Life continuing in other ways too!

I am happy to report that pending finger print and background checks I expect to start a new job as early as next week. I think I have found the perfect mix between going back to work and having more time to work at my new role as a single and primary parent. I have been fortunate for much of the boys lives, I have pursued great careers, been a director at a global level -- traveling much, doing great things and earning enough money to keep Trish mostly at home. This allowed her to fulfill her best role ever as a great Mom and family cook.

I am hoping the new job will allow me to be half the Dad that she was a Mom to the boys.

My new job will be in the IT department at Broward Community College (BCC -- http://www.broward.edu). Assuming all works out with the backgrouund check the plan is that I will start next Monday and than the following week I will get a week paid vacation courtesy of the college's Spring Break. Since this may be our only chance for a vacation, as any other days I earn will probably be used with Andy's departure for college and Matt's Lacrosse Camp, The boys and I will take a quick trip up to Orlando and do the parks and stuff. Next year, we will do what Trish asked of us and take a European vacation in her honor.

That's all the news for now.
Take care,
Chip

Say it is great to be a FLO-RID-A GATOR....

Andy is in! He's a GATOR! Mom would be proud!

Unhappy Anniversary

Hello all. Today (Feb 9) is the anniversary of our visit with Dr. Fu, where we found out that we would be headed back to Johns Hopkins for more chemo and a transplant. As we headed back it was clear that Trish was more scared than she was the first time. I was more scared the first time, but as we headed back last year I was more driven to survive the process and less focused on the negative possibilities than I was when we first headed up to Baltimore in October of 2005. Maybe, it was just to be strong for Trish. Either way, I guess it is just history now.

A brief birthday Update

Hi to all of you who keep checking in on us (which I do appreciate).... This weekend was more than the super bowl it was Andy's 18th birthday (pictures below). Andy went to the Seminole Hard Rock Casino with friends Saturday night, he wanted to exercise his new found right to gamble. He played it smart and while he was up $50 at one point cashed out up $4, so at least he didn't lose anything -- at least that's what he told me. We had family over Sunday to celebrate and I spent most of Friday and Saturday preparing.

It's funny, Matt said I shouldn't complain about all the work - -Mom always did it...I reminded him that Mom and I tag teamed -- She didn't ever have to pressure clean the patio and prepare a meal at the same time..... I made pulled pork, per Andy's request after he chose his favorite of the three recipes Trish had on hand. Cole slaw, beans, fries. Luckily Andy's cake of choice is a Carvel ice cream cake and I didn't have to figure out how to make that. I also made home made hamburger buns -- this took the longest time of actual kitchen work. In the end Andy appreciated the efforts. I'm trying my best and missing my love at every turn.



My first interview is scheduled for Feb 12th. I have mixed feelings. I know I need to get back to normal and work and yet I have so much more to do around the house... One day at a time.

Tree Planting

Here are some pictures from the tree that was planted at Nova High School. In case you are at the school and want to see it, it is located in front of the auditorium building facing the parking lot, closest to the baseball field. The temporary sign I built cost less than $20 and looks pretty good for a cheap and easy solution. The bronze plaque should arrive in about a month to replace my cheap solution. Marianna showed us in a book what the tree will look like when it matures-- it will have beautiful orange/scarlet flowers and is a Florida native. I grabbed these facts from the Florida Gardener web site, I believe this is the right one, the Geiger Tree:
Plant Facts:
Botanical Name: Cordia Sebestena
Plant Type: Evergreen tree
Height: 25', medium growth rate
Soil Requirements: Various, an ideal plant for problem soils.
Water Requirements: High drought tolerance also high flooding tolerance. Holds up very well to salt spray.
Light Requirements: Full sun. Frost sensitive
Leaves: The large, 7" long, stiff, dark green leaves are rough and hairy and feel somewhat like sandpaper
Flowers: Dark orange, two-inch-wide flowers appear in clusters at branch tips most of the year.
Fruit: 1" to 2" long, pear-shaped fruits have a pleasant fragrance
Propagation: Seeds, cuttings.

Memorial Tree

This Thursday (2pm), Trish's friend Marianna and her sister Kath will plant a tree in Trish's honor at Nova High School in Davie. Trish graduated from Nova in 1981 and both our boys will graduate from there as well. I have ordered the plaque below to mark the tree.

Last week was rough, Andy and I had a nasty stomach virus. It took a huge bite out of the progress I expected to make in my new found time to get stuff done. That's ok, I am trying to hit the ground running this week.

