake shore. There were fish ponds that unfortunately weren’t ponds due to the drought, but still plenty green and full of wildlife.

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