WHAT A WEEK!

What a week it has been!

It has been a while since my last update and let me assure you I am very well. This blog entry is going to definitely let you all know I am very well and fighting fit. Firstly I am sorry to all my female readers (my wife included), for your loss and the mourning of Dr. Patrick Reid (AKA Matthew Le Nevez) from your Wednesday night TV screens in the hit show Offspring. 

I had fun over the weekend spending time with my beautiful girls playing at the park and having a milkshake and coffee with the girls. Lisa was attending an Osteopath training session in the city over this weekend. I think she enjoyed her time being an Osteo and mixing with adults and not having small people at her ankles calling out; ‘mum, mum, mum!’ Over and over again! It was a fun weekend with the girls. Something I will treasure forever. Lisa deserved this time away.  

GIRLS PLAYING IN THE WINTER SUN

Also on this weekend, I presented my Cancer journey to another local footy club (Upper Ferntree Gully) an old rival club of mine from my footy days. 

Apologies for the Presentation format. I use Keynote on the Mac to present and create my work. To add to this blog I need to change it to a PowerPoint and it appears the fonts/format don't match. 
I wouldn't present the way the slide share has done in this blog. 

The presentation went well. I did have technical issues to begin with, but the message was definitely well received. It was strange talking to a club I used to battle against. This presentation was attended my both my parents and sister Olivia, who have all been a huge support for me in this terrible journey I am going through. It was the first time my mum and sister had heard me speak and this was an honour to do in this presentation front of them. I was nervous but all the same proud of the fact they could be there. 

After the weekend, I attended and presented at a two day educational conference organised by the VITTA organization. I presented to about 45 educators for 50minutes on ‘Blending the iPad into the Curriculum’. It went well and made me feel alive and more passionate about my craft of teaching and using technology to engage students and staff. Networking at these conferences is always a wonderful experience and an excellent way to gain further knowledge and skills.

On the first day at this conference I was awarded an award for ‘Outstanding Service in Using Information Communication Technology In Victorian Primary Education’, the citation that was read out was rather overwhelming. I am honoured to have received this award and to be acknowledged for my work in the area of e-learning in education, something I truly thought would never happen to me.

The second day of this conference I presented a 15min Keynote Presentation on Provoking Learning in Your School. It was rather stressful leading up to it. But once I started it was all smooth sailing. I took a huge risk in presenting to the 100+ audience…. I made a movie and let that play through whilst I spoke. A huge risk, but I think it paid off.

In between all of this I had a blood test to see how things are going with my Melanoma progress. The results came back very good. The oncologist is extremely happy with my progress. My hemoglobin is high and in the good zone, impressive as he said. He looked at me and added you look fit and healthy, not looking like someone who is progressing in a bad way. These words pleased me very much.

We also had a very lucky experience at home, images below will explain it all. The weather in Melbourne has been terrible, rain, hail, windy and destructive. The house next door had a massive pine tree on the nature strip fall over and damaged the neighbor’s front fence. It fell and missed the car parked in her driveway. The ‘what if’s’ all come out when these type of things happen….what if it fell toward our house? What if Lisa was walking past? Lisa actually came home during the storm and parked the car in our driveway, she raced inside and left the girls in the car to quickly grab something…what if the tree fell on the car?

OUR HOUSE IS THE BLUE FENCE. 

I am thankful no one was hurt and feel terrible for my neighbor and her damaged property. In all the tree is still uprooted and looking dangerous.

My training is going well. I am riding heaps and averaging about 140km a week, also finally back running doing about 4-5km’s once a week.

Matthew Collins, my mate and riding partner have been challenging each other on the rides. I am feeling a lot fitter… and loving the riding even more. Keen to keep riding more often and looking forward to hitting the hills more frequently, the running will also increase and my aim is to hit under 4.30min/km pace. Which is nowhere near my best pace, but it is good to be running.

Also another huge achievement and relief to all is that I am back driving. This is good for all close to me. Thanks to Bruce Oakley and those who have driven me to many places.

I’d like to finish with letting everyone know that I have scans in 4weeks and feel very confident that I have no new tumours and the one that is left will be reduced in size.  My journey is not over and I am feeling very good at the moment the best I have felt in a long time. Cancer is not pleasant and I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone, but I feel like I have been given this disease to challenge me, and give me the chance to motivate those in my life. Cancer, especially melanoma, is unpredictable and I still stress about small niggles I get, but I am believing I will win this battle.

Lisa, the girls and I are looking forward to our holiday in September to Palm Cove, will share my scan results before the holiday.

Love to all and remember hug your loved one’s. x