It was a rough week for another reason too. Late Thursday night, I received an e-mail from the mother of a patient that we were close to at Hopkins. In April of 2007, Michael had been diagnosed with ALL after a dentist visit and the gums would not heal. I and a mother of another ALL patient re3ached out to Michael's Mom to help her get organized, get help and cope with this devastating diagnosis. She really appreciated the help. The year was rough for Michael. He was in his early 20's and just getting started on his college degree. He wanted to be a math professor. He was often depressed about what was happening to him. Trish and I would try to pump him up everytime we saw them.

Michael passed away Janury 9th. He is the first of the folks we were really close to at Hopkins to pass away. Remember him in your prayers as well please.

Cookbook still coming.....but blog book available

After the first bout of chemo, folks asked for an easy to read print-out of the website and I produced one. I just finished the same thing for this second round. Both are available from Cafe Press. They print as needed and send it directly to you. Neither is a book or novel, just simply a reproduction of the web sites in chronological order. I had some tough moments building it, as I relived the last year. If you want a copy of the story it is there for you to get.

I hope to have the cookbook finished before January is over and who knows maybe a new job, not too much after that.

Matt's eyes are fine. Andy and I had a nasty stomach virus to start this week off, but it appears to be passing quickly. So all is as well as it can be.....
Web-book of February 2007 through December 2007

Web-book of October 2005 through March 2006

Quick update on Matt

Jus thought I'd write a quick update on Matt's eyes. A day or two after the ER/neurologist appointments he started seeing normal again. Today we had our follow-up with the neurologist and other than a normal cyst in his throat the MRI was perfectly normal. The doc had not yet received Matt's blood work report, but Matt passed all the tests today and was declared "normal'>

The doctor scheduled one followup appointment in February, but the assumption is that it was viral and has passed. So no treatment plan needed. Guess that's our first official bit of good luck this year... yeah!

Post Christmas Update

Just when you thought things were starting to settle down for the DiComo's.... Matt woke up yesterday (Dec 26th) with double vision. I ended up coming home from work and we headed to the pediatrician, who sent us to the ER for a CT. The ER doc sent us to the on call opthomologist. The good news is that no tumor or bleeding was found in the CT. The Opthomologist diagnosed the problem as a nerve failure in Matt's right eye. He is trying to get us in to see a neurologist/opthomologist today. Apparently there are only three in South Florida -- luckily the one he wanted to send us to is supposed to be back today. Matt said it was better when he woke up today, so maybe it will just go away. They may want an MRI and I told them if they do we really need to do it before Monday.

Other than this new twist to our lives, we are doing ok and had a great Christmas. We had everyone over our house for Christmas Eve as Trish wanted. I made her famous Christmas tort (see pictures) and loaves of home made french bread for use with the sausage and peppers we grilled. Everyone brought some food and all had a good time, despite the laid back look in most of the pictures I took. We went to my brothers house for Christmas day.

Enough for now, I hope your New Year is great and uneventful.

Christmas is Coming....

Merry Christmas! Later this weekend I will try to make Trish's Sundried Tomato and Pesto Tort -- I have renamed it: Torta Trisha.

You know I am not a big believer in mysterious signs, coincidental messages and the like. This despite a deep faith, but there are some "signs" that I thought I would take the time to share with you today.

The Saturday that I brought Trish into the ER, after she was brought up to the CVDL surgical suite, I headed back to the apartment across the street to wait the several hours she was in surgery. I decided to start cleaning up the room. I went to take off the orange Beat AML bracelet that I wore everyday and it snapped and broke. I have to say given what was going on, I did worry about this "omen".

After some cleaning I went up to Weinberg 5B and waited in Trish's soon to be new and last room for her to return from surgery. I watched the Gators play Georgia. The Gators were favored to easily beat the Georgia team. The Gators looked very good early on, but quickly and very unexpectedly fell decisively to the Bulldogs. It was shaping up to be a bad day and possibly another small "omen".


Yesterday, I went to Doris' Italian Market to pick up needed supplies for Christmas Eve. On the way out they had Baci's in small two packs and I picked one up. Trish loved Lindts Lindor truffles; I have the same affection for Perugina's Baci's. Baci is Italian for kiss. Each pillow of hazelnut and chocolate includes a small message of love akin to a fortune cookie message.

I ate both candies. Didn't even bother to read the message on the first one I hate and flung it back in the car. After eating the second one, I read it's message. It seemed to come from Trish. I almost bit Matt's head off as he picked up the box with the message inside on the way home from church. We receive messages all the time. We choose which ones to listen to, believe, respond to. Whether incredible coincidence, divine guidance or sheer luck. I choose to believe Trish has sent me a message.

