Day 412 - I feel you, Bruce Banner.

Current state of my abdominal lymph nodes

Maybe it's a good thing that I'm not spitting out a new post every week. No news is good news? Chemotherapy treatments have been continuing every three weeks and just last week I started a new round of radiation. This time, the target is a small cluster of cancer-infected lymph nodes in my abdominal area. Recent scans show no activity in the esophagus, or the lymph node in the neck. The cancer has not spread anywhere else, but this one, current, problem area remains. The targeted radiation and continued chemo will, hopefully, stop that cluster from spreading anywhere else and knock it down/out.

Radiation treatments started, like I said, last week (Thursday). I'll be getting 15 total treatments - when the machine works, lol. They've been having issues with the machine this week causing scheduling delays and, in the instance of today, having to cancel my appointment. Tell me this isn't the plot line of a Marvel superhero movie? I'll go in for my treatments and something will be off with the machine - bombarding me with gamma rays and giving me incredible super powers. I joked about this with one of my techs, asking when I was going to get my superpowers. To which he replied, "You already have one of them, the ability to grow luxurious hair." I think he just wants a good review or something, lol.

My energy level has been great. I was invited to Fort Myers, Florida, for the Southwest Florida Reading Festival at the beginning of the month. They flew me down and put me up and I was on a couple of panels. It was a fantastic time! I also did a week of school visits, which is always fun. It's my favorite part of being a children's author. I've been writing, writing, writing. I just turned in the 9th Junior Monster Scouts book and I'm writing the 10th. The 8th book, The Rottenest Reunion, comes out this fall. I also turned in the 4th Junior Monster Scouts Ready-to-Read book. The first two will be published in July. I'm working on a new middle-grade novel, Jess and I have started a new project together, and I have a really cool side project in the RPG gaming industry.

So, as you can see, I've been keeping busy doing what I love. And I'll keep doing that as long as I'm around to do it. In the meantime, if you find your neighborhood, town, or city besieged by a supervillain, don't be afraid to shoot me a message. It's only a matter of time before my powers manifest...you may, however, want to have a geiger counter and hazmat suit on hand.

• j