The Message: "If ever two were one, those two are we"

An Update

Greetings! Since my last post saying that I wouldn't be sending out Christmas cards this year, I thought I should at least take some time here to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and a great New Year. Also to once again thank you for your love and support during the toughest two years of my family's life.

2008 may start out tough for us as well. I received word on Friday, that I am part of my company's next round of RIFs, due to the declining housing market. My last day of employment is Dec. 31st. I have to admit that I am looking forward to some downtime after the two years we have just been through. From Trish's Aunt Mary to just about everyone at Hopkins, they will tell you that between my caretaking duties for Trish and my work, bills and insurance -- my days were full and stressful. I slept and relaxed very rarely if at all.

Trish would be quick to remind me that I am a work-a-holic and help get me back to work quickly. She could tell if I was enjoying my work or not, sometimes even before I realized that I wasn't she would know. I am going to miss her guidance and direction moving forward. She was not a business person in any way shape or form, but sometimes she gave me the best business advice.

This Friday, we will hang Trish's picture on the Christmas Tree at church during a special memorial Mass for family members who have passed away this year. This Sunday, the 7pm Mass at St Bart's is being said for Trish. This is where we met in 9th grade and where after college we met again and after a lot of racket ball and youth ministry -- fell in love. It's where we were married and both our boys were baptized. It will be strange to be back at St. Bart's, but I am planning on attending this Mass.

Our neighbor Sandy is helping to type up recipes for the cookbook, with her help and my new found time without a job -- we should be able to publish a book early in the new year. I'll use the email list to let everyyone know when it is available.

Have a great holiday and new year!

Some thoughts....

Just a few random thoughts, I know many folks will not see these, but for those still checking.....

* Something's gotta give and for me this year it is Christmas Cards. Thanks to the few folks who have sent us cards to date, but I won't be sending any out -- heck we are still working on Sympathy thank yous....

* Many people have asked if the Trish DiComo Assistance Fund is still open. It is, but I have removed the contribution button from the web site. We will likely close it out by the end of the year as we pay off Johns Hopkins. If the bills run more than the fund has we will arrange for payments with Hopkins. We did run out of insurance and the fund will assist us in paying these bills.

* We received many nice memorial gifts -- trees in Israel, American Cancer Society Donations, Mended Heart Donations and Donations to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I was asked when Trish died, where I wanted money to go in lieu of flowers and I said no where -- meaning I wanted to give Trish a grand send off with flowers and in deed you provided that grand send off. While the most obvious place to send memorial gifts is the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS), since Trish had Leukemia, but there is actually another foundation that provided us with much more assistance than the LLS did. It is Trish's college sorrority foundation. They provided us with the single largest donation to the Assistance fund. I'd like to suggest that if there is anybody out there still looking for a way to honor Trish that you consider a donation to this foundation. They even have a memorial brick program. Trish was a founding member of the Delta Gamma Chapter at the University of Central Florida. Donations can be made by contacting the Foundation: Anchor Grant Fund, Delta Gamma Foundation 3250 Riverside Drive; Columbus, Ohio 43221 or by calling 1-800-644-5414.

* Recipes. I am working on pulling togeher a cook book of Trish's favorite/frequent/most loved recipes. If you have a suggestion or request, please email me.

Getting Along....

Just an update to let you know we are ok. There are good days and bad days, but they keep going on and that's what matters.

I seem to be discovering retail therapy. I've been buying things that Trish and I talked about getting, but never did or things that we could use around the house. This is very out of character for me and gives me more stuff to do and frustrates me because I am not getting other things done... I have made progress on the boxes in my bedroom, but it feels like a gerbil on the wheel, it never ends. This Saturday, Matt has an all day debate and I am judging in the tournament. So there goes another day of working around the house.

We haven't gotten a Christmas Tree yet or started decorating, hopefully this Sunday we can do that. I have also started putting together recipes for a cookbook. I was thinking I could get it done before the holidays, but that's just looking very unlikely.

You know when you get married, you are told that you should become one, that you are no longer two people, but one. You laugh and accept that as a figure of speech. You only realize how much you have or haven’t become one when you lose the other half. Trish and I were as complimentary and necessary to each other as I could imagine. We were truly one. I feel like a car with two flat tires many days. It is only her desire to have me move on that keeps me going on those days.